Grant-Related Roles & Responsibilities

Role of the Principal Investigator/Project Director

As Principal Investigator or Project Director (PI/PD), you are responsible for all aspects of conducting the project.

Before spending any money on the project, the PI/PD is responsible for:

• Notifying Grants Office about any grant award documents received.
• Forwarding all original award documents received to appropriate Grants Office and Grants Accounting personnel.
• Submitting any funds received to Grants Accounting.
• Obtaining a grant-specific cost center number from Grants Accounting.
• Updating/Completing Conflict of Interest disclosure information.

During project implementation, the PI/PD is responsible for:

• Carrying out the work as stated in the original proposal and ensuring that the project stays within the scope and objectives of the original proposal.
• Reviewing and complying with the terms and conditions of the sponsor and the specific grant, including, but not limited to, reporting requirements and effort commitments.
• Complying with all applicable federal and sponsor regulations.
• Reviewing and following 4Cs policies, including, but not limited to, procurement and travel policies related to grants.
• Following 4Cs procedures for hiring employees and for charging faculty salaries, including time and effort certification procedures.
• Ensuring that all items charged to the grant meet allowable expenditure guidelines.
• Monitoring expenses and limiting expenditures to the total dollar amount awarded.
• Discussing any prospective expenses that are not in the awarded budget with appropriate Grants Office/Grants Accounting personnel and requesting approval for any changes to approved budgets.
• Notifying appropriate Grants Office/Grants Accounting personnel about any proposed changes to other terms of the grant, such as a change in key personnel; Grants Office/Grants Accounting staff will facilitate getting any approvals that are required, either internally or from the sponsor.
• Working with Institutional Research and Planning to manage any data requirements.
• Submitting all required narrative and technical reports on time and forwarding copies (plus any grant-related correspondence) to appropriate Grants Office/Grants Accounting personnel.
• Obtaining approval from Grants Accounting before including any financial information in a report.

Role of Grants Office

• Advising the PI/PD and other project personnel about the terms and conditions of the grant and areas of grant compliance.
• Advising the PI/PD and other project personnel about grant management.
• Facilitating requests for approval of any changes to approved budgets.
• Facilitating no-cost extension requests, if necessary and allowed, well in advance of the approved grant termination date.
• Facilitating the negotiation of terms and conditions of any sub-award agreements to be issued by 4Cs.
• Communicating with the sponsor on behalf of the PI/PD about changes to the terms of the grant and other issues.
• Creating and managing accounts in federal and other sponsors’ electronic research administration systems.
• Coordinating requests for supplemental funding.
• Administering 4Cs time and effort certification process.
• Notifying sponsors of unusual situations, such as absence of the PI/PD.
• Monitoring and assisting PI/PD with reporting requirements.

Role of Grants Accounting

Grants Accounting and the Business Office is responsible for the overall financial administration of all grants to CCCC. The office follows standard accounting practices and adheres strictly to all 4Cs policies, state and federal regulations, and other sponsor regulations. Specific responsibilities include:

• Setting up all grants in the accounting system and assigning unique cost centers to track grant-related spending.
• Preparing all financial grant reports.
• Requesting reimbursement from sponsors for grant-funded expenses.
• Authorizing changes to approved budgets or other grant terms (as allowed by sponsor policy). This includes updating grant budgets and updating termination dates upon approval of no-cost extensions.
• Making adjustments to the general ledger when the PI/PD and/or other project personnel identify items charged incorrectly (e.g. to the wrong fund or to the wrong account code).
• Signing documents, such as no-cost extension requests, on behalf of 4Cs.
• Officially closing out grants at termination.

Contact Information