Notices and Announcements

Effective July 2008 all Federal awards will be subject to new Terms and Conditions.  These Terms and Conditions will create greater consistency in the administration of Federal research awards.  There are also new Agency Specific Terms and Conditions.  To view both the new Terms and Conditions and the Agency Specific Terms click on the link below.  http://www.nsf.gov/awards/managing/rtc.jsp. 

Please note, even though these are on the NSF website, these Terms and Conditions are for ALL Federal awards.  If you have any questions please contact your Contract and Grant Administrator.  

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Adobe Reader versions 8.17 and 9.1.2 released and compatible with Grants.gov

Adobe has released Adobe Reader versions 8.1.6 and 9.1.2. Grants.gov has tested both these versions and they are compatible. For more information on Adobe Reader, please visit the updated Adobe Reader FAQ section.

To verify if you have a compatible version of Adobe Reader installed, click on the test application package link below:

Adobe version test application

If an error message displays, the test application package was opened with an incompatible version of Adobe Reader. To download the compatible version required to complete and submit a grant application package please visit the download software page. If you can see the application package you have a compatible version of Adobe Reader to apply for grant applications on Grants.gov. Please be aware that any applicant who is applying for a grant application with Adobe Reader must use the compatible version to save and submit the application or submission errors will occur.

The Research Office suggests that unless the solicitation or application instructions indicate otherwise, you should always make your attachments a pdf file.
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Grants.gov has provided information (below) for those who download applications and have computers with Vista. Application compatibility with Vista is a major problem across all Windows applications. Grants.gov uses Adobe Reader and PureEdge viewer, both free products to allow the applicant community to complete Grants.gov forms. The currently supported version of Adobe Acrobat Reader with Grants.gov forms is 7.0.9 and 8.1.1. Adobe Reader 8.1.1 is compatible with Vista, Mac and other operating systems, and allows the user to view and complete application packages with Grants.gov. Grants.gov is migrating to the use of Adobe Acrobat Reader for completing forms and PureEdge viewer will continue to be supported in the short-term. It is recommended that you download Adobe Reader 8.1.1 at this time. If you are a Vista user and choose to continue using PureEdge, the link below will provide instructions for an alternate solution.

If you have questions or need assistance in this process, please don’t hesitate to contact your Contract and Grant Administrator in Research Office.

Click here for the Vista and Office 07 Compatibility pdf
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NIH will reduce the “error correction window” (i.e. the time allowed after the submission deadline to address NIH system identified errors/warnings) from five (5) business days to two (2) business days for all electronically submitted grant applications with submission deadlines on or after January 8, 2008.

For more information click here

The Research Office reminds the University community that effective April 7, 2008, all manuscripts resulting from research funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) must be submitted to NIH’s PubMed Central digital archive within 12 months of publication.

Additionally, beginning May 25, 2008, citations of the author’s own publications resulting from NIH funding on progress reports, applications, and proposals must include the PubMed Central reference number. Researchers may access the PubMed Central submission system at http://www.nihms.nih.gov/

It is important to recognize that in order to comply with this NIH mandate, authors must manage their copyright in submitting manuscripts for publication. The policies of publishers vary widely on allowing posting to PubMed Central; some do not permit posting at all, some have embargoes of 6–18 months, and others charge fees ($2,000 and up for each paper accepted for publication) to allow open access within the 12-month period. Please read carefully the copyright agreement before signing and communicate with the Research Office if an issue appears to exist. 

See the memo from Dr. Carolyn Thoroughgood, former vice provost for research, and a copy of the University of Delaware cover letter which should be used for submitting manuscripts emanating from NIH-funded research to inform journals of the need for public access. Also included is a suggested addendum for use when signing the copyright transfer agreement.

The Research Office is happy to assist members of the University community with questions concerning this new regulation.

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This notice describes a change in NIH New Investigator policies designed to encourage early transition to independence.  Under this policy, New Investigators within ten years of completing their terminal research degree or within ten years of completing their medical residency will be designated Early Stage Investigators (ESIs).  Traditional NIH research grant (R01s) applications from ESIs will be identified and the career stage of the applicant will be considered at the time of review and award. 

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The NIH recently announced a change in NIH New Investigator policies designed to encourage early transition to independence.  Under this policy, New Investigators within ten years of completing their terminal research degree or within ten years of completing their medical residency will be designated Early Stage Investigators (ESIs).  Traditional NIH research grant (R01) applications from ESIs will be identified and the career stage of the applicant will be considered at the time of review and award.  More information on this policy is available in related notices in the NIH Guide, establishing ESI as a category of new investigators, and revising policies on  new investigators and ESIs, and on the New and Early Stage Investigator website at http://grants.nih.gov/grants/new_investigators/index.htm

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This notice (NOT-OD-09-149) announces that new, restructured versions of the paper PHS 398 and electronic SF 424 (R&R) application packages and instructions will be available by December 2009.  

Applicants must download and use the new application packages for submissions targeting due dates on or after January 25, 2010 (funding for fiscal year (FY) 2011 and beyond).  Changes include significantly shorter page limits and restructured application packages.  These changes will affect all competing applications submitted to NIH, as follows:

• all applications (including individual Career Awards) electronically submitted using application packages that combine the SF 424 (R&R) with PHS 398 components (e.g, PHS 398 Research Plan Component and PHS 398 Career Development Supplement Form);
• all electronically submitted Individual NRSA Fellowship applications using application packages that combine the SF 424 (R&R) with the PHS Fellowship Supplemental Form; and
• all applications using the paper PHS 398 application package.

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This notice announces the transition of applications for Institutional Training and Institutional Career Development Programs to electronic submission through Grants.gov using the SF424 (R&R) forms for due dates on or after January 25, 2010. The following programs will transition:

• Institutional National Research Service Awards (T32, T34, T35, T36, T90)
• Other institutional training grants (D43, D71, T01, T02, T03, T14, T15, T37, TU2, U2R)
• Institutional career development programs (K12)

ALL applications in response to announcements for these grant programs must be submitted electronically (paper applications will not be accepted). Applications first submitted in paper that are being resubmitted as amended applications must now use electronic submission via Grants.gov using the SF424 (R&R) forms.  Funding Opportunity Announcements (FOAs) for these programs are being updated and are expected to be posted by November 25, 2009.  Applicants will need to access the applicable FOA after that date to obtain the appropriate application package and instructions.

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The notice clarifies the recently announced change in the existing policy on resubmission (amended) applications

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The National Science Foundation (NSF) has announced significant changes in the Grant Proposal Guide. There is an important additional requirement for proposals as outlined in the American COMPETES Act. The NSF now requires the following information concerning mentoring of post-doctoral researchers.

Chapter II – Proposal Preparation Instructions, section J Special Information and Supplementary Documentation:

Postdoctoral Researcher Mentoring Plan - Each proposal that requests funding to support postdoctoral researchers must include, as a supplementary document, a description of the mentoring activities that will be provided for such individuals. In no more than one page, the mentoring plan must describe the mentoring that will be provided to all postdoctoral researchers supported by the project, irrespective of whether they reside at the submitting organization, any subawardee organization, or at any organization participating in a simultaneously submitted collaborative project. Proposers are advised that the mentoring plan may not be used to circumvent the 15-page project description limitation. See GPG Chapter II.D.4 for additional information on collaborative proposals

Examples of mentoring activities include, but are not limited to: career counseling; training in preparation of grant proposals, publications and presentations; guidance on ways to improve teaching and mentoring skills; guidance on how to effectively collaborate with researchers from diverse backgrounds and disciplinary areas; and training in responsible professional practices. The proposed mentoring activities will be evaluated as part of the merit review process under the Foundation's broader impacts merit review criterion.

Proposals that include funding to support postdoctoral researchers, and, do not include the requisite mentoring plan will be returned without review. (see GPG Chapter IV.B.)

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The UD Compliance Hotline, operated through a national company called EthicsPoint, provides an anonymous, confidential and independent resource for reporting suspected irregularities, specifically in areas related to financial matters and internal control issues.

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To comply with new regulations from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, all UD principal investigators who work with chemicals of any type are required to complete the inventory of chemicals of interest by February 1, 2008.

Download the Excel document and instructions here                                                                                    ..............top of page

MEMO FROM - Dr. Mark Barteau, Senior Vice Provost for Research and Strategic Initiatives

The purpose of this memo is to remind and inform all University of Delaware employees of the laws, policies and procedures that may impact the transportation of University of Delaware property, including research-related materials, software, data, biological materials and equipment. These laws, policies and procedures apply whether the materials, software or data are hand-carried during travel or shipped commercially. The laws, policies and procedures apply to our international visitors as well.

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As with all revisions to the PAPP Guide, NSF has included at the beginning of each section - the Grants Proposal Guide and the Award and Administration Guide - a summary of significant changes.

Notable changes in the PAPP Guide are the implementation of two of the remaining requirements included in the America COMPETES Act: required institutional plans for the training in the ethical and responsible conduct of research (RCR) for students (undergraduate and graduate) and postdoctoral fellows; and project outcomes (final) reporting requirements for principal investigators (PIs).

The addition of the project outcome reporting is NSF's solution to address the requirement to post final reports.  Currently NSF does not have a formal final report but the last annual report has served as the final report.  Effective with the new PAPP, the new project outcome report will be submitted electronically through research.gov.                                                                                                           ..............top of page