The Principal Investigator (PI) and co-PIs are responsible for compliance with all federal regulations, funding agency guidelines, and College policies. Below is a list of policies and procedures for use in grant management.
For federal and federal flow-through grants, PIs must comply with the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Uniform Guidelines that govern the use of federal funds and grants management procedures. A full listing of federal regulations for grants and agreements established by the OMB is located on the Electronic Code of Federal Regulations website.
Budget Management
- Grant Compensation Policy
- Monitoring Grant Budgets and Tracking Grant Expenses
PIs are responsible for tracking grant expenses against the awarded project budget. The Director of Finance will provide applicable budget codes so the PI can track grant expenditures using the approved budget categories. Portal-based “Budget Web” access will be granted to the PI for budget tracking. It is recommended that the PI regularly exports grant expenses from Budget Web into Excel to compare them to the grant budget. PIs with questions about Budget Web functionality or Excel budget tracking methods should contact the Director of Finance. - Cost Sharing
Cost sharing is the portion of total sponsored project costs for which the College is responsible. Because cost sharing requires a redirection of resources and represents real costs, Randolph College will enter a cost sharing commitment only when required by the sponsor and/or when the source of funding has been identified and approved by the PI, department chair, and the Provost/Vice President for Academic Affairs.Project expenditures that are contributed either by the College or by parties other than the sponsor fall into 3 categories:
- Mandatory Committed: required by the sponsor and must be referenced in the proposal, tracked, and reported.
- Voluntary Committed: not required by the sponsor, but referenced in the proposal. If the project is awarded, the cost share becomes mandatory and, as such, must be tracked and reported.
Voluntary committed cost sharing is not expected for Federal research awards and is not factored into merit review. Further, it is expressly prohibited by the National Science Foundation and will result in proposal rejection without review.
- Voluntary Uncommitted: not required by the sponsor and not mentioned in the proposal. These additional expenditures must be tracked internally but are not reported to the sponsor.
All cost sharing and matching funds must be proposed, approved, and accounted for on the Sign-Off Transmittal form before proposal submission.
- It is the responsibility of the Principal Investigator to manage the budget of their sponsored project and keep within funding limits. Cost overruns will be charged to the principal investigator’s department unless prior arrangements and approval have been secured.
Effort Reporting
Conflict of Interest
- Procedures for Evaluation Conflict of Interest
- Financial Disclosure Policy
- Financial Disclosure Form
Human Resources
- Paid Personnel
The hiring of personnel for grant-funded positions must follow normal College procedures regarding advertising, recruiting, background checks, offers of employment, rate of pay, etc. Appointment letters will be issued by the Office of Human Resources. - Volunteers and Interns
All volunteers and interns working on grant-funded projects must follow the College’s Human Resources procedures. PIs should contact the Director of Human Resources for direction before volunteers and interns begin working on the project. - Non-Discrimination and Equal Employment Opportunity Policy
- Employee Handbook, Including Drug-Free Workplace Policy
- Human Resources Forms and Policies
Procurement and Expenses
- Approval and Accounts Payable Processing
PI approval is required for all grant purchases. Expense forms and supporting documentation (e.g. receipts) should be given to the appropriate Senior Staff member for approval before submission to the Business Office. Prior to Accounts Payable processing, the Sponsored Programs Officer, the Director of Finance, the Assistant Controller, and the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs are available when any expenditure question is raised. - Federal Grants Purchases
- For Federal grants, PIs should comply with the Office of Management and Budget Uniform Guidance and College policies.
- Policy on Federal Funds Allowable Costs
- Federal Funds Procurement Policy
- Policy on Participant Support Costs
- Purchasing
- PIs or their designee(s) are allowed to make grant purchases. They should follow College purchasing and reimbursement procedures when spending grant funds. Accounts Payable forms should be used for applicable expenditures (e.g. reimbursement).
- Purchases can only be made after a fully-executed grant agreement is received by the College and must occur within the grant period unless pre-approved by the funding agency.
- Tax Exemption
Randolph College is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization and, therefore, does not pay Virginia sales tax for certain items. Purchasers should contact the Business Office for guidance about sales tax prior to purchasing. If needed, the Business Office will provide the purchaser with a Virginia sales tax exemption certificate. Taxes that are paid when tax exemptions are available are unallowable costs and will not be reimbursed by grant funds. - Travel
Ownership of Supplies and Equipment
All supplies and equipment purchased with grant funds remain the property of the College unless otherwise negotiated. Decisions concerning individual cases will be handled as they arise. If supplies and equipment are purchased with federal funds, their disposition at the end of the grant period must adhere to the procedures in the Office of Management Budget (OMB) Uniform Guidance and funding agency guidelines. See OMB Uniform Guidance § 200.313 for equipment, § 200.314 for supplies, and § 200.453 for materials and supplies costs, including the costs of computing devices. Please contact the Assistant Controller for assistance.
Intellectual Property
Reporting
- Report Internal Review
The PI is responsible for the preparation of all grant reports. Financial reports should be submitted to the Sponsored Programs Officer and the Director of Finance for review prior to submission. The PI should be mindful of reporting deadlines to allow adequate time for this review. The Sponsored Programs Officer is also available to discuss and edit project reports. - Reports Containing Institutional Data
Institutional data such as figures regarding enrollment, retention, financial aid, personnel, student life, etc. should be consistent with information produced by the Office of Institutional Research. This should be accomplished by consulting the online Randolph College Fact Book (located on the portal) or the Director of Institutional Research, Planning, and Assessment, rather than submitting data requests to individual offices. - The final report and supporting documents should be submitted to the Sponsored Programs Officer. PIs should retain copies of all reports.
Record Maintenance
PIs should maintain all grant-related documents and correspondence according to the College’s Record Retention Policy, which requires the retention of grant-related records for at least five years after the end date of the grant. The Sponsored Programs Officer also maintains files on all grants awarded to the College. All correspondence to and from the funding agency should be given to the Sponsored Programs Officer. Electronic or hard copies are acceptable.