Grants are funds given for specific projects which requires a level of compliance and reporting. At Case Western Reserve University, grants flow through the Sponsored Programs Application for Research Tracking and Administration system which is also known as SPARTA.
Funds are given by:
- government agencies (e.g. federal, state/province, or local).
- private foundations or donors.
- corporate foundations or business.
Helpful Resources
The Office of Research and Technology Management provides the following support and resources:
- Pre-Award Services - assists staff with funding proposals from start to finish, along with notification of funding opportunities.
- Post-Award Services - handles financial aspects of the funding proposal.
- Compliance Support - ensures compliance with federal, state, and local regulations with regard to research.
- Education & Training - provides training in a variety of formats, including online and in-person training open to the whole campus, or customized for your department or group.
- Technology Transfer - provides full-spectrum intellectual property services.
Grant Submission Process
Define Roles
Define roles of individual(s) that will also be involved and responsible for monitoring the grant (e.g. roles and functions). This only needs to be completed if your a department that has never completed a grant.
- Proposal Team – Person(s) responsible for working on the funding proposal, submission or withdrawing of proposal if needed.
- PI ( Principal Investigator) - responsible for leading the charge in preparation of the proposal, routing of the final version of the proposal. The PI also works with his or her department to manage the grant. Please note that any notification concerning the proposal will be forwarded to the PI.
- Department Administrator – Submits & edits proposal.
- Department Chair - Reviews proposal and provides oversight
Planning Tips
Here are a few things to keep in mind when thinking about applying for a grant:
- Completed RFP - document that solicits proposals through a bidding process. (Include the purpose of the Grant)
- Project start date and end date
- Sponsor Information
- Identify the Principal Investigator for the project
- Department (that the grant should be set up under)
- Completed Budget - detail spending allowed, cost share requirement (if any) and reporting requirements. (Important Indirect Cost Rate should be included in the budget if applicable. (Please contact the finance liaison for grants concerning budget questions or concerns.)
- Identify indirect cost if applicable - If you have applied for an indirect cost waiver, please include a copy of the email as well.
- Make sure your COI is up to date. This should be done every year.
- Email complete proposal documents - attachments should be PDFs - to the grants liaison Dennis Rupert at dkr3@case.edu
- Student Affairs Liaison enters grants into the SPARTA System, and works with ORA department to follow the process thru until the project is set up.
If Your Grant is Awarded
If your proposal is rewarded, you will receive a Notice of Award generated by the Research Administration Department that contains the following information:
- Transaction Type - New, Revision, Continuation, or Increase
- Project Information – Listing Sponsor, Start & End Date, F & A Rate based on the terms of the agreement.
- Budget Information – Detailed by account number & category
- Award Information:
- Project Director
- Administrative Department – The department responsible for The sponsored project
- Type of Award – Ex. Grant, Contract, Etc
- Billing Code - Billing codes established based on terms of award. (see list below)
- BC01 - Letter of Credit
- BC02 - Cost of Reimbursement ( usually monthly billing requires)
- BC03 - Automatic Payment
- BC04 - Fixed Prices (bill per schedule included in award
- BC05 - Budget based on revenue received ( Discretionary Grants)
- BC06 – Budget based on revenue received ( Discretionary Gift)
- Date range of the project
- Comments
Now that your project is awarded, be mindful of project dates and review the project to ensure expenses that are occurring per the budget that was submitted
Common Reasons for Changes
- No cost extension - The process of requesting the speed type to be extended without any additional funds being added. (Please make sure to include a copy of the current income & expense report.
- Petition to allow project to remain open:
- To ensure the account remains open while awaiting additional funds.
- Extension of date pending.
- Agreement and Contract is still pending
- Re-budget / reallocation – Increase budget due to additional funds received
- Change to principal investigator, department, or division
Additional Training
Additional training is available on the SPARTA Grants and Agreements Information website.