Office of Sponsored Programs Posts

We are delighted to welcome two new members to the research support team.

Katelyn Turnbull joined WPI as the Grants & Contracts Administrator in the Office of Sponsored Programs in September 2019.  Katelyn is responsible for general administrative management of sponsored research awards at WPI in Post-Award, with a primary focus on closeout processes and subaward management.  Before coming to WPI, Katelyn, a Clark University alumni, spent several years in administration in the corporate world in a variety of companies and a wide range of industries, including the opportunity to create a new role in management for a software development consultancy started by WPI alumni.

Erin Michelotti joined WPI as a Grant Specialist in September 2019 providing proposal and award management support for faculty in the Computer Science, Data Science and Social Science & Policy Studies departments. Prior to relocating to Massachusetts and joining the WPI family, Erin worked in the sponsored research offices of University of Central Florida in Orlando as well as Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and PATH in Seattle managing various aspects of both pre and post-award including subaward management, proposal submissions and contract negotiations.

We are delighted to welcome Priscilla Vazquez as a Grants and Contract Administrator within the Office of Sponsored Programs. Prior to coming to WPI, Priscilla worked at Commonwealth Medicine (the health care consulting division of UMass Medical School) as a Business Partner Services Specialist and certified proposal management professional. In addition to proposal writing and management, she brings to WPI her experience as an academic administrator for research departments at University of Vermont and UMass Medical School. Priscilla has a background in graphic design, as well as a degree in Arts Management from UMass Amherst.

We are sharing an update and relevant guidance regarding the current partial federal government shutdown and its potential effects on federally funded grants and contracts.

General Information and Resources:

While many federal agencies, including the Department of Defense, Department of Education and Department of Energy, are not affected by the partial shutdown, some agencies, including National Science Foundation (NSF), Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the Department of Transportation (DoT), and National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), are being affected.

Please refer to the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) webpage for various agency-specific contingency plans, as well as  agency-specific websites for updates regarding grants and initiatives. Some of the most relevant agency specific links for WPI researchers are below:

• NSF (for grantees): https://www.nsf.gov/shutdown/grantees.jsp

• NSF (for panelists): https://www.nsf.gov/shutdown/panelists.jsp

• NASA: https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/atoms/files/181218_revised_shutdown_plan.pdf
  

Guidance on Current Grants and Contracts:

In most cases, spending on current grants and contracts from an affected agency can continue, as planned, throughout their award period and budget cycle. Current grant holders should comply with any specific additional expenditure guidance they may receive from their funding agency. We also request that should you receive stop work notices from your sponsors, to please contact the Office of Sponsored Programs (OSP) immediately.

However, during this shutdown period, no new funding opportunities will be announced and no new grants will be awarded by affected agencies. Unless an agency advises otherwise, recipients will be able to continue using funds already awarded, as long as activities are under the already agreed-to award budget and period, as no extensions or supplements would be processed.

Guidance on Submission of New Proposals During the Shutdown Period:

Some agencies, in particular the NSF, are still accepting proposals through online submission portals such as Fastlane and grants.gov.  Unless an agency has issued a specific proposal deadline extension to accommodate the shutdown, we are advising all WPI faculty and staff to assume that proposal due dates remained unchanged.

Note that personnel at federal agencies may not be available to answer questions during the federal shutdown due to staff furloughs.

Access to Federally Run Facilities:

If your work necessitates usage of a facility that is managed by an impacted agency, you may not able to access this facility during the shutdown period.

Further Information

Should you have any additional questions about how the shutdown may impact your research, please do not hesitate to contact OSP.  We will keep you posted as we learn more.

 

“Research compliance” encompasses many university and sponsor policies designed to ensure that research is conducted ethically, responsibly, and in the public interest. The Office of Sponsored Programs can assist WPI faculty, staff, and students with all types research compliance issues, including Responsible Conduct of Research, Human Subjects/IRB, Animal Subjects / IACUC, Environmental Health and Safety, Research Misconduct and Financial Conflict of Interest.  Please visit our new webpage here https://www.wpi.edu/research/resources/support/sponsored-programs/resources/compliance.