Proposal Routing & Definitions
The proposal routing form notifies the Office of Research of your intent to apply for funding from an internal or external source. The form requests information about your project, your investigative team, and the solicited funding agency (or "sponsor").
Submit your proposal no later than two weeks before the sponsor's deadline.
Your investigative team and all supervisors must all sign off on your proposal; the Office of Research must approve it.
A help guide is in development for the Proposal Routing Form.
Proposal Routing Process
PIs and business managers do not need to use Workday for any portion of the proposal routing process.
The Cognito Form collects:
- PI and co-PI contact information
- sponsor information and project dates
- project and budget requirements
- proposal narrative and budget
- worktags associated with sources of cost share
- mandatory certifications
- signed conflict of interest reports for the PI and the Co-PIs
- supervisory approvals
Form Routing
The Cognito Form routes to the following individuals:
- Principal Investigator/initiator
- Co-Principal Investigators
- Department heads/chairs/directors
- Deans/vice presidents
- Office of Research
Terms & Definitions
Routing Statuses
INCOMPLETE: Initial status of incomplete form.
AWAITING CO-PI: Form is awaiting the signature of the listed co-principal investigator on the conflict of interest report.
AWAITING PI: Form is awaiting the signature of the principal investigator on the conflict of interest report.
AWAITING CHAIR: Form is awaiting the signature of the listed department head/chair/director.
AWAITING DEAN: Form is awaiting the signature of the listed dean/vice president.
REJECTED: Someone has rejected the form. The initiator may re-submit the form after addressing the reason for the rejection.
SUBMITTED: All department- and college-level signatures have been obtained; the form has been submitted to the Office of Research for processing.
AWAITING APPROVAL: The Research Administrator has processed the form; the form is now awaiting final approval from the Office of Research.
COMPLETED: All signatures have been obtained; the proposal may now be submitted to the sponsor.
Project Information & Requirements
Extra compensation: compensation over the institutional base salary paid to faculty and professional research employees through the University
National Science Foundation (NSF) funds: applies to projects funded by the National Science Foundation and to projects which receive any NSF funds. The funding can either be directly from the NSF or indirectly through another entity (pass-through funding).
Public Health Services (PHS) funds: applies to projects funded by a Public Health Services (PHS) entity; this includes all institutes within the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (which includes the National Institute of Health). The funding can either be directly from the PHS entity or indirectly through another entity (pass-through funding).
Export controls: applies to transmission of items overseas by anyone, including U.S. citizens, or to a foreign national on U.S. soil.
Foreign nationals restrictions: foreign citizens (not including dual citizens of the US); immigrants who are not lawfully admitted for permanent residence; foreign governments; foreign political parties; foreign corporations; foreign associations; foreign partnerships; and any other foreign principal, as defined at 22 U.S.C. § 611(b)
Transfer of biological or chemical materials: when one party (the provider) makes a tangible product, material, or resource available to another party (the recipient) for use in a research project.
Human subjects or human tissue: living persons about whom an investigator obtains specimens or data through direct interaction or intervention through identifiable, private information. Includes human organs, tissues, body fluids, and recorded information.
Vertebrate animals or animal tissue: an animal of a large group distinguished by the possession of a backbone or spinal column, including mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fish. Cephalopods are invertebrates with large, vertebrate-like central nervous systems and are treated according to the rules for Vertebrate Animals.
Intellectual Property
Patentable invention: machines/devices, software, compounds/materials, or methods of manufacture that are patentable subject matter, novel (some aspect of it must be new), non-obvious, and useful.
Copyrightable works: does NOT include journal publications/articles, class notes, books, theses and dissertations; educational software; non-fiction, fiction, and poems; musical works, dramatic works; pantomimes and choreographic works; pictorial, graphic, and sculptural works; or other works of artistic imagination that are not created as an institutional initiative
Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA): a legally binding contract that establishes a confidential relationship with an outside company, university, or other entity.
Collaboration: working with any outside company, university, or other entity to reach a goal or contribute to a project.
Budget Exceptions
Cost Share: occurs when a portion of the project funding is not provided by the sponsor—so the University of New Orleans shares in the costs. These are real dollars which may be from the UNO general fund or a restricted fund, but must be auditable. Cost share dollars may fund faculty time, supplies, equipment, etc.
If cost share is required by the sponsor, documentation must be provided. The source(s) of cost share funding must agree to provide cost share.
Off-campus research: applies when more than 50% of a project is conducted on premises not owned or leased by the University of New Orleans where F&A costs do not benefit the project. The effort calculation excludes subawards.
F&A costs: facility and administrative costs; real costs incurred by the University of New Orleans and its departments, schools, centers, and institutions in support of sponsored activities.
F&A rate: F&A costs are applied to all grants, contracts, and other agreements with federal, state, and private entities. The rate is negotiated at the federal level through the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. It is calculated on all direct expenses except: equipment, fellowships, scholarships, tuition, off-site facility rental costs, and the portion of subgrants or subcontracts in excess of $25,000. Adequate justification must be provided in the award proposal form for the project to qualify for the off-campus F&A rate.
The F&A rates cannot be adjusted unless required by the sponsor.
Lab Safety
Biohazards: biological substances that pose a threat to the health of living organisms; could include a sample of a microorganism, virus or toxin that can adversely affect living organisms; all human blood and certain bodily fluids are treated as if known to be potentially infected with blood borne pathogens.
Radioactive materials: any material containing unstable atoms that emit ionizing radiation as it decays.
Sealed source: any radioactive material or byproduct encased in a capsule designed to prevent leakage or escape of the material.
X-rays: an electromagnetic wave of high energy and very short wavelength, which is able to pass through many materials opaque to light.
Chemicals: any substance (liquid, solid, gaseous, or other) that has a Safety Data Sheet (SDS).
Recombinant DNA (rDNA): DNA molecules formed by laboratory methods of genetic recombination (such as molecular cloning) to bring together genetic material from multiple sources, creating sequences that would not otherwise be found in the genome.
Gene transfers: the transfer of genes between organisms.
Class IIIB or IV lasers: lasers that operate in the ultraviolet and infrared regions of the electromagnetic spectrum and can emit laser energy in excess of the AEL values of Class IIIR lasers during any period of time, and can emit power of less than 500 milliwatts (mW); Class IV lasers emit laser radiation levels that exceed the AEL values of Class IIIB.
DEA-controlled substances: drugs, substances, and certain chemicals used to make drugs are classified into five (5) distinct categories or schedules depending upon the drug’s acceptable medical use and the drug’s abuse or dependency potential. A listing of drugs and their schedule are located on the DEA’s website.
Mandatory Certifications
The PI and Co-PIs must not be debarred or suspended from doing business with the federal government.
The PI and Co-PIs must certify that their statements are true, complete, and accurate; they must agree to accept responsibility for the scientific conduct of the project.
The PI and Co-PIs must certify that the project will comply with all applicable guidelines, laws, policies, rules, and regulations.
The PI and Co-PIs must certify that UNO is the legal applicant, not the department, college, or individual.
Plagiarism
The PI and Co-PIs must certify that the proposal has been or will be submitted to Turnitin through the Office of Research’s Canvas course. The results will be reviewed by a Grant Writer in the Office of Research.