Notification from the Funding Source

The Grant Services Officer who worked with the project director should be notified if the funding source contacts the project director with questions or to request additional information.

The project director should inform the Grant Services Officer of the decision of the funding source.

The proposal is funded

Official notification of funding should be sent directly to Grant Services (ML 1110). Upon receipt, Grant Services will initiate the following:

• Renegotiation: After receiving the award notification, it may be necessary to contact the funding source to renegotiate the terms of the award. Renegotiation is handled by the Office of Grant Services, with close consultation with the project director and the dean.
• Acknowledgment of Award: If renegotiation is not necessary or once renegotiation is complete, the Office of Grant Services will ensure that appropriate acknowledgment and acceptance of the award are forwarded to the funding source.
• Request for Budget Number: The Grant Services Officer will complete the Grant Award Summary form, attach appropriate documentation and forward this information to the Controller's Office for budget number assignment. The Controller's Office will contact the Grant Services Officer with the budget number or if additional information is needed.
• Award Review with Project Director: After the budget number has been received from the Controller's Office, the Grant Services Officer will meet with the project director to discuss budget information, award restrictions, reporting procedures and deadlines, etc. Questions that the project director may have will be addressed at this time. The project director will sign the Grant Award Summary form certifying acceptance of the terms and conditions of the award.

The proposal is not funded

Unfortunately, the majority of grant proposals are not funded. Failure to receive funding during the first submission does not mean a project idea should be abandoned. Most funding sources will allow for resubmission of a proposal. Another option is to investigate alternative funding sources.

• Resubmission: The first step is to get feedback from the funding source. Many federal programs will furnish comments made by reviewers to the applicant. This information will indicate where reviewers felt the project was weak and whether the proposal should be resubmitted after revision. Unfortunately, some funding sources (typically smaller foundations) do not provide feedback to applicants. However, it may be helpful to contact the funding source to see whether they will discuss the proposal. This option should be coordinated through the Office of Grant Services.
• Alternative Funding Sources: If the project director cannot or does not want to pursue support from the same funding source, he/she may consider applying to alternative sources. In some cases, it may be worthwhile for the project director to scale down the project or to seek funding for only part of the project. The project director may also consider applying to smaller grant programs in order to establish a history of support before approaching major funding sources for larger grants. The Grant Services staff will be available to provide assistance with investigating new funding sources and altering the project proposal.