PI Toolkit
The PI Toolkit is a collection of tools, information, and other resources to guide you through the award lifecycle. To recommend a resource for the PI Toolkit, please complete our suggestion form.
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Find Funding
The Research ASSIST Office helps UA employees identify external funding opportunities from the federal government, state government, foundations, non-profit organizations, and corporations using various databases. These are commonly used resources but may not be inclusive of all sponsors.
UA has access to the following funding opportunity search databases:
- National Science Foundation (NSF)
- National Institutes of Health (NIH)
- National Aeronautics and Records Administration (NASA)
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
- U.S Department of Agriculture (USDA)
- U.S Department of Commerce (DOC)
- U.S Department of Defense (DOD)
- U.S Department of Education (ED)
- U.S Department of Energy (DOE)
- U.S Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)
- U.S Department of Homeland Security (DHS)
- U.S Department of Justice (DOJ)
- Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA)
- Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMSHA)
- AL Department of Economic and Community Affairs (ADECA)
- AL State Council on the Arts
- AL Department of Mental Health (ADMH)
- AL Department of Public Health (ADPH)
- AL Department of Human Resources (ADHR)
- AL State Department of Education (ALSDE)
- AL Department of Transportation (ALDOT)
- AL Law Enforcement Agency (ALEA)
Proposal Development & Submission
Proposals for external funding should be submitted through the Office for Sponsored Programs. OSP can assist in the preparation of proposals by assisting in the creation of budgets, identifying necessary forms, explaining requirements for submission and electronic research administration.
The Office for Sponsored Programs is here to help in all the steps that lead up to the submission of a proposal.
- Proposal Development Guide: Step-by-step guide for pre-proposal activities, proposal preparation, submission, and processing
- Institutional Fact Sheet: UA institutional business information
- Data Management & Sharing Plans
- TIG Consulting
When a portion of the research or substantive effort of the prime award is transferred to another institution or organization, the forms below must be reviewed and completed. The Office for Research & Technology Agreements assists in forming agreements between UA and other institutions.
- Subrecipient vs. Contractor Form: A form is required to document whether a proposed relationship should be classified as a subrecipient or contractor. This determination is based primarily on the type of work proposed, not solely on the type of entity. It is important that the correct determination is made early in the process; the information provided below will assist you in determining the appropriate classification.
- Subrecipient Commitment Form: Commitment form to be completed by entities who will be subrecipients to UA.
Please refer to the chart below for helpful identifying factors in guiding the determination:
| Subrecipient | Contractor |
|---|---|
| Performance measured in relation to whether objectives of project scope are met | Does not have significant involvement in the overall design of the research project, and uses little to no discretionary judgement in performing the project scope |
| Responsible for programmatic decision making | Provides similar goods or services to many different customers within normal business operations |
| Does not operate in a competitive environment | Normally operates in a competitive environment |
| Will usually own the intellectual property it develops | UA will own the IP generated under the project |
| Technical lead would be considered co-PI on the UA award | Technical lead would not be equivalent to a Co-PI on the UA award |
| Technical personnel will author/co-author project publications | Technical personnel will not contribute to project publications |
Budget Prep
- Budget Guidance
- Budget Template
- FY 25 FA Rate Agreement
- Fringe Benefit Rates
- GRA Costs & Course Fees (Under “Minimum Cost of Graduate Assistant”)
- GRA Tuition Rates
- GRA Health Insurance
- Graduate Student Stipend Schedule
- Graduate Student Stipend Schedule, Culverhouse
- Institutional Base Salary
Language for Proposals
When the agency limits the budget and cost share is not required, our best recommendation is to reduce the scope of the project to match the allowable budget.
However, if this is not feasible, our next best recommendation is to describe the available institutional support in the facilities and resources section of the proposal without using quantifiable information. For example, you may wish to use something similar to the following language:
As a part of my appointment in the College of Education, a portion of my time is protected for research purposes, which may be used in support of this project.In support of the education mission of the University, the effort of a graduate research assistants may also be used in support of this project.
Federally Approved Fringe Benefits Rate
The fringe benefits rate is expressed as a percentage of salary and the dollar amount is calculated by applying the appropriate rate to each UA employee’s salary to be charge to the grant. The proposal fringe rates to be used vary based on employee classifications such as full or part-time. See proposal fringe benefit rates and GRA health insurance information.
Salary Requested on an Hourly Basis
The University does not pay or record time for Faculty, Postdocs, or GRAs on an hourly basis as it is subject to the cost principles it the Federal Uniform Guidance found at 2 CFR 200 and allocates salary charges based on a percentage of effort. An individual’s hourly rate, therefore, may go up or down depending on the number of hours worked in a particular month. The numbers of hours and hourly rates are only estimates.
3 Months Summer Salary
The payment of summer salary obligates the faculty member to provide the proposed percentage of effort work on the sponsored program for the full period for which compensation is paid. A faculty member who requests summer salary for 100% effort on sponsored program activities during the summer must forego vacations, proposal writing, departmental work and other related UA administrative duties.
Faculty members often receive multiple grants or have instructional or teaching requirements. It is essential to ensure salary is not charged to one project while expending effort on a different project or on institutional related teaching and administrative activities. Failure to account accurately for salary charges to various projects or institutional funding can result in significant disallowances.
Therefore, it is important to keep in mind that during the summer months, the effort a faculty member expends should coincide with where the salary is charged. If a faculty member charges an entire 1/9th of their academic salary to a grant, they must expend 100% of their effort for that month towards that grant. In other words, he/she cannot take significant time off for vacation while being paid from a grant. Nor can he/she spend any time writing new grant proposals, developing new course curriculum or performing any non-research related work.
Paid summer effort is also certified through effort reporting and audited and must align with actual work perform on those projects. Therefore, it is very hard to justify that a faculty member is not checking email or doing other UA related work so we discourage charging the entire 3 months to be charged to an award so that we do not get in a situation to be out of compliance and have to pay back funds that could hinder funding to UA for future projects.
- Cayuse Research Suite: Electronic research administration system that PIs and administrators use to prepare proposals for internal processing, review, and submission.
- Conflict of Interest: Resources to help identify potential conflicts of interest, plus information about training, the institutional committee, and disclosure FAQs.
- Proposal Timeline Calculator: Calculate internal deadlines for proposal routing following the Proposal Routing and Review Policy.
Award Setup & Negotiation
OSP will route award package to Contract and Grant Accounting for account set-up after all compliance requirements have been verified. For questions regarding compliance, please review the Compliance tab.
Advanced Spending Authorization (ASA)
Internal form to request approval for account set-up and spending prior to issuance of new award or amendment
The department and college will be responsible for funding any disallowed costs. Not all grants and cooperative agreements allow pre-award spending. Please verify with your OSP specialist prior to initiating an ASA request. Contracts are not eligible for pre-award spending.
Non-Dept Approvers
For schools, colleges, departments, and institutes without a chair, use the following links:
All Approvers
- Human Subject (IRB) approval and resources: Protocols, approval process, training, and resources for research activities that involve human subjects
- Animal subjects (IACUC) approval and resources: Protocols, approval process, training, and resources for research activities that involve animal subjects
- Conflict of Interest: Resources to help identify potential conflicts of interest, plus information about COI training, institutional committee, and disclosure FAQs.
- Responsible Conduct of Research: Sponsor-specific RCR training and RCR FAQs.
- If subawards are included in your project, reach out to your OSP specialist for subaward execution.
- If subawards were not part of the original proposal submission, please contact your OSP specialist for the correct process for adding a subaward.
All contracts and some grants and cooperative agreements require additional review and negotiation. OSP will collaborate with ORTA on the review and execution of these awards.
Research Security
Securing and protecting research involves developing awareness of the potential domestic and international threats and implementing procedures and controls to reduce those risks. The following training modules provided through the CITI program implements the requirements described in National Security Presidential Memorandum-33 for current and upcoming Federal Research Security Requirements as a recipient of federal research funding.”
All researchers will complete the course Undue Foreign Influence: Risks and Mitigations through the CITI Program (Touchstone required). The course covers:
- Undue Foreign Influence Impacts and Concerns for Academia
- Reporting, Research Integrity, and Effective Practices to Manage Undue Foreign Influence Risk
- Cybersecurity and Compliance Considerations for Safeguarding Research
- Nondiscrimination Considerations When Managing Undue Foreign Influence
There are four modules, and each module can be completed in approximately 30 minutes or less.
Export Control
UA requires all personnel involved in research, including faculty, staff, and students, to complete and maintain training on Export Control.
Effective October 1, 2024, Training must be completed prior to your activity commencing. Training is available via CITI, under Export Control, Introduction to Export Control. Additional modules are available and appropriate for additional education based on role in the project and type of project.
Award Management
The Office for Sponsored Programs serves as a liaison with external sponsors on award negotiation and acceptance while ensuring institutional and regulatory compliance. OSP also facilitates all post-award administrative changes throughout the life of the project. OSP routes all awards, amendments, and post-award changes to Contract and Grant Accounting for financial account set-up.
The Office for Contract & Grant Accounting assists when any financial changes are made throughout the life of a research project. If a faculty member is contacted by the sponsor for award fiscal review, please contact CGA.
- Procurement Services Guidelines: These are professional services for external sources do no qualify as a subrecipient (i.e., vendor, consultant, contractual service, etc.).
- Subrecipient Monitoring (Video): Principal Investigator (PI) PI’s have the primary responsibility for subrecipient monitoring; maintaining regular contact with the subrecipient’s PI; monitoring subrecipient’s technical and programmatic activities; and collecting, reviewing and retaining subrecipient’s technical/performance reports as required by the terms of the subaward.
- Contract and Grant Tuition Form
- Cost Transfer Request Form: Complete this form for cost transfers on sponsored projects, and attach it to the correcting journal voucher or ePA. All cost transfers require supporting documentation of the expense being transferred.
- Signature Authority Form
- Other Financial Accounting Forms
- Effort Reporting Procedures
- Technical or Progress Reports: Refer to the award document for the frequency and type of report required by the sponsor. Progress reports provide an overview of the status, advancements, and achievements of the project and any challenges or obstacles that have occurred.
- Financial Reports: Financial reports are prepared by Contract and Grant Accounting. CGA prepares invoicing and financial reporting to sponsoring agencies in accordance with the terms and conditions defined within each award. Included in this task is the performance of Federal Letter of Credit (LOC) draws and reconciliations.
Closeout
The closeout of a grant or other agreement is the process by which the sponsoring agency determines that all applicable administrative actions and required work of the agreement have been completed by the University and the sponsoring agency.
Contract and Grant Accounting is the primary office that ensures each project is closed out after the date of completion and in accordance with timelines indicated by the sponsor or award terms and conditions.
The PI is responsible for any final progress and technical reports. Sponsor requirements are often stated in the award notice. For assistance, contact the Office for Sponsored Programs.
CGA prepares all financial reporting and submits to the sponsor by required deadlines. Any expenditures that occur after final reports are submitted will be the financial responsibility of the department from a non‐sponsored funding source.
Most sponsors require the University to report any new inventions or patents made during the conduct of research. If applicable, please contact UA’s Office of Innovation & Commercialization.
Most sponsors require the University to report any new property made during the conduct of research. If applicable, please contact UA’s Property and Inventory Management Office.