Award Acceptance

Upon award, a grantor may send notification to the Principal Investigator (PI), the ORSP, the Controller’s office, or the Vice President for Academic Affairs. If notification of an award is sent to the PI, it should be forwarded immediately, along with all accompanying information, to the ORSP. The ORSP will review the terms and conditions of the award, ensuring that they are acceptable to the University. The ORSP may contact the PI during this process, and the PI should raise any questions or concerns that he or she may have, as the University is in a position to negotiate the terms of the agreement before it is signed.

The PI may not sign a grant award or contract. Forward such documents to the ORSP for signature by the appropriate authorized personnel.

In the case of grants awarded by certain private foundations, the Office of Corporate & Foundation Relations is responsible for overseeing that appropriate University approvals are obtained.

The Principal Investigator is the project lead. He or she is responsible for the appropriate conduct of the project in accordance with the terms and conditions of the grant and University policies. It is the ultimate responsibility of the PI to ensure all expenditures charged to the grant are allowable and are relevant to achieving the grant’s objectives.

The University, primarily through the ORSP and the Controller’s Office, is responsible for ensuring that PIs have the support and knowledge of grantor requirements so as to perform the project in accordance with grantor regulations. While the ORSP does not oversee financial reporting, it assists the faculty members in interpreting the grant terms and conditions, facilitates compensation payments, authorizes changes to be made in accordance with agency rules and requirements, and monitors project performance. The ORSP should be contacted whenever changes are required as ORSP staff will provide guidance on approvals that may be required and facilitate any required changes. The Controller’s Office and other departments within the Finance Division perform accounting and financial reporting functions to provide the infrastructure needed to ensure that the grantor’s funds are managed in accordance with fiscal requirements and federal regulations, including that spending is in accordance with the approved budget, grantor requirements, and grant period.

Once a sponsored project agreement has been fully executed, the ORSP will complete the Grant/Contract Award - Account Set-up Form and forward it to the Controller’s Office with other relevant documents. The Grant/Contract Award - Account Set-up Form details the approved budget for the project and provides other information important to the establishment of an account and monitoring of the project.

The following materials will be distributed to the PI and the Controller’s Office:

• Account Set-up Form
• Notice of Award Document/Contract
• Final Proposal
• Grant Terms and Conditions

Each grant will be assigned a major code (department code) to help maintain and track costs within the University’s accounting system. It is the responsibility of the PI to maintain and monitor these accounts on at least a monthly basis. The MyBudget application available via InsideLoyola will assist in this process by providing real-time fiscal information. It is an easy way to view the approved budget and compare it to the expenditures that are charged to the grant account so that the PI and/or designee may verify the accuracy of the charges applied to the grant. For training in the use of MyBudget or concerns related to the grant activity, the PI should contact the Controller’s Office.

The ORSP will convene a meeting with the PI and the Controller’s Office to discuss the management of the new award. The meeting provides an opportunity to cover key compliance issues, to educate the PI on the types of information that he or she can expect to receive from the Controller’s Office, as well as to answer questions such as who to contact for assistance. The PI is encouraged to invite support staff or others who may provide assistance with ordering grant-related materials, making grant-funded travel arrangements, etc.

As defined by federal regulations, indirect costs, also known as Facilities and Administrative Costs, are costs that are incurred for common or joint objectives and therefore cannot be identified readily and specifically with a particular sponsored project, an instructional activity, or any other institutional activity.

To promote sponsored research activities, the University shares 20% of the indirect cost recovery associated with a successful grant proposal with the department of the PI. An additional 20% of indirect cost recovery is shared with the department’s dean. When the grant account is established, the Controller’s Office forwards information to the Director of Resource Management who transfers the requisite funds into an account established for the department and the dean. Indirect costs are distributed at the beginning of the grant and carry over from year-to-year.

Generally, once an account has been established and the grant period started, the PI may draw on the account. However, for certain business relationships, especially those related to sub-awards, subcontracts, and certain partnerships/letters of agreement/contracts, additional approval must be obtained to ensure the University is legally protected and the business partner/vendor agrees to certain University policies. This will be discussed during the preliminary meeting.