Re: Do training grants qualify as a major project? Kathleen G. Hall 16 Feb 2006 06:03 EST
We got an interpretation from OPERA re this about a year and a half ago...and they disagreed... Even if the cost is listed as potentially allowable in the program announcement, it is still the institution's responsibility and liability to assure that the need for the expenditre meets all the allowable cost requirements. There is no blanket exemption/assumption re allowability for training programs; no matter what is listed in the program announcement. There is no presumption of a training program meeting the major projects criteria. You could grant an exception to a training award if it is large, complicated, etc. This assessment must be done on a case-by-case basis. The fact that training awards have a lot of administrative work associated with them is not sufficient, in itself. Most training awards would "not" meet the exception requirements. To grant an exception to a training award you would have to treat it the same as an R01 and truly make a case that something extraordinary is going on. A typical T with 5-6 trainees would not normally reach the bar. A larger training program, with maybe an international component, multi-degree component, etc., (i.e., more complications, not just traditional T), might meet the exception requirements. -----Original Message----- From: Research Administration List [mailto:xxxxxx@HRINET.ORG]On Behalf Of Jennifer Shambrook Sent: Wednesday, February 15, 2006 8:26 PM To: xxxxxx@HRINET.ORG Subject: Re: [RESADM-L] Do training grants qualify as a major project? Two things: 1. Look at the program announcement for your training grant, it may be a stated allowable expense. 2. If it's not, and the administrative work is a part of the scope of work outlined in the project, then it probably is allowable. If you need to soothe some uncomfortable central admin folks who are worried about audit, clearly write it into your progress report for subsequent years stating what the person will be doing as a part of the scope of work. With the trainee recruitment and other issues, there is a great deal of admin work associated with these and I have frequently seen admin charged as direct. -Jennifer Jennifer Morgan Shambrook, MHA Associate Chair for Research Administration Co-Director Division of Public Psychiatry Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science Medical University of South Carolina 67 President Street, Suite 504 Charleston, South Carolina 29425 voice: 843-792-0191 fax: 843-792-0048 email: xxxxxx@musc.edu >>> xxxxxx@MAYO.EDU 02/15/06 17:11 PM >>> Greetings all, Does your institution consider NIH training grants to be a major project? If yes, is it an across the board determination? That is, are NIH training grants always treated as major projects, or is the determination still made on a grant-by-grant basis? Specifically, I'm wondering about direct charging administrative and clerical salaries to NIH training grants. To do so requires some level of comfort that unlike circumstances exist, but I'm not very familiar with the level of administrative support required by a training grant versus an R01. A-122 offers no guidance on what a major project is. I've looked at A-21, Exhibit C for additional guidance, but am still unclear on whether NIH training grants would make it through the "major project" gauntlet. I've searched the archive... no luck. I've searched the web... little luck. Any help you can provide is appreciated. Kevin L. Roberts xxxxxx@mayo.edu (507) 266-5368 Mayo Clinic Plummer 5-15 200 1st St. SW Rochester, MN 55905 ====================================================================== Instructions on how to use the RESADM-L Mailing List, including subscription information and a web-searchable archive, are available via our web site at http://www.hrinet.org (click on "Listserv Lists") ====================================================================== ====================================================================== Instructions on how to use the RESADM-L Mailing List, including subscription information and a web-searchable archive, are available via our web site at http://www.hrinet.org (click on "Listserv Lists") ====================================================================== ====================================================================== Instructions on how to use the RESADM-L Mailing List, including subscription information and a web-searchable archive, are available via our web site at http://www.hrinet.org (click on "Listserv Lists") ======================================================================