1. ARRA Reporting on Sponsored Projects: Information Sessions
The receipt of ARRA (American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009) sponsored project funding entails unprecedented new quarterly reporting requirements. Some of the requirements and data elements are new or different from anything we have ever reported. The Federal government has been clear that reporting on ARRA funding is a high priority and accepting these funds carries new responsibilities.
To simplify reporting requirements for PIs and ensure that the University meets ARRA reporting obligations, we have developed critical information sessions that will help streamline the process, identify roles and responsibilities, and explain how some of the required data elements that are not available in either the HR or Financial PeopleSoft systems will be collected from the PI or their designee.
Information sessions will include:
- Explanation of the quarterly reporting process
- Information required from the PI for the quarterly reports and the mechanism for collecting this information
- How effort will impact the jobs created/saved numbers
- Other compliance requirements
Information session dates:
- Tuesday, September 1, 10:00 - 11:00 a.m., Moos Tower Room 2-690
- Thursday, September 17, 1:30 - 2:30 p.m, Moos Tower 5-125
- Thursday, October 1, 1:30 - 2:30 p.m., Moos Tower 5-125
- Additional sessions are tentatively planned for October–December and will be scheduled based on demand; details for these subsequent sessions will be e-mailed and posted on the OVPR Stimulus Funding webpage.
Sessions will also be available as a UMConnect presentation at tinyurl.com/ARRAsession.
We encourage PIs and their support staff to take part in these sessions. They are an important step in helping to provide a unified understanding of the ARRA reporting process, requirements, data elements, and any new responsibilities that will be necessary in helping to provide accurate and timely quarterly reporting.
Please contact Tonya Knutson (knuts055@umn.edu or 612.624.7850) or Sue Paulson (spaul@umn.edu or 612.624.5007) with any questions.
2. NIH Steps Up Enforcement of Scientific Overlap in Proposals
The University has recently received several notices from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) rejecting proposals for scientific overlap (e.g., submission of a new research grant application that contained one or more scientific aims overlapping a proposal still under review). Other institutions have reported receiving such rejections as well. NIH’s policy concerning submission of similar or overlapping proposals is summarized in NIH Guide Notice NOT-OD-09-100.
3. Review Prototype of Updated Proposal Routing Form (PRF)
Last winter, Sponsored Projects Administration collected input about how users would like the Proposal Routing Form (PRF) updated to improve its overall functionality, to make it more compatible with EFS, to capture new information in emerging areas, and to resolve small idiosyncrasies. Since that time, the PRF Workgroup has been hard at work translating those requests into detailed functional requirements (wording, placement, formatting, error messages, data validations, etc.).
A prototype of both the online and the new streamlined printed form are now available for you to review, as well as a list of the major changes that we've made. Comments are invited through September 15, 2009, and may be sent to prf-workgroup@lists.umn.edu. After the end of the comment period, the prototypes will be programmed and then tested. A final release date will be announced this fall, but our goal is to have this available by January 1.
4. Videobroadcast: "F&A Rates for the Non-Accountant"
On September 2, 2009, 10:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m., the University will present the National Council of University Research Administrators (NCURA) videobroadcast, "F&A Rates for the Non-Accountant," in 130 Murphy Hall.
Facilities & Administration (F&A) revenue is critical to supporting the research infrastructure at universities and colleges. Scientists and institutions would not be able to sustain research activities without this source of revenue. Universities and colleges have experts that calculate and negotiate our F&A rates, however every level of research administrator should have a basic understanding of what comprises the rate, and the variables that can drive its calculation, such as cost-sharing, waivers or coding.
Participants will gain an understanding of:
- The F&A rate preparation process, including the “long form” and the “short form”
- The interrelationship of proposals to the F&A rate proposal (e.g., categorizing proposals as research, instruction, other sponsored activities)
- The departmental perspective for space inventories, cost sharing and effort reporting, and how those pieces fit into the F&A rate proposal process
- How pre-award, post-award, and departmental administrators all have responsibilities in this process
To register for this workshop, please contact Michael Harris at harri826@umn.edu. Certified Approvers must register online at https://onestop2.umn.edu/training/index.jsp?unit=CA to receive continuing education hours. For more information on the Certified Approver program, visit www.oar.umn.edu/CA/index.cfm. For more details on this and upcoming NCURA programs, go to www.ncura.edu/meetings/.
5. Fall 2009 Electronic Grants Class Schedule
The class schedule for Fall is now set. Two new classes are “SPA (Sponsored Projects Administration) and Clinical Trials” and “EGMS (Electronic Grants Management System) in an hour.” The schedule and class descriptions are available at http://tiny.cc/7PKNY. To register, e-mail ersstraining@umn.edu.
6. Update on Patent Reform Legislation
Excerpt from the July/August issue of NCURA Magazine:
Because of the importance of patents to universities and their role in technology commercialization and economic development, the university associations in Washington led by the Association of American Universities have been heavily involved in Congressional patent reform activities. Over the course of the four-year patent reform process, the associations have raised a number of issues with Congress, some university-specific, other shared by other groups.
The rest of the article is available at http://www.ncura.us/docs/julymag-724.pdf.
7. Associate VP Pamela Webb Receives Distinguished Service Award
The National Council of University Research Administrators (NCURA) has chosen the University's Pamela Webb, Associate Vice President for Research, to receive its 2009 Distinguished Service Award. NCURA established the Distinguished Service Award in 2001, as a way to recognize members who have made sustained and distinctive contributions to the organization.
Pamela Webb has been a member of NCURA since 1991 and has served in many different capacities including her current role as an NCURA Peer Reviewer. She was actively involved in NCURA’s 2008 50th anniversary meeting as she served on the 50th Annual Meeting Program Committee, as a Workshop Faculty, Moderator, and also a Senior Summit participant. In addition to having served as NCURA Secretary in 2000-2002, Pamela also has served on the NCURA Board of Directors, its Nominating and Leadership Development Committee, as faculty for NCURA’s national touring workshop, Sponsored Projects Fundamentals, as an Electronic Research Administration Committee member, and she was Co-Chair of NCURA’s ERA III Conference. Pamela also has presented at numerous NCURA conferences and both national and regional meetings.
For a press release about this award, visit http://www.research.umn.edu/documents/NCURAPamelaWebb.pdf.
8.
Funding Opportunities and Program Announcements
- For details about Stimulus Bill funding opportunities and news, visit http://www.research.umn.edu/stimulus.html.
Recent announcements include:
- The Teacher Quality Partnership Grants Program aims to improve student achievement; improve the quality of new and prospective teachers by improving the preparation of prospective teachers and enhancing professional development activities for new teachers; hold teacher preparation programs at institutions of higher education (IHEs) accountable for preparing highly qualified teachers; and recruit highly qualified individuals, including minorities and individuals from other occupations, into the teaching force. For details, visit http://www.research.umn.edu/stimulus.html#DoEd.
Deadline: October 6, 2009
- The Patrick J. Manning Research Grant Program has provided a small grant mechanism (up to $500) to support proposals designed to improve the welfare of animals that support the research mission of the University of Minnesota. Civil service, bargaining unit, and student employees are eligible to submit applications. Faculty and P&A staff are not eligible. For details, visit http://www.ahc.umn.edu/rar/manning.html#grant.
- McKnight Land-Grant Professorship nominations are being accepted by the Office of the Vice President for Research. The program provides two-year awards to junior faculty through an annual competition with the aim of strengthening the faculty for the future. For details, visit http://www.grad.umn.edu/faculty-staff/mcknight/land_grant.html.
Deadline: October 1, 2009
- The Grant-in-Aid Fall 2009 competition is accepting applications. The Grant-in-Aid of Research, Artistry and Scholarship Program in the Office of the Vice President for Research seeks to promote the scholarly and artistic activities of the faculty and their graduate students and to foster academic excellence within the University. For details, visit http://www.research.umn.edu/gia/rfp.html.
Deadline: September 21, 2009
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