PPM 4-27, Processing and Management of Office of Sponsored Projects Documents 

Responsible Office: Executive Director of Office of Sponsored Projects

1.0    PURPOSE

This policy establishes responsibilities for the routing, review, approval, and management of Office of Sponsored Project (OSP) documents generated from within as well as outside the University. Acceptance of all OSP contracts and grants is in accordance with the described in Utah Board of Higher Education Policy R532. 

2.0     REFERENCES

2.1    Utah Board of Higher Education Policy R532. 

3.0    DEFINITIONS 

3.1    OSP Documents - Documents that legally bind the University and require the signature of an officer of the University or Utah Board of Higher Education. OSP documents include, but are not limited to the following:

3.1.1  Research contracts, non-gift grants, agreements, and proposals - 
This category includes: research that is newly funded or a continuation of funding; programs and projects, regardless of contracting agency; federal, state, or private organizations, except for donor-funded research.

3.1.2  Educational service contracts, grants, agreements, and proposals - 
Educational service agreement means any non-gift grant or contract under which financing is provided on a cost reimbursement basis for all or an agreed portion of costs incurred for training or other educational services. Typical of the work covered by educational services agreements are summer institutes, special training programs for selected participants, professional or technical services to cooperating countries, the development and introduction of new or expanded courses, and similar instructional oriented undertakings, including special research training programs that are separately budgeted and accounted for by the institution.

The term does not extend to:

  • Arrangements under which financing is exclusively in the form of scholarships, fellowships, traineeships, or other fixed amounts such as a cost of education allowance or the normal published tuition rates and fees of the institution.
  • Construction, facility, and exclusively general resources of institutional-type grants.
  • Any of the above that are funded by donor gifts.

3.1.3  Fellowship-type awards containing cost of education allowances for academic purposes.

4.0    PROCEDURE

4.1 All proposal related documents will be routed to OSP for review and processing. A proposal cannot be submitted to the funding agency unless the principal investigator, department chair, and dean have all electronically approved the proposal.

4.2 OSP will be responsible for the following:

  • Receiving and logging all OSP documents.
  • Checking all documents for correctness and completion.
  • Obtaining official signatures as required by the Utah Board of Higher Education.
  • Making final disposition of all official documents.

4.3 All official OSP documents require the review of the department chairs and deans (or department chair and entity director, if not an academic entity) and electronic signature approving the proposal along with approval by OSP.

4.4 In accordance with Utah Board of Higher Education Policy R532, all sponsored projects with a budget of over $750,000 a year will be signed by the President and approved by the Utah Board Higher Education. Awards with a budget between $250,000 and $750,000 will be signed by the Provost. Awards under $250,000 a year will be signed by the Executive Director of the Office of OSP.

4.5 Awards are reported to the Board of Higher Education at the end of each year as required by the Board of Higher Education.

Revision History  
Creation Date: 11-08-05
Amended: 5-25-16; 10-31-24