Awards and Subawards
Once an award is received and provided to Research & Sponsored Program Development (RSPD), a few steps are needed to get the award set up and ready for the project to begin.
- Once an award has been received by the Pre-Award Officer, they will:
- Review, negotiate terms and follow through until it is fully executed. This includes collaborating with General Counsel on legal review and any other compliance reviews required.
- The review process will include the Principal Investigator (PI) for the review of the Scope of Work, Budget, Budget Justification, reporting schedules, and compliance requirements.
- After an award is fully executed the Pre-Award Officer will provide it to the PI, Department/College, and Grants & Contracts Accounting for setup in PeopleSoft. Grants & Contracts Accounting requires the PI/Department to complete an Award Budget Setup form before they will complete the PeopleSoft set up.
- If the need arises, a risk account request memo may be utilized to have a project set up on temporary status.
- Pre-award costs are defined in the Uniform Guidance at 200.458. Pre-award costs are those incurred prior to the effective date of the award directly pursuant to the negotiation and in anticipation of the award where such costs are necessary for efficient and timely performance of the scope of work. Pre-award costs are not the same as setting up a project using a risk account request that most often uses the start date of the award. The risk account request may include pre-award costs if the expenses are anticipated prior to the expected award start date.
- During the life of a project, it is likely that the award will have deviations from
the submitted proposal. Many of these changes require prior approval. Typical items
that require prior approval include:
- Significant changes in the project scope of work
- Changes to Key Personnel
- Reduction of effort of 25% or more of the proposed effort for Key Personnel
- Adding new Subawards
- Major equipment purchases not included int he original proposal
- Substantial budget reallocations
- Foreign travel not included in the original proposal
- No Cost Extensions
- If subawards are proposed on the project:
- The Pre-Award Officer working on that project will ask the Principal Investigator (PI)/Department Administrative Staff to provide them the subaward packet of Scope of Work, Budget, and Budget Justification.
- The Pre-Award Officer will then draft the subaward.
- Once drafted, the PI and Department Administrative Staff will be asked to review and look at reporting terms.
- Once it is all approved, the Pre-Award Officer will work with the subaward to get it negotiated, signed and executed.
- When a fully executed subaward is available, the Pre-Award Officer will provide it to the PI, Department/College, and Grants & Contracts Accounting Officer for setup in the system.