The primary administrative contact for grant proposal submissions is the Director of Academic Grants & Awards, who can help faculty members identify appropriate sources of funding and create a strong, well-focused, and competitive proposal.
Because a grant award is a binding contract between the sponsoring agency and The College of Idaho, each proposal must be reviewed and authorized before submission. The forms needed for grant approval and submission and the signatures that are required vary from grant to grant. In general, all grants require review by the Director of Academic Grants & Awards, and VP-level approvals and institutional grants also require approval by the President.
Internal routing forms for authorization and submission of proposals and other supporting documents are available on the Grant Forms and Documents page.
Resources and Services for Grant Proposals and Award Administration
Services available through the Director of Academic Grants & Awards address the five main aspects of grant development: 1) planning; 2) writing and editing; 3) submitting the application; 4) awarding funds; and 5) post-award procedures including reporting, as well as compliance with federal or foundation guidelines.
Time is the grant writer’s worst enemy. The natural and understandable tendency is to write and submit grants at the last minute, just before the deadline. But hurrying doesn’t favor the development of a strong and convincing proposal, so allow plenty of time. Several months to conceive, develop, edit, and submit a competitive grant proposal is not unusual.
Services for faculty include:
- Help identify funding sources, discuss grant-seeking and research strategies, and match the scope and focus of the project with the agency's funding priorities
- Provide resources to help faculty write effective proposals, including interpreting guidelines, budget preparation, matching funds, and editing proposals
- Assistance with institutional routing forms for grant applications
- Coordinate and support collaborative or cross-departmental grant applications
- Track faculty grant applications and check conformity with institutional and foundation guidelines
- Liaison with funding source on administrative matters (budget revisions, no-cost extensions, filing certifications, agreements, and other institutional reports, etc.)
- Post-award management of funds, personnel, and related procedures (see below)
- Management of sub-awards and sub-awardees
- Compliance with federal and foundation guidelines (FCOI, RCR, Effort reporting...)
Post-Award Procedures for Grants
The items below concern "how-to" instructions for getting things done on grant-funded projects; that is, procedures, as opposed to policies. Our goal is to make this a self-help section organized in a standard FAQ format: Question or issue/ resources/ contact people (if appropriate)/ and instructions.
Frequently Asked Questions
Did I get my stipend?
Stipends are payments for effort and activities beyond the person's normal scope of duties. Examples include summer research, grant-writing stipends, bonus pay, course development, and other special tasks. Stipends are paid on the monthly pay cycle, not the weekly schedule of reimbursement for travel costs or incidental expenses. The easiest way to track stipends is via the "My stipends" link in Web Advisor.
What can I charge to my grant?
In many cases, the grant agreement (a letter or formally signed document) spells out the types of charges that are NOT allowed. In other cases, we rely on general conditions and criteria that are explained in the document below. The main criteria are allowability, allocability, reasonableness, and consistency of treatment according to institutional policy. Charges that meet these four criteria and that are not included in a list of excluded items in the grant agreement can be charged to a grant.