The Office of Sponsored Programs at Elon University promotes and facilitates research and scholarly activities for faculty and administrative staff by assisting them in securing external grant funding, administering awards, and ensuring compliance with internal and external regulations and policies. Sponsored Programs provides a central source of information on major governmental agencies, foundations and corporations that support research, and pedagogical and creative activities.

The Office of Sponsored Programs provides assistance, from conceptual development and planning of proposals through implementation and administration of funded projects. More specifically, it assists in identifying potential extramural funding sources, developing proposal narratives and budgets, completing standardized application forms, assuring compliance with applicable federal and state regulations, negotiating grant awards and contracts, and providing administrative assistance for funded projects.

Because external funding is awarded to Elon University on behalf of a faculty or staff member, the Office of Sponsored Programs functions as the primary liaison between the sponsor, university administrators, and the Principal Investigator in matters of policy, procedures, and regulations, and provides communication, education, and training on proposals, awards, and contracts to the Elon University research community. Some examples of communication between OSP and the sponsor include prior approval requests, administrative changes during the life of the award, requests for no-cost extensions, and reporting requirements. Additionally, the Director and Assistant Director serve as Authorized Organizational Representatives (AOR) to submit proposals and negotiate and accept sponsored research awards and service agreements.

To learn more, see our Guide to the Preparation Proposals to the preparation, review, approval, and submission of proposals for external funding.

Note: Please allow 7 business days for internal review and submission of a proposal to ensure adequate lead time. Multi-institutional or collaborative proposals may require additional time.

Updated NSF Templates

NSF has recently made enhancements to the biographical sketch and current and pending (other) support fillable PDF formats. The updated formats are consistent with the Proposal and Award Policies and Procedures Guide (PAPPG) and are available by clicking the above link.

NSF made the following enhancements in response to feedback received from the research community:

Current and Pending (Other) Support:

  •  Corrected the Status of Support radio button
  •  Corrected fonts and margins for compliance with NSF policy
  •  Included the revision date (rev. 01/19/2023) at the bottom of each page

Biographical Sketch:

  •  Corrected margins for compliance with NSF policy
  •  Included the revision date (rev. 01/19/2023) at the bottom of each page

NSF Proposal and Award Policies & Procedures Guide (NSF 23-1)

This guide is effective for proposals submitted or due on or after January 30, 2023. This version of the PAPPG becomes effective on January 30, 2023.

Significant changes include:

  • Revisions to incorporate Research.gov as the replacement for FastLane for proposal preparation and submission.
  • Information about the use of Broad Agency Announcements (BAAs) and the BAA Management System (BAAM).
  • Revisions to the certification for Responsible and Ethical Conduct of Research (RECR) for proposals submitted on or after July 31, 2023, which expands the training to faculty and other senior personnel as well as requires specific training mandated by the America COMPETES Act, as amended.
  • Use of Concept Outlines as a submission type and the Program Suitability and Proposal Concept Tool (ProSPCT).
  • Requirement for proposers to provide a certification regarding Safe and Inclusive Working Environments for Off-Campus and Off-Site Research.
    Revisions to the Biographical Sketch and Current and Pending Support formats to include certifications from the individual (as required by the 2021 National Defense Authorization Act,  Section 223) regarding information being accurate, current, and complete.
  • Requirement for NSF program officers to request updated Current and Pending Support information prior to making a funding recommendation, in accordance with the NSPM-33 Implementation Guidance.
  • Requirements for use of SciENcv for the Biographical Sketch and Current and Pending Support documents.
  • Implementation of Build America, Buy America statutes.
  • New sections on Research Security and Scientific Integrity.

Change in Project Reporting System in Research.gov

Effective October 5, 2020, the National Science Foundation (NSF) will enhance the Project Reporting System in Research.gov to implement the revised Research Performance Progress Report (RPPR). The RPPR is a uniform format for reporting performance progress on Federally funded research projects and research related activities. NSF awardees use the RPPR to prepare and submit annual and final project reports to NSF. Further details about the RPPR can be found on the Research.gov About Project Reports website.

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