Hi Nancy (and others),
Just so you know how the process is handled on our end.....NSF now has an
internal system so that our staff can check (at their desk), the arrival of
the coversheet as well as information such as where it was assigned.  As
Nancy has correctly pointed out, there is sometimes a delay between the time
that the coversheet gets processed and the when the program receives it.
This delay should be minimal now, given the new system that was recently
implemented.

Since NSF doesn't consider the proposal "officially" submitted until the
signed coversheet is in hand, the program staff are likely anxious to get
their hands on it.  Most NSF proposals (unsolicited) still require that the
cs be sent in separately to the the DIS address (see the GPG page 3).

Here's how you might proceed the next time you get a phone call:

1)  If you have sent it in, ask the caller to check the internal system (FL
tracking system) to see if the coversheet has been logged-in.  They may seem
surprised and unaware of the system.

2)  If they seem surprised or unaware, feel free to send me an email
(xxxxxx@nsf.gov) and I'll get in touch with them.  It's part of my job to
insure that such information is getting properly distributed.  The only way
that we know that our staff don't know, is to hear from the external
community and from persons such as yourself.

Hope this helps others on the list too.

Cheers,
Florence

-----Original Message-----
From: Nancy Peterson [mailto:xxxxxx@WINONA.MSUS.EDU]
Sent: Friday, January 28, 2000 1:01 PM
To: xxxxxx@HRINET.ORG
Subject: Re: FastLane question

It's happened with an Engineering proposal and a Computer Science proposal.

The offices are simply looking for the signed cover sheet (and supporting
materials, if appropriate) that is mailed in after we do the electronic
submission.   I would guess they are receiving the copy of the proposals
separately from the cover sheets and they aren't getting matched up
properly.   Or maybe they are receiving the proposals in advance of the
cover sheets, and are hesitant to do anything until the signature is
"in-hand."

If some of the program announcements are now including instructions to send
the signed cover sheets in separately as one list participant mentioned),
it's going to be awfully easy to miss that.  PI's and SRO's are generally
just referring to the program guidelines for content instructions.  If
you're doing a FastLane submission, you don't expect to have to look at the
individual program guidelines for submission instructions, too.

**************************************************************************

Nancy Kay Peterson
Director of Grants & Sponsored Projects
Somsen Hall Room 202-C
Winona State University
Winona, MN  55987

Phone:  507.457.5519
Fax:       507.457.2415
xxxxxx@winona.msus.edu
http://www.winona.msus.edu/grants/

 "Rabanal,
 Florence I"          To:     xxxxxx@HRINET.ORG
 <xxxxxx@NSF        cc:
 .GOV>                Subject:     Re: FastLane question
 Sent by:
 Research
 Administratio
 n List
 <xxxxxx@hri
 net.org>

 01/28/00
 11:15 AM
 Please
 respond to
 Research
 Administratio
 n Discussion
 List

Hi All,
I'd like to try and work this out.  Nancy, can you send me more detail on
the kind of "signed materials" that the NSF Divisio is asking for?

Thanks
Florence Rabanal
National Science Foundation
Directorate for Mathematical and PHysical Sciences
FastLane Project Coordinator

-----Original Message-----
From: Nancy Peterson [mailto:xxxxxx@WINONA.MSUS.EDU]
Sent: Friday, January 28, 2000 11:32 AM
To: xxxxxx@HRINET.ORG
Subject: FastLane question

This is the second time this has come up.  We follow the FastLane
instructions and send in the signed materials to FastLane,, then we get a
call from the NSF Division demanding copies of the signed materials before
they will consider reviewing our application.  Apparently FastLane isn't
processing the signed stuff fast enough to satisfy the Divisions.

Is this happening to anyone else?  Should we be sending copies of the
signed materials to the program office, too, just in case?

**************************************************************************

Nancy Kay Peterson
Director of Grants & Sponsored Projects
Somsen Hall Room 202-C
Winona State University
Winona, MN  55987

Phone:  507.457.5519
Fax:       507.457.2415
xxxxxx@winona.msus.edu
http://www.winona.msus.edu/grants/

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