How is Departmental Credit for sponsored research expenditures determined?
The allocation of sponsored project expenditures to departments is determined by the information on the SUSB-299 (4 page form) that must accompany every proposal. That form requires an identification of how the expenditures in the awarded project will be allocated to campus units for reporting purposes and for determining the return of F&A (Indirect) costs through the departmental formula allocation process. All relevant individuals must endorse the distribution of the allocations. This includes chairs, deans and any other individuals whose allocations may be affected by the distribution. Any revisions of the distribution must similarly be endorsed by all affected parties.
What's the difference between a Grant, a Contract and a Cooperative Agreement?
There are three basic vehicles through which universities receive sponsored project support:
Grants:
A grant is an award made to assist research. It is normally the result of a competitive process in which investigator-initiated proposals are submitted and reviewed. The conditions
that govern the administration of grants are general and applied universally to all grants in a given sponsored program. Some sponsors may have different grant conditions for different
types of programs -- e.g., research, training, etc. The acceptance of a grant by a grantee binds the grantee to the particular program conditions. The Federal Demonstration Partnership
strives to develop a set of general grant conditions that will be used across all Federal Agencies. A number of agencies accept these grant conditions, but some continue to add some
sponsor specific requirements on top of the general grant conditions. Federal agencies and non-profit organizations often use the grant mechanism for the support of research.
Contracts:
Contracts are a vehicle through which a sponsor "procures" research or other services. While proposals for contract support may still be based on competitive review of
investigator-initiated proposals, the contractor generally reserves the right to exercise control over the proposed work. The contract instrument is often subject to negotiation of a
variety of its provisions to satisfy the mutual needs of the contractor and the contractee. Unlike grants, different contract provisions may apply to different organizations or to
different projects within an organization. Federal mission agencies and most of private industry use the contract as the vehicle for support of research.
Cooperative Agreements:
Some federal agencies use a hybrid between a grant and a contract. The Cooperative Agreement is often used when the work will be performed jointly between a federal agency personnel
and a university. It specifies which activities of the sponsored project are the responsibility of each participant.
Who can be a Principal Investigator on a Sponsored Project?
In order to act as a PD or PI, an individual must hold one of the following academic titles:
- Lecturer,
- Instructor,
- Assistant Professor,
- Associate Professor, or
- Professor.
Persons holding a faculty appointment at SUNY Stony Brook are eligible to be named principal investigator/project director (PI/PD). The PI/PD is the point person for a project. Therefore, he/she will retain the majority of the responsibility to meet the scientific requirements of the sponsorship. If there are co-investigators, the PI/PD is the one designated to handle the administrative responsibilities. A faculty appointment is not required in the case of co-investigator status.
Researchers who do not have faculty status at the time of application, but expect to be appointed at the time of award, are permitted to be listed as PI/PD. At the time of application there must be in place a memo to the Office of Sponsored Programs from the appropriate chair or dean indicating that, by the time the award is made, faculty appointment will be completed.
Visiting, Adjunct, and Emeritus are acceptable only if approved by the cognizant Dean(s).
What is the relationship between the Research Foundation and SUNY?
