Managing Your Grant

Once you receive notification of a grant award, C&F will work closely with you and the SLU Business Office to set up the internal systems needed to successfully manage your new grant. The C&F staff will meet with you to review your grant’s financial and reporting obligations, discuss SLU policies and procedures, and help you develop a detailed timeline for your grant project.

As Project Director (or Principal Investigator, depending on your grant), you are responsible for the overall coordination of your grant, including:

• implementing specific project activities;
• preparing and monitoring the project budget;
• working with the C&F Office and the granting agency to meet the grant reporting requirements and deadlines; and
• writing all required grant progress reports and the final report.

Project Activities: It is essential that you always keep your project goals in mind and that you are clear about the activities you have agreed to undertake to achieve your desired outcomes. The programming and activities outlined in your approved grant proposal will serve as the framework for your project. When organizing your project plan and activities, keep these things in mind:

• What are the stated goals of your project?
• What activities have you planned to achieve your objectives (i.e., research, curricular development, event planning)? When will they take place?
• What action (i.e., purchasing materials, hiring student assistants, traveling to conferences) do you need to take to begin carrying out these activities? (See Nuts and Bolts below for details on arranging various services.)
• How will outcomes be measured?
• What kind of documentation is required for your progress reports, and what is your plan for collecting and documenting assessment data?
• What are your reporting deadlines? (See Project Reporting, below).

Project Budgeting and Accounting: Effectively managing your grant budget is often one of the most challenging tasks for new project directors. The following information highlights some of the key points of the grant budget/accounting process.

Restricted Grant Account. When you receive a grant award, the Business Office will assign a restricted budget account number (4-XXXXX) to your grant and designate you (the Project Director) as the responsible person for that account. This account is used to disburse funds for all grant activities, including supply purchases, student hiring, stipends, travel, etc. All monies received from the granting agency to support the project are deposited into this account.

Project Budget. The C&F and Business Office staff will work with you to develop a customized project budget in spreadsheet format based on your approved grant proposal. Your project budget includes “line items” specific to your grant activities that are categorized using SLU’s four-digit object codes, or expense categories. It is essential that you carefully monitor your project spending to stay within your budgeted limits.

If you have a multi-year grant project (that is, more than one academic year), you should review your grant budget in late summer/early fall to see if any modifications are necessary. SLU’s formal institutional budgeting process takes place every spring. The C&F Office and the Business Office will work with Project Directors to adjust project budgets. Information on the budgeting process is available on the Finance Office webpage. Since the University's fiscal year (July 1-June 30) may not correspond exactly to your grant period, budget calculations will need to be adjusted to account for the different timeframes.

Monthly Account Summary. At the end of each month, you will receive a monthly paper account summary from the Business Office. (The C&F Office will also receive a copy of your account summary each month.) This summary will show your grant account number in the upper left corner, the date and your name in the upper right corner, and your project name in the center. Two separate but linked ledgers provide information about all financial activity that has taken place within your grant account as of month-end:

• The general ledger lists your account number as “Acct. 0-XXXXX.” The 1st line, “1100-Total Claim on Cash,” indicates the amount of money remaining in your account under the 3rd column heading “Total to Date.” Because some expenses may still be outstanding, you should also look at the 3rd line on this report, “3310-CM Total CFR (Current Funds Remaining). The amount under the 3rd column on the right will tell you the amount of funds remaining. Please note that this number should have a negative (-) sign after it (called a credit balance in accounting terminology) if funds are available to spend. If there is no negative sign after the number, the account has a deficit.* For example, if “Line 1100-Total Claim on Cash” indicates $5,000 under the 3rd column, you have $5,000 remaining in the grant account at month-end. If “Line 3310-Current Funds Remaining” indicates $4,500- under the 3rd column on the right, you have $4,500 available to spend.

• If your funding agency is reimbursing the University for grant expenses or paying the grant in installments, the “3310-CM Total CFR” line may reflect a deficit until the reimbursement/installment payment is received.

• The detail ledger lists your account number as “Acct. 4-XXXXX” and reflects all project budget categories, expenses incurred by month and year, and the balance available for each budget line. You should review this ledger carefully to make sure that all charges are recorded correctly and fall within the budgeted amount.

On-Screen Viewing. In addition to your monthly paper summary, you can request on-screen viewing access to your grant account through FRS, SLU’s electronic accounting system. Authorization for on-screen viewing must be arranged with the Business Office and Information Technology.

WebFRS: You can now view your grant account on the web version of the FRS accounting system. Viewing options include viewing detailed transactions and multiple year activity. You can access WebFRS through the SLU Business Office webpage. Questions about WebFRS should be directed to the University Controller, Carol Gable, via email or at phone extension x5563.

Mini-Grants. Some grant projects are designed to support mini-grants—grants within a grant—through which grant funds are allocated for smaller projects that fall within the parameters of the sponsoring grant. If you would like to incorporate mini-grants into your project, please talk with the C&F staff about your plans. C&F and the SLU Business Office have prepared Mini-Grant Accounting Guidelines that you will need to follow when distributing grant funds for this purpose. It is necessary to follow these guidelines in order to meet IRS regulations for recording expenses of restricted funds.

Project Reporting - General Guidelines: At the onset of your grant project, C&F will work with you to establish a timeline of grant activities and confirm reporting deadlines. However, as Project Director, you are ultimately responsible for collecting and organizing all materials needed for your grant reports. C&F staff can provide assistance in editing and submitting reports as needed. In addition, C&F can act as a liaison between you and the funding agency if special circumstances arise (i.e., extension requests).

Reporting requirements vary greatly by funding agency, so it’s important to know what your funder expects to see in your progress reports, and when those reports are due. Regardless of your funder’s requirements, you must maintain proper documentation of all project-related activities and financial transactions for the duration of the grant period. The following general guidelines should help you with this process:

• Keep in mind the goals, planned activities, and outcomes outlined in your approved grant proposal.
• Maintain an ongoing log of all meetings—including staff, committee, and planning meetings—and events related to your project. Record the date, purpose, attendees/number of attendees, location, agenda/program, and outcomes of each meeting/event.
• Keep copies of all grant-related materials, such as correspondence, student reports, event programs, meeting agendas, posters/flyers, pictures, video recordings, etc. **Be sure these materials appropriately recognize the support provided by your funding agency and keep two “pristine” copies to send to the funding agency with your final report.**
• Copy in the C&F Office on all grant-related correspondence and emails.
• Use the correct budget codes when making grant-related purchases, and keep detailed records of all transactions.
• Monitor your spending on a monthly basis to stay within with your project budget.
• Familiarize yourself with SLU policies that impact your grant project, such as those related to travel reimbursement, faculty stipends, and student workers.
• Notify the C&F Office of any unanticipated problems you encounter when implementing grant activities (e.g., poor attendance or lack of participation at an event may signify a need to modify future grant activities.)
• Begin gathering materials and drafting your grant report well in advance of your report submission deadline.
  

Grant Reporting to the National Science Foundation (NSF):
NSF grant awards require two types of reports: 1) Annual Reports, due 90 days before the end of the current budget period; and 2) Final Reports, due 90 days after the project expiration date. Both types of reports are submitted electronically by the grantee via the project reporting system in NSF Fastlane.

NSF project report include the following components:

• Participants (people involved in the project; partner organizations; collaborators and contacts)
• Activities and Findings (major research/education activities; major findings; training/development; outreach)
• Publications and Products (journal publications; books/non-periodicals; websites; other products such as databases)
• Contributions (project contributions within discipline; to other disciplines; to research/education resources; beyond science/engineering)
• Special Requirements (if appicable; change in objectives/scope; special terms/conditions; change in animal use/human subjects/biohazards)
  
  The C&F NSF Reporting Guidelines provide detailed instructions for logging onto the Fastlane Project Reporting System and the specific report components.
  

Nuts and Bolts: “How do I … ?”

…purchase grant-related materials and supplies?

• You can charge purchases made at the SLU Bookstore directly to your grant by giving the cashier the grant account budget and appropriate object code (e.g., 4-XXXXX-3100 for office supplies).
• To purchase supplies from a vendor, you should use a departmental or University purchase order to charge the expense to your grant account. For more information, contact the Purchasing Office (x5905) or consult the University’s purchasing policies.
• Departmental purchasing cards can also be used to make project-related purchases. You should write the grant budget code and object code on the receipt and submit to the departmental employee responsible for administering the purchase card.
• A Check Request Form can be used for reimbursement for non-travel related expenses for such items as dues, subscriptions, and memberships. Be sure to enter the proper grant budget codes and send the completed form to the Business Office.
• In certain cases, you may be able to get a special University purchasing card for your grant project. Please contact the C&F Office (x5571) for more information.

…make grant-related travel arrangements?

• You can make travel arrangements through Travel Unlimited in Canton (315-386-8525) and have all related expenses charged directly to your grant account (e.g., 4-XXXXX-4010)
• You can also request reimbursement for any grant-related travel expenses by completing the Travel/Moving Claim Form and submitting it to the Business Office.

…organize grant project events on campus?

• Check the SLU Dining & Conferences Services webpage for detailed instructions on organizing your campus event, as well as information on catering menus, room descriptions and reservations, and event policies. You can also request information from them by phone (x5996) or email (roomres@stlawu.edu).
• Expenses for on-campus events can be charged directly to your grant budget (e.g., 4-XXXXX-4020).

…hire grant-funded student workers/researchers?

• If your grant project includes budgeted funds to support student workers or researchers, you can arrange to hire undergraduate student assistants by completing the Student Personnel Action Form available from BJ Revill (x5269) in the Financial Aid Office. The completed form must include the beginning and ending dates of student employment, the budget code (4-XXXXX-1170), and payment information.
• Be sure to share all grant-funded student employment information with your departmental secretary for payroll processing purposes, and with the C&F Office.
• Please note that students hired as grant project assistants for the summer must pay Social Security (FICA) tax on their wages. Special housing arrangements for summer student assistants must be made in advance through the Office of the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs (x5998). Every spring, the Associate Dean's Office provides a memo to faculty with guidelines and instructions on making housing arrangements.

…arrange for payment of faculty grant stipends?

• The C&F Office will work with you and the Academic Dean’s Office to document faculty and project participant compensation details for your grant project. Stipend payments are requested by completing Form 5E (Compensation for Faculty/Staff Participant in Grant Project); the C&F Office will assist you in completing this document. After the form has been reviewed and approved by the Academic Dean, payroll arrangements will be made with the Business Office and Human Resources (HR). Please note that the HR deadline for payroll information is the 1st of the month in order to process the payroll checks on the 15th.
• Please share all information related to grant-funded faculty stipends with C&F.

Quick Links
For general SLU policy information, please refer to the Faculty Handbook.

For SLU accounts payable policy information, please visit the Business Office’s policies and procedures webpage.

For any and all grant management questions, please call the C&F Office (x5571)