Grant Process - Pre-award

The Pre-Award process begins with the research and selection of a grant Request for Proposal (RFP) and continues throughout the developmental stages of the proposal up to the submission to the funding agency. OSRP is available throughout the process to assist the Principal Investigator in the creation of their work.

Eligibility

The College’s eligibility is the most important factor in performing research for a grant proposal. Principal Investigators should take the time to review the RFP announcement to determine specifically if the College is eligible to apply.

Other factors would be:

will the College/campus leadership support the proposal?
are the goals and objectives of the proposed project relevant to the College’s strategic plan?
are resources available to meet the required match (if any)?

Pre-Proposal Process

After assessing the eligibility, the Principal Investigator (PI) should develop a timeline, which helps identify, organize and prioritize tasks, forms and approvals that are needed to complete the proposal submission process, as well as identifying the responsible personnel (i.e. co-PIs, contractors, sub-awardees, etc.)

Timelines

Assessing time to develop the proposal should be carefully measured. If there is not sufficient time to develop the project, the Principal Investigator should consider pursuing another source of funds or preparing for the next funding cycle for the chosen RFP.

To go forward with the proposal submission process, the Principal Investigator should consider:

Is there sufficient time to develop the proposal?
Is there sufficient support to obtain authorizations?
Is there sufficient time to develop necessary partnerships?

Timelines should include:

Addressing statements and criteria required
Allowing for writing and editing time
Developing relationships with third parties/project partners, and
Allowing sufficient time before the deadline to undergo internal review (usually two weeks prior to submission date)
Scheduling time adequate enough to review issues and make changes which could be advised by internal reviewer.

Timelines have also been developed by OSRP to ensure that all approvals, reviews and authorizations have been obtained. The Proposal Development Timeline addresses proposal benchmarks and processes for the review of proposals during the development stages.

If affirmative, the Principal Investigator should contact the Office of Sponsored Research and Programs (OSRP) to begin the proposal development process with the Pre-Award Coordinator.

Proposal Development Process

The Pre-Award office of the Office of Sponsored Research and Programs is the starting point for all submissions of publicly funded projects on behalf of Metropolitan State College of Denver.

Once the Principal Investigator has determined eligibility and the timeline is developed, the Principal Investigator should do the following

Complete the Intent to Submit form, prepare a written concise project of work proposed and preliminary budget for review with their Department Chair and Dean. Develop the estimated preliminary budget supporting all the projects activities. Design the budget to reflect unit measures and cost per unit. (Please refer to the Budget section of the website for more information on developing the budget).
Obtain written approvals from their respective Department Head and Dean to proceed with the project.
While the Intent to Submit form is beig processed through the Department Chair's and the Dean's offices, the Principal Investigators should familiarize themselves with the RFP evaluation criteria,.as well as develop the timeline and assign tasks with measurable outcomes to accomplish the project’s objectives. The evaluation criterion is essential to understanding and developing activities that meet the requirements of the proposal. Once the specifications of the RFP are reviewed, the Principal Investigator begins designing and writing the program responding to and meeting the RFPs requirementsThe Pre-Award Coordinator is available to assist the developer in intrepreting the RFP guidelines.
When the Intent to Submit form has been approved by the Department Chair and Dean, the Principal Investigator
should schedule a meeting with the OSRP Pre-Award Coordinator to provide additional required information for your OSRP account and to discuss the institutional requirements for submission.
The Principal Investigator is now free to proceed with the writing of the proposal. NOTE: Additional writing support can be found by reviewing previously funded grants to assist in defining what the goals are of a funded program and develop objectives that meet those goals. A good source for previously funded grants is the GRC proposal library as well as the funder’s website.
Once the proposal is developed, the Principal Investigator is to submit the final version of the proposal to the OSRP office for internal review. Once the review process is completed (usually 3 - 5 days) the reviewer will either offer revisions back to the Principal Investigator or submit a request from the signatory authorizers to proceed with the submission.
Every funding opportunity is different in it's complexities. Both the funding agency and OSRP highly recommends that proposals be completed well in advance of the deadline for submission. Many funding agencies will provide a review of the proposal prior to submission, this a a great opportuntiy to place a proposal before the eyes of the experts before their funding review, available only prior to the agencies deadline for submission. Consult with an OSRP representative if you would like to take advantage of this opportunity to verify it is available.

Signatory Authorizations

The Principal Investigator is responsible for completing an authorization to submit their proposal through the Intent to Submit and Authorization/Budget forms located in the GAIN database. The proposal will then be reviewed and evaluated by OSRP and a request for authorization will be submitted to the Provost, only after this process is complete is a proposal able to be transmitted to a funding agency. Principal Investigators are cautioned to allow approximately five (5) working days for this process to be completed.

In some proposals, the president of the College is also required to authorize certain expectations of a proposal.
Once the proposal has been authorized by all College leaders, OSRP requests that Metro State’s president or his/her designated representative sign the documents (as needed) and submit the proposal through the process which is designated in the RFP.
Grant proposals not submitted by the Authorized Organizational Representative (AOR) of the College will not be processed or awarded by the funding agency.

The OSRP office generally receives multiple proposals near institutional deadlines. The Principal Investigator is encouraged to provide the OSRP office with a final document prior to the submission deadline. Completed proposals received in OSRP at least five (5) working days prior to the deadline will be guaranteed a timely submission. Proposals are processed in the order in which they are received; completed proposals not submitted at least five (5) working days in advance of the sponsor deadline cannot be guaranteed a timely submission. The Submission Services Timeline will explain the level of support the OSRP office will be able to provide for proposal review and submission, based on the delivery of the final proposal to OSRP.

Transmittal of Proposal to Sponsor

Many grant applications and all Request for Proposals (RFPs) contain certifications and representations that must be completed and signed by an Authorized Organizational Representative (AOR) for the submiting institution. These documents contain assurances that the College complies with federal regulations regarding conflict of interest, hiring practices, drug-free workplace, and other topics.

The Executive Director has signatory authority for all contract and grant submissions and is an AOR designated by the President for the submission of proposals for grants and contracts on behalf of Metropolitan State College of Denver. Operationally the AOR designation is also delegated to the Pre-Award Coordinator. OSRP can only submit proposal once the required signatures and reviews have been obtained and notification is made to the Pre-Award office.