Office of Sponsored Programs and Research

The Office of Sponsored Programs & Research (OSPR) provides pre-award support for all sponsored activities. Marian University faculty members have been recipients of grants from major federal agencies such as the National Science Foundation (NSF), National Institutes of Health (NIH), and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services (USFWS), as well as many non-federal sponsors, including the American Osteopathic Association, Indiana Academy of Science, American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine, and many others.

The first step in working with OSPR is to identify the funding opportunity. Once the funding opportunity has been identified, it is critical to read the Request for Proposals (RFP), Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA), and other announcements and guidelines to ensure that Marian, the principal investigator/project director (PI/PD), and the project are all eligible. OSPR will assist with questions related to eligibility, scope of work, and other issues. Faculty should contact OSPR for administrative support as soon as possible. This time allows the faculty member and OSPR to assess eligibility, write strong project descriptions, and obtain budget assistance. 

We will schedule a proposal kick-off meeting as soon as eligibility and submission plans are confirmed. At this meeting, faculty will receive a checklist with all required components of the proposal submission, as well as a budget template and any other forms templates that the sponsor provides. Workload will also be discussed in conjunction with budget planning to ensure that the faculty member has sufficient time to complete the project relative to existing university teaching and professional commitments.

Between the kick-off meeting and proposal submission, faculty members will work closely with Miss Beltzhoover on the budget, the application components, and internal effort certification and routing forms. Proposals will be submitted at least one business day prior to the sponsor deadline.

When an application is approved for funding, the sponsor will send an award letter or packet to the PI and OSPR. It is important that the PI/PD read the award letter carefully to fully understand the terms and conditions of the grant. The award letter will include reporting deadlines, grant restrictions, project period for the funds, and other information necessary for grant management. PIs/PDs should also meet with OSPR to carefully review the award terms and to address questions related to the budget modification, hiring project personnel, and managing expenditures. If the application funded is non-federal and requires Marian University signatures (PI/ OSPR and/ or Provost), all parties must confirm understanding and approval of the terms in the award prior to execution.

Upon acceptance of an award, OSPR will submit an account set-up request to the Finance Office so that the PI receives a sponsored projects account in MUHub, as well as a Project ID for purchasing purposes.

Throughout the lifecycle of the award, OSPR will be the official point of contact with the sponsor. OSPR will also facilitate ongoing communication between the PI and the Finance Office to monitor spending on sponsored awards. Finally, OSPR will facilitate all report submissions and will work with the Business and Finance offices to ensure timely and accurate payments from the sponsored award. 

Need to submit a change to the sponsored award? OSPR will facilitate this award. Such changes include, but are not limited to, change of PI, additional or substitution of a Co-Investigator, no-cost extensions, and substantial budget modifications.