Announcements

New eRA System Selected: Kuali Research

Based on an extensive vetting process over the past year with the help of multiple stakeholders (e.g., faculty, business administrators, the Research Council and the Research Administration Advisory Board) and at various events (e.g., focus groups with campus community members and discussions with peer institutions), and as the result of a competitive bidding process, Kuali Research has been selected as the new Electronic Research Administration (eRA) system for the UMass Amherst campus.

Learn more at www.umass.edu/research/kuali-era-system

Reminder: IACUC Semi-Annual Facility Inspections - October 2018

The UMass Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) semi-annual facility inspections will take place in October. All expired items should be removed from facilities regularly and solutions, dilutions, etc. need to be clearly labeled with contents and date.

Confused about Graduate Student Fellowships?

We developed a new web page with detailed information to help faculty and staff better understand Graduate Student Fellowships.

https://www.umass.edu/research/graduate-student-fellowships

Fiscal Year 2019 Fringe Rate Update

The recently approved fringe rates for Fiscal Year 2019 are now posted to our website.

For links and further information on how this impacts grant proposals currently in the queue but not yet submitted, please see below:

Updated Fact Sheet for FY’19 - https://www.umass.edu/research/guidance/fact-sheet - All new changes are highlighted in yellow.

Update to Pre-Award Sponsor Assignments

The U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (NIH, HRSA, etc.) and Colleges and Universities are now assigned at the level of school/college and shared by two pre-award administrators. For more details, see our Staff Contacts for Proposals.

NIH Modular Budget Application Process Update

Build only a limited budget and provide further details at the Just-In-Time phase. For more details, see the updated guidance on the NIH Sponsor Specific Resources page (Modular Budget Process section).

New Conflict of Interest (COI) Disclosure Process Flowchart & FAQ

Below please view a new flowchart that visually describes the COI disclosure process and a set of FAQs to help explain COI and Outside Activities:

Conflict of Interest Disclosure Process Flowchart (PDF download - June 2018)
Conflict of Interest and Outside Activities FAQs (Word download - June 2018)

More information on COI

Proposal Preparation and Submission Sites (FastLane and Research.gov)

Effective April 30, 2018, Principal Investigators now have the option of using Research.gov to submit Full, Research, non-collaborative proposals to NSF.

NSF Fastlane registration process

Effective March 26, 2018 - The National Science Foundation (NSF) is introducing a new centralized and streamlined Fastlane Account Registration Process in Research.gov

NIH Salary Cap Update

Effective January 7, 2018, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) salary cap is now $189,600 (12 month FTE).

New NIH “FORMS-E” Grant Application Packages

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) rolled out its new “FORMS-E” grant application packages effective January 25, 2018, with most changes resulting from a reengineering of the term Clinical Trial. For more resources and information, see NIH’s Clinical Trial Requirements for Grants and Contracts. Three rounds of applications have been successfully submitted on behalf of UMass Amherst investigators.

Open Access and Compliance with Funder Mandates - 10/27/16

Introduction to the current state of funder mandates and the library resources available to facilitate meeting compliance requirements. 10 am., Life Science Labs (LSL) S330. Co-sponsored by the University Libraries and Research & Engagement as part of Open Access Week.

FY 2017 Annual Report of Sponsored Activity

The FY 2017 Annual Report of Sponsored Activity is now posted in the Reports section of Research Administration and Compliance

New Research Administrator Training Series

Research & Engagement has developed a new training series for business managers, research administrators and staff who support the research proposal process and/or manage or charge expenses to externally funded projects. More information

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Grant Funding Opportunities

See funding opportunities from The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

Important NIH Announcements

See this document for a description of recent and important NIH Announcements.

The Proposal Preparation Guide Has Been Updated

The Proposal Preparation Guide contains important information intended to assist faculty and staff in the preparation of sponsored project applications.

One Stop for Research Policies, Guidance, and Forms

Documents needed to plan, conduct, and successfully complete University research projects can now be found in one place - see Policies, Guidance and Forms 

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