FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Faculty should contact the Colby Office of Sponsored Programs & Scholarship (COSPS) grants team (grants@colby.edu) as early as possible to discuss timelines, sponsor guidelines, and internal approvals. Early engagement helps ensure a smooth submission process. 

The Colby Office of Sponsored Programs & Scholarship (often abbreviated COSPS) supports faculty and staff in securing and managing external funding for research, programs, and projects.

Here’s what we assist with:

• Identify funding opportunities – foundations, government agencies, and other sponsors

• Assist with proposal development – budgets, narratives, compliance requirements

• Submit grant applications – ensuring everything meets sponsor guidelines

• Manage awarded funds – oversight of spending, reporting, and compliance

• Provide guidance – policies, regulations, and best practices for grant-funded work

In short, we help turn ideas into funded projects and make sure everything runs smoothly from application through completion.

Faculty should work with their departmental research administrators and the Colby Office of Sponsored Programs & Scholarship (COSPS) when developing proposals that may result in funded projects or research. Faculty should contact the pre-award grants development team as early as possible to discuss timelines, sponsor guidelines, and internal approvals. Early engagement helps ensure a smooth submission process 

You can access common forms, guidance documents, and templates in the Library page of our website. 

As early as possible. Questions related to proposal development, budgeting, and sponsor requirements should be directed to the grants development staff listed on the “Meet the Team” page of our website. The COSPS team will provide guidance to ensure your proposal meets all requirements and is prepared for a successful submission. 

Yes! We will provide Colby’s mission statement, any required financial documents, 990, Non-Profit status, Consolidated Financials, Audited Financials, Colby Budget, and Colby Board of Trustees. Need these items or something else for your submission? Please reach out to us (grants@colby.edu) so we can help.

Facilities and Administrative (F&A) costs are charged to each grant in accordance with College and sponsor policies and are an essential component of a sponsored project budget. These are calculated as a percentage of the direct costs of the project, and then added to the direct cost to arrive at the total requested amount of the submitted project. Colby's current indirect cost rates are 53% for on-campus work and 31% for off-campus research. For more information about these rates, fringe rates and more, please see the 'Instructions' tab in the Budget Template Worksheet.

These costs support the shared infrastructure and services that make research and creative work at Colby College possible. This includes physical resources such as laboratory and office space, utilities (electricity, water, and heat), and building operations and maintenance, as well as institutional resources such as grant administration, financial management, compliance oversight (e.g., IRB and safety), information technology systems, and library and research support services.

Recovering F&A costs helps sustain the College’s ability to provide high-quality research support, ensuring that faculty and staff have the resources and systems needed to successfully carry out sponsored projects.

The funder requirements guide who submits. If the funder does not specify, then CFR staff will offer to submit a proposal. At no time should a proposal be submitted to a funder without COSPS review and approval for submission

No. Proposals must not be submitted to a funder—regardless of the funding source—without prior review and approval from the Colby Office of Sponsored Programs & Scholarship (COSPS). Faculty should work with their departmental research administrator to complete the COSPS review and approval process before submission.

A subrecipient institution must provide a scope of work, detailed budget, budget justification, and a subrecipient commitment form or letter at the time of proposal submission. Depending on sponsor requirements, additional materials—such as biographical sketches, current and pending (other) support, and letters of support—may also be required.

To complete these requirements, subrecipients must draw on several key resources, including:Personnel time and expertise to develop the scope of work and prepare proposal materials

• Administrative support for budget development, compliance documentation, and institutional approvals

• Financial systems and data to build accurate and compliant budgets

• Research infrastructure (e.g., labs, equipment, or facilities) to define project feasibility

• Institutional review and compliance resources to ensure alignment with sponsor and regulatory requirements
  
  

At Colby College, the COSPS team works closely with subrecipients to help coordinate these resources, obtain all required documentation, and ensure alignment with College and sponsor guidelines. 

If the RFA limits the number of submissions from Colby College, the Colby Office of Sponsored Programs & Scholarship (grants@colby.edu) will work with the Provost and Dean of Faculty to determine whether or not there will be an internal review and decision made regarding which proposal(s) will move forward.

I received an NIH Just in Time (JIT) Request for Information. Whom do I contact at Colby College to provide assistance?

Contact the Colby Office of Sponsored Programs & Scholarship (grants@colby.edu) for all NIH JIT requests. As the Principal Investigator, you will need to upload JIT information in eRA Commons according to the instructions provided by NIH. You will then notify grants@colby.edu when the files have been uploaded, and we will review and submit the information to NIH on your behalf. 

To initiate an NSF proposal that will be submitted by Colby College, an NSF awardee institution, you will need to register in Research.gov if you do not already have an existing account.

To access the Account Registration page:

• Open Research.gov

• Click “Register” located at the top of the screen. Complete the Account Registration page.

You can contact the Sponsored Programs Office (grants@colby.edu) for additional assistance with creating a new account or associating an existing account with Colby College.

The Office of Financial Services provides ongoing support with financial monitoring, contractor payments, budget management, and compliance with sponsor requirements, helping to ensure the award is managed effectively throughout its lifecycle. 

Independent contractors must complete required documentation, including the Independent Contractor Questionnaire, Form W-9, and ACH authorization. Once approved, contracts and payment processing are coordinated through Workday. 

Invoices are reviewed for alignment with grant budgets and approved scope of work. After departmental and financial approvals, payments are processed through Workday according to institutional payment timelines. 

Once logged into Research.gov, you can navigate to Project Reports by performing one of the following options:

• Click on Project Reports under the Awards & Reporting tab at the top of the page; or

• Click on the Annual, Final and Interim Reports or Project Outcomes Report link in the Project Report Dashboard.