Office of Sponsored Programs I Christopher Newport University I Project Management/Grant Expenditures

Once your proposal has been awarded, the Office of Sponsored initiates the creation of a state account to receive the funding and out of which you, as Program Manager, charge expenditures to facilitate your research or program based on the approved budgeted categories. Remember awards are always made to the institution and not to an individual. All externally funded program and research grant accounts are setup and managed in accordance with the institution’s financial policies and procedures, and in accordance with OMB Circular A-21, Cost Principles for Educational Institutions and OMB Circular A-110, Uniform Administrative Required for Grants and Agreements with Institutions of Higher Education, Hospitals, and Other Non-Profit Organizations. Expenditures are processed, tracked and held to the same guidelines and regulations as all other departmental or program account expenditures in addition to any specific and additional stipulations of the funding agency.

The Director of Sponsored Programs has administrative management responsibility for external program and research agreements, while the University Comptroller and Grants Accountant have oversight over the posting of expenditures, accounting documentation, indirect cost recovery and allocation, and financial reporting.

Project Management Responsibilities Relating to Expenditures on Grants

The Principal Investigator or Project Manager is responsible for the management of funds on his or her grant award. All purchases must follow university and state policy and regulations. All purchasing and procurements associated with grants takes place within the department. OSP will initiate individual service contracts and AP 14s for payment of salaries and wages, as appropriate, when notified by the Project Manager that it is time to do so.

Faculty Salaries

All faculty and staff personnel expenses charged to externally funded grant accounts are initiated by the OSP in accordance with the terms and conditions of the funding agency, institutional policy, and verification of effort. If you are granted release time under a grant the OSP will initiate the journal entries necessary to charge the grant that portion of your time and credit your department. This action will be preceded by a certification of effort from you and your department chair (Effort Reporting). If you are due summer salary, contact the OSP to let them know you have or are engaged in your summer research activity and to initiate payment via AP 14A.

If through the awarding of your proposal you need to hire someone new to your project team, a new position must be created through Human Resources and an appropriate search or search waiver completed.

The hiring of students require completion of a Student Employment Application which can be obtained from the Career Office, completed and submitted to Human Resources so they can be entered into our payroll system. The procedure is the same as if hiring within your department. If you elect to pay a higher hourly rate than the established minimum, a Request for Higher Wage form must be completed and submitted to HR. If a student is to be paid a flat wage instead of an hourly rate, an AP 14B must be generated through the OSP. This is typical for graduate assistants who will be paid throughout a semester or full academic year, and for undergraduate students who do a short-term, one time project for a flat payment. It is your responsibility to notify the OSP to initiate this action. Also, please forward copies of all personnel hires and other actions to the OSP for inclusion in the grant file.

Fringe Benefits

Fringe benefits will automatically post to your grant account through the normal payroll processes. When determining how much money you have left on your account or where trying to project forward, please keep in mind these costs.

Subcontracts

Subcontracts or Memorandums of Understanding or Agreement are needed when collaboration or cooperative effort with another agency or business is required to fulfill the program objectives. Close coordination with the OSP is required to determine the best mechanism to employ to best protect each entity, comply with State contractual legalities and establish this relationship. The OSP is responsible for implementing these agreements.

Consultants

Consultants are individuals outside of CNU whose expertise is necessary to your project’s success. Consultants are not employees and require the preparation of an Individual Services Contract prepared by the OSP. You will need to supply the OSP the necessary information for this contract: several sentences to a paragraph on the scope of work or service to be preformed, a begin and end date for the service, an amount of money deemed reasonable, name, address, SSN, phone # of the individual. Once the work is complete the consultant will need to submit an invoice to you for payment. This is to be processed through your department and the eVA purchasing process with a copy sent to the OSP.

Travel

If travel is part of your program it is your responsibility to prepare and submit a Prior Approval to Travel form for yourself and any other personnel traveling under your program account. Any function that will incur an expense that takes place off campus requires a Prior Approval to Travel, even if a local event. Make sure you are familiar with the State Travel Regulations and university procedures so as to not incur costs that will not be reimbursed. (i.e., lodging rates, conference site justification, rental car rules, etc.)

Supplies and Equipment

Federal guidelines define equipment as costing more than $5000. This means that most computing, software and furnishings will be under the supply line item of your grant award budget along with traditional supplies like office supplies. Our accounting system will post all furniture and any equipment (computers) with a useful life of more than 1 year as “equipment”. Purchases made under a grant account are made the same way as if being purchased for your department, and they are made through your department using the same protocols, paperwork and approvals. You are just using a different account number than your department.

Participant Support

Payments or stipends to individuals classified as ‘participants’ in a program can sometimes be confusing. It is best to first check with the Business Office to see how to proceed, but make sure you convey very clearly that these individuals are “participants” and not personnel. There is a huge difference as far as payments and processes go. It is extremely important that you understand how much time is needed to process and make payments, so begin as early as possible in setting things up so that your participants will receive what is due and expected in a timely manner.

Tuition

It is unusual to have tuition paid for through a grant, but sometimes it is inherent in the nature of the program. In such cases, contact the Business Office to see what they will require and when.

Indirect Costs

Indirect costs will be charged to your grant account at regular intervals by the Grants Accountant and applied against salaries, wages and fringe benefits posted against your account. When doing an assessment of your account expenditures to date, keep in mind that some portion of these costs may have yet to be posted. Please inquire of the Grants Account, Ellis Woodruff, as to the status of these charges so you can have the most accurate picture of your account status and balance.

Cost Sharing

If cost sharing is a required part of your award it is imperative that accurate records be kept. A meeting with the OSP staff should be made as early as possible to determine the best way to keep this accounting.