Research administrator training
University Research Office announces 2013 training initiatives
9:36 a.m., Jan. 31, 2013--Starting in February, the University of Delaware Research Office will offer monthly training programs for departmental research administrators. The programs will be led by UD experts in sponsored program administration.
For more details and registration, visit the Research Office Training website. Those who have questions about any of the programs should contact Portia Garvey, assistant director for pre-award services.
Research Stories
Chronic wounds
Prof. Heck's legacy
February
Introduction to Effort Administration. Thursday, Feb. 14, 9 a.m.-noon. This session will provide basic training for the new or inexperienced effort administrator. Topics will include explanations of what effort reporting is, why and when it is required, and how it is accomplished at UD. Effort administrators who oversee effort for departments with current awards that have salary activity will have the opportunity for hands-on exploration of the effort reporting system to learn navigation and functionality of the system.
New Milestone Process and Team Pages Administration for Awards. Tuesday, Feb. 19, 9 a.m.-noon. Part 1: Does your award require interim progress reports, invoices with special reporting, small business subcontract plans? Would you like a reminder to complete some of these tasks? The Research Office will be demonstrating how the new Contract and Grant milestone notification process will work. Milestone reporting is set up by the C and G at the time of the award and will allow you to receive automated notices prior to any actions that the department administrator or PI may need to take to report award requirements. Part 2: Do you wonder how the effort process is generated at the start of an award? See how the Contract and Grants Specialists input information into the Team Page to generate the effort reporting process and how that affects effort reporting.
Pivot Training: Finding Funding Opportunities, Part 1. Thursday, Feb. 28, 10-11:30 a.m. Are you ready to take your research support to the next level? Pivot is UD's primary searchable research database for helping your institute, college, department and faculty members find relevant funding opportunities. This Pivot training will be provided in two sessions. In Part 1 of 2 participants will concentrate on creating an account; learning how to do meaningful searches; saving and disseminating findings; and learning how to find helpful support documentation. See Pivot Training Part 2 for description and be sure to register for both parts.
March
NIH-NRSA Fellowship Training. Tuesday, March 12, 9-11 a.m. This training session will review the details of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Individual Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Awards (NRSA). FAQs about the pre- and post-award requirements will be highlighted, as well as internal UD requirements, processing student fees, and tuition. The session will answer questions such as can a fellow terminate early, are NRSA stipends taxed and how much tuition can be charged?
Budget Basics. Tuesday, March 19, 9 a.m.-noon. In this workshop, participants will focus specifically on what research administrators need to know and should be able to do in three phases of the budget preparation process: Data Gathering; Building-a-Budget; Transferring Data to PeopleSoft/Sponsors. Using samples of budgets, participants will identify some characteristics of “good” budgets, identify the right questions to ask to obtain information for budget preparation, and discuss tools for building budgets that better facilitate the transfer of data to PeopleSoft and sponsor forms.
Pivot Training: Finding Funding Opportunities, Part 2. Thursday, March 21,10-11:30 a.m. How can you make Pivot work at an optimal level? Pivot, UD's primary searchable research database, does more than search for funding opportunities. Learn how Pivot can be optimized by creating and refining Profiles for your faculty members or helping their graduate students understand this process. In Pivot Training Part 2, participants will learn how to claim a profile; learn how updated profiles increase meaningful funding matches and find potential collaborators; and find creative ways to internally market Pivot within your institute, department and college. (Note: Prerequisite of Pivot Training: Finding Funding Opportunities Part 1)
Sponsor Guideline Updates. Thursday, March 21, 9-10:30 a.m. This session will review proposal guidelines and updates for several federal sponsors including NIH and National Science Foundation. Learn about the most recent changes to sponsored research proposals.
April
Research Administrator Annual Conference. Thursday, April 25, 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Conference details and registration information will be available soon.
May
Introduction to Effort Administration. Thursday, May 9, 9 a.m.-noon. This session will provide basic training for the new or inexperienced effort administrator. Topics will include explanations of what effort reporting is, why and when it is required, and how it is accomplished at UD. Effort administrators who oversee effort for departments with current awards that have salary activity will have the opportunity for hands-on exploration of the effort reporting system to learn navigation and functionality of the system.
How to Help Faculty/Graduate Students Understand the Grant Writing Process. Thursday, May 23, 10-11:30 a.m. The Research Office supports the proposal process from start to finish but many times faculty and graduate students have difficulty determining how to get started. Join us to learn more about the proposal development path which starts with the passionate idea of the faculty member or graduate student and includes writing a concept paper, selecting and contacting an appropriate sponsor, reviewing funded abstracts/proposals, drafting the proposal, soliciting internal feedback and submitting the final proposal through the Office of Sponsored Programs.
June
Audit Savvy. Tuesday June 18, 9 a.m.-noon. Attendees will learn how to prepare for an audit by examining the questions that are asked of the institution and discussing the roles that the PI and research administrator play in making the audit a success. This session will include examples of excellent documentation and justifications as well as case studies in how to know when to provide the proper documentation to prepare for potential audit inquiries.
August
Introduction to Effort Administration. Tuesday, Aug. 13, 9 a.m.-noon. This session will provide basic training for the new or inexperienced effort administrator. Topics will include explanations of what effort reporting is, why and when it is required, and how it is accomplished at UD. Effort administrators who oversee effort for departments with current awards that have salary activity will have the opportunity for hands-on exploration of the effort reporting system to learn navigation and functionality of the system.
Reading an Award Document. Tuesday Aug. 20, 9-10:30 a.m. Reading an award document is critical to the effective administration of funding. This session will review the clear understanding of how to read and find critical information in an award document, to successfully manage awards; how to facilitate communication to obtain information to strengthen the award administration process; and how to identify resources for additional information and reference.
October
Fundamental Principles of Federal Grant and Contract Accounting. Tuesday Oct. 15, 9 a.m.-noon. Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Circulars and other costing principles establish guidelines for determining costs applicable to grants, contracts and other agreements from governmental agencies to educational institutions (A-21), and grants and agreements with institutions of higher education: uniform administrative requirements (A-110). The principles are designed to provide that the federal government bear its fair share of total costs within defined parameters and with some exceptions. As federal audit activity increases and budget challenges face universities and the federal government, it is even more critical that research administrators understand the principles provided by the circulars in order to appropriately fund research and other sponsored programs.
Introduction to Effort Administration. Tuesday, Oct. 22, 9 a.m.-noon. This session will provide basic training for the new or inexperienced effort administrator. Topics will include explanations of what effort reporting is, why and when it is required, and how it is accomplished at UD. Effort administrators who oversee effort for departments with current awards that have salary activity will have the opportunity for hands-on exploration of the effort reporting system to learn navigation and functionality of the system.
December
Award Management: Documentation. Tuesday, Dec. 10, 9 a.m.-noon. This session will review the types of documentation that are required for award management. It will clarify what electronic and paper documentation you need to retain to easily complete an audit.