Services

A wide range of services are available from the Office of Sponsored Programs. The following is a brief description of these services.

Funding Searches - Every attempt is made to identify appropriate sponsors for projects, either through database searches which can be done by either the staff or the faculty/staff, to Web Pages and manual searches through resources in the office. Researchers should work with the GA/RSO during concept exploration and proposal development.
Assistance in Proposal Development - While the staff does not write proposals, assistance is offered in proposal development and certain data and "boilerplate" are available. Interpretation of sponsor guidelines; sponsor contacts; obtaining successful or model applications; contact with or referral to other faculty/staff or community organizations; proposal editing, and format suggestions are regular activities.
Budgeting Assistance and Approvals - The initial development and review of any proposed project budget may be handled by the GA/RSO. Budgets are checked against appropriate guidelines for compliance. Budgets must receive administrative approvals, beginning with the GA/RSO.
Administrative Approvals - The GA/RSO coordinates the passage of the Proposal Summary routing sheets through the offices of the campus to assure that all required local signatures (including the Dean of the Faculty, Vice President for Academic Affairs, and the Vice President for Administration) are obtained and the proposal has fulfilled the Research Foundation and SUNY Fredonia requirements for submission. A minimum of two days is usually required for the routing of the approvals sheets.
Typing/Word Processing Services - Applications for external support can be submitted for word processing and typing to the GA/RSO. In order to schedule work, a final draft of the proposal to be processed should be received seven (7) working days in advance (see Policies and Procedures). While being processed, the proposal is proof-read and prepared in accordance with the sponsor's guidelines. At an applicant's request, the proposal will be processed on the desk-top publishing system in the office. Eventually, those proposals that can be submitted electronically will be done so through the GA/RSA. All forms that need to be typed may be done in the GA/RSO. Electronic versions of sponsor forms (such as NSF, NIH, USEd or SED) will soon be available to faculty/staff and can be filled out and electroncially submitted to the GA/RSO.
Duplication Service - Proposals are copied, collated, properly bound and sent to sponsors to meet set deadlines. Copies for campus personnel are disseminated.
Delivery Services - The GA/RSO will absorb costs associated with transmitting the proposal to the potential sponsor, including overnight mail, Federal Express, Airborne, and/or Certified Mail.
Administrative Support- Upon notification of funding, the staff works closely with the post-award office of the Research Foundation to assure smooth implementation. Post-award services such as contract no-cost extensions, budget modifications, contract negotiation, expenditure monitoring, etc. are provided.

Those planning to submit a proposal should contact the office at least 5 working days prior to the proposal deadline. If the Grants Administration/Research Services Office is to type or word process the application, the draft of the proposal must be in the office at least 7 working days prior to the proposal deadline. The GA/RSO is not responsible for late submission of proposals due to lack of planning and/or timely notification and processing of a proposal on the part of the applicant.