MY RESEARCH | ADVANCED SEARCH | UNC HOME
The Office of
The Office of Sponsored Research (OSR) is the official “go-to” resource for University faculty and staff involved in sponsored research projects — with helpful staff to inform, train and serve investigators, researchers, departmental administrators and support staff at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (referred to as “UNC-Chapel Hill” or “University” within the OSR Policies and Procedures Manual).
The term “sponsored research” can be defined as University research that receives funding from an external source, or a “sponsor.” While that is a very simple definition, sponsored research encompasses much more, including considerations that may affect the University financially and legally. Thus, OSR is not the only office concerned with elements of sponsored research and projects; however, it is the central, definitive resource.
The University has a system for managing the many concerns that accompany sponsored research, including accounting, compliance, reporting, and the like. OSR is concerned with financial administration and compliance of sponsored research projects and serves faculty and staff by communicating with sponsoring agencies on behalf of the University.
The following overview describes federal regulations, University guidelines and policies, followed by policies and procedures emanating from the Office of Sponsored Research.
In serving faculty and administrators at UNC-Chapel Hill, these policies assist in preparing and submitting proposals for sponsored project funding and managing sponsored funds awarded to the University.
Their threefold purpose is to:
The University abides by the criteria provided by the University of North Carolina Sponsored Programs and Research Council (SPARC) to identify “sponsored programs.” OSR is responsible for sponsored programs that encompass any scholarly, professional, or creative activity conducted by UNC-Chapel Hill personnel using support from external funding sources through grants, contracts, cooperative agreements, or other agreements. Such programs include but are not limited to organized research, instruction/training, other sponsored activities, and research/support services.
There are many distinctions between sponsored programs and gifts. Essentially, research contracts are signed research agreements, where a sponsor places contractual obligations on the research effort to gain something (referred to as a “deliverable”) in return for providing support.
Research grants and cooperative agreements differ slightly. Rather than a mutual agreement, research grants are awarded directly by the sponsoring agency to the University through a Notification of Grant Award (NoGA). Research grants are governed by policies and guidelines, rather than contractual obligations. All three — research contracts, grants and cooperative agreements require deliverables and thus, they are categorized together.
On the other hand, gifts are donations, given voluntarily without the imposition of restrictive contractual obligations by the donor. While gifts may include certain conditions (for example, a donation may go towards a specific type of research), when those conditions include deliverables, the transfer of intellectual property, or provision of data to the funder, it is no longer considered a “gift” but is classified as a “contract” or “grant.” Proposal Management in OSR can help with questions about determining categorization of funding. In addition, OSR provides questions to ask in distinguishing between the two and an easy-to-follow procedure, Identifying Funding Opportunities: Gift or Grant?
The Office of University Development is responsible for the administration of gifts to the University.
Management of sponsored research is a combined effort of the University of North Carolina (UNC) General Administration, the University proper, the sponsors that provide their support to research efforts at UNC-Chapel Hill, and the Principal Investigators who spearhead the research itself.
OSR considers the policies, regulations, and requirements issued by state, University and federal offices in light of each and every sponsored research project. This is also the case with non-federal sponsors. While there are many research policies that govern the University, the state-regulated policies summarized below govern research administration at all UNC constituent institutions, including UNC-Chapel Hill.
UNC-GA policies are established by the UNC Board of Governors, the legal body appointed by the North Carolina General Assembly. The Board is responsible for governing the collection of constituent institutions that compose the UNC multi-campus system.
In adherence to policies and regulations set by the Board of Governors and the State of North Carolina, the University has established policies and procedures tailored to the needs of faculty, staff and students at UNC-Chapel Hill with regard to research. While there are many University research policies, the following form an essential foundation for conducting and administering sponsored research at UNC-Chapel Hill.
1. Responsible Conduct of Research
Faculty, research personnel, postdoctoral research associates and students are expected to follow the policies and procedures at UNC-Chapel Hill that govern the conduct of research, including the Policy and Procedures on Ethics in Research.
2. UNC-Chapel Hill Policy on Classified Research
In adherence to UNC-Chapel Hill’s longstanding commitment to academic freedom and service, the University does not usually participate in sponsored research that restricts or prevents investigators from publishing the results of their investigations. However, in rare instances exceptions can be made only with the prior approval of the Chancellor or his designee, where certain considerations apply.
To receive federal funding for sponsored research, the University is required to comply with federal laws and regulations related to financial administration of contracts, grants and cooperative agreements. These regulations are outlined below.
The Federal Office of Management and Budget (OMB) produces a number of circulars related to federal sponsored funding.
The FAR was established to codify uniform policies for acquisition of supplies and services by executive agencies. FAR governs federal contracts just as A-110 governs federal grants and cooperative agreements.
UNC-Chapel Hill is a member of FDP, a federal organization established as an initiative among select federal agencies and institutional recipients of federal funds to reduce the layers of administrative work associated with research grants and contracts. To this end, the General Terms and Conditions and agency-specific terms and conditions are revised on a periodic basis to reflect the types of actions that require prior approval as well as those that are pre-approved. The specific FDP General Terms and Conditions and sponsor-specific terms and conditions are solidified at the time the award is made and generally remain in effect for the life of the award.
Published by the Office of the Federal Register, National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), the Federal Register is the official daily publication for rules, proposed rules, and notices of federal agencies and organizations, as well as executive orders and other presidential documents. A few examples are:
The University is committed to performing sponsored research in accordance with all relevant ethical, legal and regulatory obligations. As an indication of its commitment and a high level of accountability, UNC-Chapel Hill has structured several compliance programs to maintain effective monitoring, auditing, training, education and communication regarding compliance issues. In addition, the University Research Compliance and Privacy Officer in the Office of University Counsel oversees institutional research compliance issues. These proactive programs coordinate administrative and operational compliances by actively accessing and responding to compliance needs. Concerns related to any of the compliance components listed below can be reported anonymously through the University Compliance Line, via internet access or by telephone (1.866.294.8688).
University programs responsible for various compliance proceedings are listed below.
UNC-Chapel Hill’s Office of Human Research Ethics (OHRE) manages the Human Subjects Protection Program, which provides assurance to the federal government that the University upholds all ethical and regulatory requirements concerning research that involves human subjects. OHRE also supports and oversees the work of the Institutional Review Boards (IRBs).
Three University offices work together to oversee compliance issues pertaining to animal welfare, care and use of animals used for research. They include:
The entire University community is responsible for assuring that high standards of integrity and ethical behavior are practiced in all research endeavors. The University’s policy and procedures are outlined in the University Policy on Ethics in Research.
OSR and the Office of Clinical Trials (OCT) coordinate with IRB and Conflict of Interest Committees, University Counsel, and Auditing, to account for compliance regulations mandated from federal granting agencies such as the National Institutes of Health (NIH), National Science Foundation (NSF) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
The Department of Environment, Health, and Safety (DEHS) is responsible for adhering to regulations for laboratory and healthcare environment safety.
Both University Counsel and campus Conflict of Interest Committees serve to ensure that research team members and their family members do not have conflicting financial interests with the research they undertake.
Several UNC-Chapel Hill offices, including the Campus HIPAA Steering Committee work in unison to protect the research data that includes a person’s private Protected Health Information (PHI).
The federal government’s export control regulations may prohibit the unlicensed export of specific technologies for reasons of national security or protection of trade. Such exports may require the University to obtain a license from the Department of State or the Department of Commerce before allowing foreign nationals without US citizenship or permanent resident status to participate in research. OSR works with the community to relay important information on export control as it relates to sponsored research at UNC-Chapel Hill.