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What Is a Sponsored Project

Sponsored projects are established when funds are awarded to the university by external sources in support of research, instruction, training, service, or other scholarly activities under an agreement where one of the following conditions applies:

• The award instrument requires endorsement (i.e., a formal signature or other method of acceptance), and binds the university to a set of terms and conditions.
• The agreement obligates the principal investigator to a line of scholarly or scientific inquiry that typically follows a plan, provides for orderly testing or evaluation, or seeks to meet stated performance goals.
• The agreement establishes how funds will be used or includes a line‑item budget that identifies expenses by activity, function, or project period.
• The agreement requires fiscal accountability as evidenced by the submission of financial reports to the sponsor, an audit provision, or the return of unexpended funds at the conclusion of the project.
• The agreement obligates the principal investigator to report project results or convey rights to tangible or intangible properties resulting from the project. Examples of tangible properties include equipment, records, technical reports, theses, or dissertations. Intangible property includes rights in data, copyrights, and inventions.
• The agreement may require indemnification or impose other terms of legal accountability.
• The agreement prohibits or inhibits the university or the principal investigator from carrying out any activities normal to an academic setting.

Principal Investigators

Responsibility for setting the direction of research at the university lies with the faculty. A principal investigator is typically a faculty member who assumes responsibility for the intellectual leadership of a project. They accept overall responsibility for directing the research and for financial oversight of the funding, as well as for compliance with relevant university policies, federal regulations, and the sponsor's terms and conditions of an award. This includes research grants, cooperative agreements, training or service projects, clinical studies, and other sponsored projects.

Principal investigators do not have the authority to execute contracts or agreements on behalf of the university, but do have the responsibility for the following items:

• Proposal
  • Prepares the technical proposal, works with Pre-award to develop the budget and related materials, and confirms that the entire proposal meets requirements outlined in the sponsor’s program guidelines
  • Identifies sub-recipients and consultants
  • Requests cost-sharing dollars, if required
  • Satisfies regulatory research requirements (e.g., use of human subjects, animals)
  • Assures the final proposal is properly endorsed and communicates to Pre-award staff to obtain appropriate approvals prior to submission
• Research
  • Conducts the research, which includes but is not limited to the following:
    • Managing project personnel
    • Overseeing the scope of work
    • Authorizing payments to consultants and subrecipients
    • Overseeing the scientific integrity of the project
    • Communicating any allegations of academic fraud or scientific misconduct to the appropriate office
    • Ensuring that all researchers are trained in the responsible conduct of research
  • Complies with the Intellectual Property Policy
  • Discloses inventions, discoveries, and improvements to the university
  • Complies with the Federal Acquisition Regulation for combating trafficking in persons
• Award and Administrative Oversight
  • Reviews and approves, in conjunction with the appropriate University Research Administration staff, the terms and conditions of the award
  • Certifies Personnel Activity Reports
  • Completes interim and final technical reports
  • Prepares continuation or renewal proposal
  • Retains project data and materials as required
  • Updates the annual Conflict of Interest and prepares a Disclosure Form if a significant financial conflict of interest develops