1	Countdown to Grants.gov Christine Ahearn Manager of Policy and Education Office of Grants and Contracts Anschutz Medical Campus
2	Agenda Overview of Grants.gov Transition by Mechanism Registration in Grants.gov and eRA Commons System Requirements Timing of Grant Application to Grants and Contracts Overview of Finding and Applying for Grant Opportunities via Grants.gov Resources
3	Grants.gov Grants.gov is the federal government’s online electronic portal that allows users to find and apply for federal grants. Transition to electronic submission is being mandated by: The Federal Financial Assistance Management Improvement Act of 1999 (Public Law 106-107) President's Management Agenda for FY 2002-Directed Federal Agencies to simplify Federal financial assistance application requirements and create a single website to apply for Federal assistance. Grants.gov (http://www.grants.gov/) has been designated by the Office of Management and Budget as the single access point for all grant programs offered by 26 Federal grant-making agencies.
4	Transition by Mechanism Transition date dictated by agency; for NIH it is based on grant type. Once an award transitions to electronic submission, the grant application must be electronically submitted from that point forward. New, revised and competing applications must be submitted on the SF424 (R&R) form once mechanism transitions-n/a to non-competing continuations. Applicants should continue to use paper PHS 398 forms until the grant mechanism transitions to electronic.
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6	Registration in Grants.gov and eRA Commons Grants.gov Registration HSC is already registered-PI’s do not need to and should not attempt to register in Grants.gov eRA Commons Registration HSC has registered PI designated as PI on the grant application must register with eRA Commons! Why? PIs need to register because there is a verification step that PIs must complete in eRA Commons following grant submission to Grants.gov. This is a one-time registration. Contact Lora Mihelic in OGC to assist with registration (724-0088, lora.mihelic@uchsc.edu)
7	System Requirements Software: PC users will need to download the PureEdge Viewer which is available at http://grants.gov/DownloadViewer NIH requires text attachments to PureEdge forms to be submitted as PDF files. Other agencies may have different requirements. Attachments generated from PureEdge forms should not be converted to PDF PDF generation software Grants.gov lists some available tools and software at http://www.grants.gov/assets/PDFConversion.pdf
8	System Requirements For PureEdge Viewer to function properly, your computer must meet the following system requirements: Windows 98, ME, NT 4.0, 2000, XP 500 Mhz processor 128 MB of RAM 40 MB disk space Web browser: Internet Explorer 5.01 or higher, Netscape Communicator 4.5 - 4.8, Netscape 6.1, 6.2, or 7
9	System Requirements Macintosh Users Applicants who do not have a Windows operating system can still submit via Grants.gov by using a Windows Emulation System or a Citrix server Information about Virtual PC for Mac can be found at http://www.grants.gov/GrantsGov_UST_Grantee/!SSL!/WebHelp/MacSupportforPureEdge.pdf Information regarding the Citrix server can be found at http://www.grants.gov/MacSupport HSC’s IS Department has created Citrix user instructions which are available at http://www.uchsc.edu/is/workstation/Install_Citrix_for_Grants.htm PureEdge is expected to release a non-Windows version of forms by November 2006
10	Timing of Grant Applications Public Health Service estimates that it will take 40 hours to complete the application Estimate includes time for development of scientific plan Estimate does not include time for obtaining required COMIRB, IACUC, or any other internal approvals
11	Timeline for Routing and Approval of Grant Applications Obtain Chair/Dean approval of the application via the OGC routing form-enough time to ensure application arrives in OGC by the end of the 12^th business day prior to submission deadline OGC reviews routing form and draft application, provides feedback/changes to be made, returns to PI/primary contact-5 business days PI/primary contact prepares final application and sends to OGC for electronic submission-3 business days
12	Timeline for Routing and Approval of Grant Applications GRANTS.gov AOR completes electronic submission of final application via Grants.gov-application must be returned to PreAward by 4 PM on the 4^th business day before submission deadline. If application is accepted, Grants.gov sends AOR e-mail with tracking number within 48 hours of grant application submission. Keep tracking number as a reference.
13	Timeline for Routing and Approval of Grant Applications eRA COMMONS Application scheduled for download into eRA Commons for agency validation. PI and SO should be notified by e-mail to check eRA Commons for NIH validation check results-2 business days E-mail will include NIH generated agency accession number if there are no validation errors. Accession number should be used in lieu of the Grants.gov tracking number. PI is encouraged to check eRA Commons; NIH does not guarantee that an e-mail regarding the validation check will be sent.
14	Timeline for Routing and Approval of Grant Applications Determine if application passed or failed eRA Commons check PASSED: Accurate applications: Application will be automatically forwarded to the Division of Receipt and Referral after 2 business days. Inaccurate applications: PI must instruct AOR/SO to reject application in eRA Commons. Make necessary changes, and have OGC submit changed/corrected application through Grants.gov Warnings: will be forwarded automatically to DRR after 2 business days; not required to correct errors. FAILED: A list of errors and possibly warnings will appear in eRA Commons. Errors must be corrected and entire changed/corrected application submitted through Grants.gov
15	Timeline for Routing and Approval of Grant Applications Upon application verification by the PI and SO, NIH will process the application. Application can be tracked in eRA Commons with the agency accession number.
16	Timeline Reminders Time for routing and application processing has increased due to external mandate. PreAward must receive the application by the end of the 12^th business day before the submission deadline. Plan time required for routing application accordingly. OGC will only review upon completion of routing. Applications missing required forms and approvals will not be reviewed.
17	Timeline Reminders OGC will review applications based on date received, complexity of review and total volume of applications needing review. OGC needs 5 business days for review. OGC will guarantee submission to NIH on or before the deadline as long as timelines are followed. All other applications will be reviewed based on order of receipt.
18	Timeline Reminders OGC will not re-review final applications unless time permits. PI and administrative unit are responsible for addressing all communications provided by the OGC during the draft review and final application preparation periods.
19	Locating Grant Opportunities To search for a grant go to http://www.grants.gov/search/searchHome.do Basic Searches Browse by Category or Agency Advanced Search Register to receive opportunities via e-mail
20	Locating Grant Opportunities
21	Locating Grant Opportunities
22	Applying for Grant Opportunities Applying for grant opportunities Download the Grant Application and Application Instructions Complete each “mandatory” form “Optional” forms-confirm need to complete by checking Application Instructions
23	Applying for Grant Opportunities
24	Applying for Grant Opportunities
25	Download Application Package
26	Application Package
27	Application Package
28	Application Package
29	Application Package Form
30	Application Package Form
31	Application Package Form
32	Form Completion
33	New Terminology: Type of Application
34	New Terminology
35	Resources eRA Commons Demo: https://commonsdemo.era.nih.gov/commons-demo/ Grants.gov Training Demo, Tutorial, Tips and Tools: http://www.grants.gov/CustomerSupport http://www.grants.gov/CompleteApplication#demo NIH Training Page http://era.nih.gov/ElectronicReceipt/training.htm Information on Electronic Submission http://era.nih.gov/ElectronicReceipt/ OGC Website- http://www.uchsc.edu/ogc/era.htm OGC’s NIH Grants.gov Application Submissions Guide, http://www.uchsc.edu/ogc/pre/grantsgov/HHS_PHS_Grantsgov.pdf NIH Grants.gov Application Submissions Guide http://grants1.nih.gov/grants/funding/424/SF424_RR_Guide_General.pdf Most Common Application Errors http://era.nih.gov/ElectronicReceipt/tips_tools.htm
36	Open Forums Tuesday March 14, 8:30 am-noon, Denison Auditorium Thursday April 13, 8:30 am-noon, RC1 North, West Research Auditorium Monday May 1, 1 pm-4:30 pm, Denison Auditorium Friday May 5, 8:30 am-noon, RC1 North, West Research Auditorium
37	Contact Information Christine Ahearn, Manager of Policy and Education, Office of Grants and Contracts christine.ahearn@uchsc.edu 303-724-0245