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Post-Award

New Award Procedure

Award letters and grant contracts will come through our office once investigators have been notified of an award. We will review the award letter and contract and obtain all of the necessary signatures. Once the contract has been fully executed we will review the notice of award, contract, budget, financial and compliance matters, and reporting processes and timeline with the PI, co-PI(s), DBA/CBA, and any other parties heavily involved in the grant.

What We Need From You:

  • Award Letter
  • Contract/Standard Agreement/Memorandum of Understanding (MOU)
    • If the other party does not provide one of these documents, you can find templates on the UHCL Contract Administration page. Contact us if you have any questions.

Project Management

Watch our 30-minute project management webinar recording for a review of best practices when managing a grant project.

Expenses and Reporting

All financial reporting will be handled by ORSP on behalf of the PI. The PI will be responsible for all programmatic reports – we will notify you of your due dates in advance.

If you have any questions about grant expenses, including travel and hiring authorizations, contact the post-award team using the information on this page. 

Grant Award Policies and Procedures

Grant Accounting/Cost Center Setup

Activity Initiation: Office of Research and Sponsored Programs

Timeline: Allow 2-3 business days for cost center set up; the timeline for other accounting tasks varies by complexity and staff availability

What to Expect: Upon receipt of an official Notice of Award from a sponsor, ORSP initiates the cost center set up. The PI and his/her College Business Administrator (CBA) or Division Business Administrator (DBA) are also part of the signature sequence. ORSP reconciles cost centers monthly after the month closes and makes the PeopleSoft financial report (1074) and tracking sheet available to PIs and their CBA/DBA. ORSP is also available to answer a variety of other grant accounting questions.

Purchases and Payments

Activity Initiation: College Business Administrator (CBA) or Division Business Administrator (DBA)

Timeline: Minimum of 1-2 weeks before item is needed

What to Expect: CBA/DBA will initiate the purchase based on information provided by the PI. You may be asked to sign the p-card request, requisition, or other financial paperwork. The approval will route to ORSP automatically in PeopleSoft work flow. If the item is not allowed under the terms of the grant or there is not enough money remaining in that budget category, the purchase will be denied. To prevent a denial, the PI may want to consult the ORSP research administration accountant prior to initiating a purchase, to confirm allowability and the availability of funds.

Student and Staff Hiring

Activity Initiation: College Business Administrator (CBA) or Division Business Administrator (DBA)

Timeline: Minimum of 6 weeks before a new staff member's intended start date and 2 weeks before a student employee's intended start date.

What to Expect: PI will work with the CBA/DBA to initiate the hiring process following standard UHCL procedures. The funding (ePRF) and hiring (ePAR) approvals will route to ORSP automatically in PeopleSoft work flow. ORSP will monitor and approve or deny these requests based on allowability under the terms of the grant, including availability of funds, award period, and other factors. To prevent a denial, the PI may want to consult with ORSP prior to initiating a hiring action.

Faculty Summer Salaries

Activity Initiation: College Business Administrator (CBA) or Division Business Administrator (DBA)

Timeline: Late March/early April

What to Expect: The Research Administration Accountant will contact PIs whose grants include summer salary for faculty, to confirm the intent of the budgeted individuals to work on the grant that summer. The accountant will also work with college administrators to determine summer teaching commitments with faculty to be paid on a grant. The accountant and the ORSP Executive Director will determine allowable compensation according to the UHS Institutional Base Salary policy. The planned compensation will be sent to the PI for approval. Once approved, the process is turned over to the CBA/DBA to initiate the hiring as described under Student/Staff Hiring above.

Effort Reporting

Effort Reporting Dates
Reporting Period Effort Reports Issued Signed Reports due in ORSP

1/1 - 5/31 (Spring)

August 31 September 15
6/1 - 8/31 (Summer) November 30 December 15
9/1 - 12/31 (Fall) March 31 April 15

Activity Initiation: Office of Sponsored Programs

What to Expect: The PI will receive a set of effort reports for all individuals compensated under the grant during that reporting period. The PI will obtain signatures from all compensated individuals, then sign the reports and return them to ORSP by the specified deadline for that reporting period. Failure to return effort reports in a timely manner may result in a suspension or freezing of the award and/or restrictions on serving as a PI on future grant proposals.

Grant Reporting

Activity Initiation: Office of Research and Sponsored Programs

Timeline: Detailed reporting requirements including content, format/template, and mode of transmission will be sent to the PI by OSP at least one month before the due date. Calendar requests for report deadlines will be sent immediately after the New Award Meeting.

What to Expect: The PI will receive reminders from ORSP until the reporting calendar items are accepted and will be contacted when the 2-week calendar item reminder period begins. The PI is responsible for writing the project narrative component of the grant report. The Research Administration Accountant will provide the financial reporting components. As needed, a virtual or face-to-face meeting may be scheduled to finalize and submit the report.

Budget Modifications

Activity Initiation: Office of Research and Sponsored Programs

Timeline: Immediately upon identification of need; approval could take up to 6 weeks

What to Expect: PI and Research Administration Accountant will meet to review need, determine allowability of budget changes under NOA terms/conditions, and discuss implications of changes on other budget categories. The changes are then reviewed by the Executive Director.

  • If sponsor approval is not required, ORSP makes the budget changes in PeopleSoft Finance.
  • If sponsor approval is required, ORSP determines the agency-specific process and prepares the appropriate documentation. The PI may be asked to submit, depending on the agency's process. Once official approval is obtained, the Research Administration Accountant will make the budget changes in PeopleSoft Finance.

Cost Transfers

Activity Initiation: Office of Research and Sponsored Programs

Timeline: Immediately upon identification of need to move an expense to a different cost center; allow up to 10 business days for the process to be completed.

What to Expect: Movement of expenses from one cost center to another is done via Journal Entry. ORSP will prepare a JE spreadsheet form, documenting (1) the transaction in question (amount, date, original cost center); (2) the cost center to which the expense will be moved; and (3) an explanation for the need for a cost transfer. The CC manager/authorized signer for each cost center will be asked to sign off on the form. Once complete, ORSP will transmit the form to General Accounting where the JE will be made. The transfer should appear on both cost centers by the following business day.

No-Cost Extension (NCE)

Activity Initiation: Office of Research and Sponsored Programs

Timeline: At least 60 days before the end of the grant (note: some agencies have longer lead times; consult the NOA)

What to Expect: The PI and ORSP will meet to discuss the reason for the NCE request and review the budget to see which activities would be funded during an NCE period. ORSP will research the agency-specific process and prepare appropriate documents for submission by ORSP or the PI. Once official approval is obtained, the Research Administration Accountant will make the budget and award end date changes in PeopleSoft Finance.

Download Grant Award Policies and Procedures (PDF)

Contact

  • Sponsored Programs
    Post-Award


    Rhonda Warner
    Senior Research Administration Accountant
    Phone: 281-283-3018
    Email: warnerr@uhcl.edu

    Madeline Boysen
    Research Administration Accountant
    Phone: 281-283-2134
    Email: boysenm@uhcl.edu