Posted in Other 6 days ago.
Location: Urbana, Illinois
Research Administration Coordinator
Siebel School of Computing and Data Science
The Grainger College of Engineering
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
INTERNAL TO CAMPUS
The Siebel School of Computing and Data Science at The Grainger College of Engineering welcomes applicants to join our team of Research Administrators. Our team works with school faculty to apply for and manage sponsored research projects funded by various grants and other funding sources. The primary job functions of the Research Administration Coordinator include pre-award and post-award grant administration. The Coordinator position will work in a collaborative, team environment and will be trained by our expert team of Research Administration professionals and supported by others in the business office and across the school and college. All applicants interested in working with a team of self-motivated professionals are encouraged to apply!
Job Summary
Facilitate the accomplishment of sponsored research goals within the School of Computing and Data Science through pre-award and post-award research grant and contract administration. Independently perform pre- and post-award administrative functions related to sponsored projects. Independently manage a portfolio of principal investigators (PIs) and provide assistance in creating budgets for assigned proposal submissions and spending plans for assigned funded project accounts. Mentor and train new and less experienced staff.
Duties and Responsibilities:
• Support faculty on research proposal preparation for the School of Computing and Data Science, including internal routing of applications, interpretation of sponsor guidelines, and development of electronic proposals.
• Use independent judgment to identify, review, understand, and interpret sponsor guidelines, ensuring all requirements are met, such as deadlines, funding restrictions, eligibility restrictions, potential cost share, general compliance, and other requirements for valid submissions.
• Advise faculty and staff to ensure compliance with sponsor and funding opportunity guidelines on terms of research agreements, interpretations of proposal guidelines, and the submission requirements of such proposals according to university policy, with Sponsored Programs Administration (SPA).
• Assist faculty with preparing proposal budgets, budget justifications, and any other required proposal documents.
• With reference to the proposal guidelines, review materials to ensure all sponsor and University requirements are met before sending completed proposal to SPA for final review.
• Use sound judgment and attention to detail to make independent changes to proposals under strict time constraints to ensure successful and timely submissions to meet deadlines.
• Act as a liaison for the school when working with SPA, answer questions, resolve issues that occur with proposals and assist in grant/contract negotiations as necessary.
• Prepare financial reports and analyses to support faculty with the administration and development of their sponsored research projects, verify correct rates are being used in budget development, suggest budget revisions as needed, implement new indirect cost rates and fringe benefit rates, and accurately interpret sponsor guidelines to ensure proposal compliance.
• Ensure proposal packages are properly formatted with necessary materials and signatures by reviewing and editing proposals and budgets in accordance with sponsor and University guidelines.
• Support faculty with entering budget and other relevant information into online submission programs, such as research.gov, grants.gov, Proposal Central, and NSPIRES for each faculty proposal submission as appropriate. This involves managing several drafts and revisions, according to the faculty member's needs, until a final draft is approved by the faculty member.
• Review and revise pending proposals and budgets according to university guidelines and changing sponsor requirements, monitor the status of proposal submissions, update their status in the proposal database, update database information on awards received, and prepare administrative reports on new awards for school administration.
• Work directly with faculty members and SPA to provide additional information when a proposal is pending with a sponsor and additional information is requested. This may include a revised budget, salary confirmation, rate confirmation, additional justification online items in the proposed budget; any and all sponsor requests to assist in awarding the proposal.
• Use discretion, expertise, attention to detail and independent thinking to decipher what the sponsor is requesting and provide the most applicable and appropriate information.
• Prepare required documents related to budget modifications, renewal funding, and supplemental funding. When a request for supplemental funding or a renewal for a current award is necessary, work with the faculty member to prepare and submit a completed proposal through SPA containing a budget, budget justification and statement of work.
• Use independent judgment to make suggested changes to a proposal package when necessary to allow for successful, compliant submission.
• Manage financial aspects of post-award sponsored project activities. Work closely with Principal Investigators to develop and monitor grant spending plans, including staff planning, appropriate rates of spending, and regularly reviewing and updating project expenditures to ensure compliance with sponsor and University policy requirements. Review sponsored project expenditures, ensuring integrity, for accuracy and allowability of transactions in accordance with project budgets and agreements as well as University and Federal guidelines.
• Work with SPA to ensure funded project accounts are established in a timely manner, request and monitor anticipation accounts when necessary.
• Complete sponsored project close-out reviews and work with SPA to close completed project accounts in a timely manner.
• Prepare and record Banner journal entries, as appropriate, including those for month-and year-end close activities, rogue CFOP and other error corrections and necessary entries. Monitor budgets, account balances, and expenditures to identify errors, process transfers when necessary.
• Regularly (i.e. annually) communicate with faculty regarding their School of Computing and Data Science funding portfolios to ensure they have a thorough understanding of their funding situation.
• Prepare and review with faculty quarterly spending reports, which allow for accurate financial projections to aid faculty in effective spending decisions.
• Update and manage Activity Reporting System for all relevant staff in the school.
• Coordinate faculty effort on sponsored projects by facilitating approvals of faculty summer appointments and auditing effort budgeted compared to effort taken. Ensure faculty remain within sponsor compliance for effort on a project.
• Collaboration and Leadership
• Mentor and train other members of the unit's research administration team so that the team is cohesive and provides uniform, consistent service to the faculty.
• Serve as back-up to other research administration staff as needed.
• Communicate new sponsor policies to other research administration staff and update references in the staff's training and template folders.
• Assume additional appropriate duties to further the mission of the school.
