October 31, 2022

Presidential Search Feedback

As part of the University's presidential search, Harvard Chan School staff can share their thoughts on Harvard's next president. The Harvard Chan Office of the Dean welcomes staff to share any written feedback, directly to the Presidential Search Committee, by email to psearch@harvard.edu or by submitting your responses to these questions.

Upcoming Holiday: Veterans Day

In observance of Veteran's Day, the University and NIH will be closed on Friday, November 11, 2022. Reminder: If an NIH grant application due date falls on a federal holiday, the application deadline is automatically extended to the next business day.

SPA Holiday Schedule and Internal Proposal Deadlines

With the start of November, the holiday season will soon be upon us. SPA would like to remind grant administrators that the upcoming holidays will alter our work schedule. Plan ahead to avoid missing the SPA Internal Proposal Deadlines and the Provost’s 5-day deadline for proposals meeting Provost Criteria. Please note: These deadlines are subject to change, if Harvard extends any of the holiday breaks.

As soon as you are aware of an upcoming proposal, please create the GMAS Request shell, even if you plan to complete the full shell at a later date. The creation of the GMAS shell will allow SPA to see the volume of proposals and plan for the appropriate SRA coverage. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact your SRA as soon as possible. 

Thanksgiving 

• Harvard Chan is closed Thursday (11/24/22) & Friday (11/25/22) 
• Submissions due during this period, are due to SPA no later than Monday, 11/14/22 by 10 AM   

Winter Recess

• Harvard Chan is closed Friday (12/23/22) - Monday (1/2/23) 
• Submissions due to sponsors 1during this period, are due to SPA no later than Monday, 12/12/22 by 10 AM

Post Award Metrics Files & Meetings

All the October Post-Award Metrics (PAM) files have been saved in each department's SharePoint PAM folder and the medium-to-high risk items have been highlighted. Please note, the summer caused the PAM Quarterly Meetings to shift a bit. Please see the new schedule below. If you have any questions, please contact Catalina Diaz.

OVPR Outreach on the New NIH DMS Policy

OVPR reached out to faculty regarding the new NIH Policy for Data Management and Sharing, effective January 25, 2023.

• The new policy will require a Data Management and Sharing (DMS) Plan for all NIH-funded projects, which is an expansion from the current requirement
• The University has developed resources to help support researchers in meeting these requirements. Information can be found on OVPR’s website on the NIH DMSP page, Harvard’s DMSP FAQs (which include relevant contacts at each school), and the Library’s RDM Program (which includes guidance on the DMPTool and other data resources)
• All are encouraged to test & provide feeback on the NIH Template that the University developed in DMPTool 
• To request an information or a training session on the new requirements, please submit a request form
• The Research Data Management Seminar Series, hosted by Countway Library, includes regular virtual and in-person office hour sessions to “Ask an Expert” for guidance related to your specific research

FORMS-H Application Forms: Instructions, Forms, and Checklist

As announced in NIH notices (NOT-OD-22-195, NOT-OD-23-012), tweets, FORMS-H application instructions, annotated Form Sets, and previous Nexus posts (FORMS-H Coming for January 2023 Due Dates, Gearing Up for Transition to FORMS-H Application Forms, data sharing posts, genomic data sharing posts) regarding the transition to an updated set of grant application forms NIH refers to as FORMS-H and the implementation of new Data Management and Sharing (DMS) requirements for grant application due dates on or after January 25, 2023. For more information and to view the FORMS-H checklist, refer to the full NIH post.  

Issuance of NSF PAPPG 

A new revised version of the NSF Proposal & Award Policies & Procedures Guide (PAPPG) (NSF 23-1) has been issued. The new PAPPG will be effective for proposals submitted or due on or after January 30, 2023. While this version of the PAPPG becomes effective on January 30, 2023, in the interim, the guidelines contained in the current PAPPG (NSF 22-1) continue to apply. For more information and to see the list of significant changes, refer to the full NSF announcement.

Preparing Supplemental Funding Requests in Research.gov and Upcoming FastLane Proposal Decommissioning Deadlines

NSF announced that supplemental funding requests, including Career-Life Balance requests, can now be prepared in Research.gov. Supplemental funding requests can be submitted in Research.gov, regardless of the system used (Research.gov, FastLane, or Grants.gov) for proposal submission. FastLane supplemental funding request functionality will remain available, in parallel, for the preparation and submission of new requests until January 27, 2023. For more information and to see a list of important deadlines, refer to the full NSF announcement.

DMP Requirement Clarification: AHRQ NRSA Institutional Research Training Grant

The AHRQ Data Management Policy (NOT-HS-20-011) does not apply to the AHRQ NRSA Institutional Research Training Grant (T32) and a data management plan is not required as part of the grant application. For more information, refer to Notice NOT-HS-23-001.

Fishbowl Tuesdays at the Harvard Chan School are 1 to 1 1/2 hour sessions held on a regular basis during the academic year. All sessions are currently being held via Zoom. Invitations to attend each session (with Zoom Meeting Info) are sent to our research administrator’s mailing list. Please contact Jennifer Neira with questions, suggestions, or to have your name added to the email list. To access previous Fishbowl presentations, visit HCSRA's Fishbowl Tuesday page.
 

Revised Independent Contractor Policy Training

Date: Monday, November 7, 2022, 10:00AM - 11:30AM 

Register: Harvard Training Portal

Description: Individuals providing a service to Harvard are considered an employee unless they meet certain criteria. In order for Harvard to meet these obligations, schools and units must follow The Independent Contractor (IC) Policy.

This training gives an overview of the policy as well as the questionnaire and provides guidance and clarification on roles and responsibilities and when and how to classify an individual as an employee or independent contractor.

Expanded training materials have also been created to help hiring departments, Human Resources and Finance Offices property classify and pay these individuals.

Virtual NIH Grants PreCon Event: International Collaborations: Policies, Processes, & Partnerships

Date: Wednesday, November 9, 2022, 2:00PM - 4:00PM

Register: Registration Link (Register once to access conference and all virtual preconference events)

Description: Whether you are from a domestic institution considering partnering with an overseas research organization or you are an international researcher working through the grant application process, this event will provide you with valuable tools, policies, and guidance. Administrative and programmatic aspects of the application process will be shared, as well as considerations for building a partnership.

NCBI Workshop: Working on your RPPR? Learn How to Report Publications Using My Bibliography

Date: Thursday, November 10, 2022, 1:00PM - 3:00PM

Register: Registration Link 

Description: Congratulations on your successful NIH grant proposal. As part of the post-award process, you will now have to create and send in annual and final reports (RPPRs) on your progress. This workshop introduces tips and tricks for use of NCBI Account tools for NIH post-award reporting. This session is for NIH-funded researchers, their delegates, and institutional grants officers with specific task-based, hands-on activities.

Fall 2022 NSF Virtual Grants Conference

Date: November 14–17, 2022

Register: Registration Link 

Description: The Fall 2022 NSF Virtual Grants Conference is designed to give new faculty, researchers, and administrators key insights into a wide range of current issues at NSF. NSF program officers will be providing up-to-date information about specific funding opportunities and answering attendee questions.  For those who cannot attend the live conference, all recorded conference sessions will be available on-demand shortly after the event and posted on the NSF website and YouTube page.

General Contract Review Training

Date: Tuesday, November 15, 2022, 10:00AM - 11:30AM 

Register: Harvard Training Portal 

Description: General training from Strategic Procurement’s Contracts Team on how to contract with vendors. Covers general legal concepts, Harvard-specific policies and concerns, and how to use Harvard contracts templates or work with vendor documents. Attendees who complete this course should be able to handle at least basic contracts on their own and know when and how to seek further assistance. Course is designed to be informative for all staff regardless of experience level with vendor contracting. [Recommended for ADFs working with non-sponsored agreements]

Human Subjects Research: Policies, Clinical Trials, & Inclusion

Date: Tues & Wed, December 6 & 7, 2022, 12:00PM - 5:00PM 

Register: Registration Link

Description: Are you working with human subjects in your research and wondering about how HHS regulations and NIH policies apply, how to prepare a research proposal, or how to develop inclusion plans? Join experts from the NIH Division of Human Subjects Research and HHS Office of Human Research Protections (OHRP) for answers to these questions and more at the Human Subjects Research: Policies, Clinical Trials, & Inclusion event on December 6 and 7, 2022. During this 2-day virtual event, these NIH and HHS experts will share policies, resources, guidance, and case studies in this informative and engaging, live event. Check out the full agenda on this page for a detailed list of topics covered.

NIH Data Management and Sharing Policy Immersion Workshop

Date: Monday, December 12, 2022, 11:00AM - 5:00PM 

Register: Registration Link

Description: The NNLM National Center for Data Services is hosting this workshop to provide an extensive look at the upcoming NIH Data Management and Sharing Plan Requirements (effective January 25, 2023).This all-day workshop is intended for those without much experience working in research data management and will provide an overview of the NIH policy, research data management basics, and related resources.

Harvard Research Data Security Training Course (University-Wide) 

Date: Ongoing

Register: Harvard Training Portal

Description: The Harvard Research Data Security Training Course provides researchers and administrators with an overview of processes and procedures related to managing research data in compliance with the Harvard Research Data Security Policy and other related University policies. The Course focuses on human subjects and sensitive or confidential data, as well as data that is subject to contractual requirements

Job Openings in Research Administration

We would like to use this section to highlight current research administration job openings. We will keep this section up to date and all job postings can be found on Harvard Careers. 

Assistant Director of Finance
Sponsored Programs Administration - GHP
Description: The Assistant Director of Finance is an integral part of the research enterprise and works in close partnership with faculty members on the financial management of their research portfolio. The Assistant Director of Finance will oversee the financial management and administration of sponsored and non-sponsored awards, with a focus on customer service. This role will also supervise a team of 3 direct reports that manage a diverse and challenging portfolio of federal and non-federal grants, subawards and contracts. 
Grade: 57
60294BR

Senior Grants and Contracts Manager 
Sponsored Programs Administration - EPI
Description: The Senior Grants and Contracts Manager is an integral part of the research enterprise and works in close partnership with faculty members. They are a primary resource for providing guidance and oversight on issues related to fiscal, administrative, and regulatory management of a portfolio of grants, contracts, and sponsored programs from award receipt through closeout. These grants are from a wide-range of sponsors including the federal government (e.g. NIH), foundations, industry, and international contracts from foreign entities
Grade: 56
59991BR

Senior Grants and Contracts Manager 
Sponsored Programs Administration - NUT
Description: The Senior Grants and Contracts Manager is an integral part of the research enterprise and works in close partnership with faculty members. They are a primary resource for providing guidance and oversight on issues related to fiscal, administrative, and regulatory management of a portfolio of grants, contracts, and sponsored programs from award receipt through closeout. These grants are from a wide-range of sponsors including the federal government (e.g. NIH), foundations, industry, and international contracts from foreign entities
Grade: 56
59960BR

Senior Grants and Contracts Manager 
Sponsored Programs Administration - EPI
Description: The Senior Grants and Contracts Manager is an integral part of the research enterprise and works in close partnership with faculty members. They are a primary resource for providing guidance and oversight on issues related to fiscal, administrative and regulatory management of a portfolio of grants, contracts, and sponsored programs from award receipt through closeout. These grants are from a wide-range of sponsors including the federal government (e.g. NIH), foundations, industry, and international contracts from foreign entities.
Grade: 56
59180BR

Senior Grants Manager 
Center for Biostatistics in AIDS Research (CBAR)
Description: The SGM will work closely with researchers and other members of the Finance Team to design and prepare budgets, as well as assemble highly-confidential, final grant proposals. The SGM will analyze past data in preparing projections, completing required forms for new grant proposals, and completing competitive renewals and continuations for a number of different sponsors (NIH, subcontractors, and corporations). The SGM will also be responsible for monitoring all deadlines and contacting the School’s Office of Sponsored Programs Administration to resolve any problems or issues that arise. 
Grade: 56
58978BR