Announcements

Requirement to Use SciENcv for NIH Biographical Sketch and Current and Pending Support Documents

The mandate to use SciENcv for preparation of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Biographical Sketch and Current and Pending (Other) Support documents will go into effect for application due dates and report submission dates on or after January 25, 2026.

Applicants and recipients must not use these forms for application due dates and report submission dates on or before January 24, 2026.

While the new forms are not to be used prior to January 25, we strongly encourage investigators to create their SciENcv account and become familiar with the system prior to January 25.

Read the NIH announcement here.

Background

SciENcv: Science Experts Network Curriculum Vitae enables researchers to assemble their professional information, including expertise, employment, education, and professional accomplishments, and generate sponsor-compliant personnel documents. Adoption of this single, common profile system for federal grants reduces administrative burden for researchers.

Using SciENcv

This job aid will assist you in creating your SciENcv account and creating the required documents.

An ORCID ID will be required for the NIH Common Forms. The ID must be linked to your eRA Commons Personal Profile.

Using your ORCID ID with SciENcv

Researchers are required to obtain an ORCID ID (Open Researcher & Contributor ID). An ORCID ID is a free persistent digital identifier that distinguishes you from every other researcher. ORCID is a space to collect all of your scholarly works, from traditional articles to art works and dance performances to datasets and more.

Register for an ORCID ID.

Linking your ORCID account in SciENcv will import your profile information and publication data into your SciENcv profile. See the job aid for more instructions.

Quick Links

Job Aid

SciENcv

Video – About SciENcv, How to Set Up an Account, How to Prepare Personnel Documents

Resources – Creating NIH, NSF, DOE or USDA-Compliant Documents with SciENcv

SciENcv Help Manual

ORCID

SIU ORCID Slide Set – Managing Your Online Identity

The Impact of the Federal Shutdown on SIUC Sponsored Funding

As the federal government has entered a shutdown, OSPA is closely monitoring developments related to the FY2026 appropriations bill and any potential continuing resolution. During this period, the administration, distribution, and funding of federal grants and contracts may be delayed or otherwise impacted.

SIUC can generally expect the following effects during the shutdown:

Proposal submissions – Deadlines for proposals are still in effect although submissions will not be processed until agency operations resume. Agency personnel cannot answer questions about grant submissions. Agencies that post changes to their deadlines will be shared as they are made available to SIU.

Spending – Work should continue on all funded projects until the sponsor issues a stop work order. Faculty members may continue to spend their grant awards but should defer large equipment purchases and any non-essential travel. Supplements and renewals will not be received by the institution. New monies from the federal agencies cannot be awarded until the federal shutdown has been resolved.

Sponsor Approvals - Pending requests such as approval to re-budget, extensions, etc. should be submitted per the agency requirements but will not be reviewed by sponsor staff until the shutdown has ended.

Reimbursements – OSPA will continue to invoice and draw down funds (assuming govt systems are operational); no payments will be made during a lapse in appropriations. 

Reporting Obligations: Grant reporting obligations and original deadlines are still in effect. While there may be no one at the agencies to review these reports, principal investigators must adhere to the reporting schedule per their grant awards and submit on time.  Again, we don’t want to compromise the deliverables of the grants.

Review Panels: Faculty and staff serving on a review panel for an agency that is currently shut down should consider cancelling their travel plans. Review panels are cancelled until further notice. Note: Most agencies will not reimburse lost deposits or airfare. 

For additional questions, please contact ospa@siu.edu.

New Research Security Training Requirement for DOE Award Applicants

Effective May 1, the Department of Energy (DOE) will require research security training for all individuals listed on DOE funding submissions, including flow-through projects. Training must be completed prior to proposal submission; proposals will not be submitted without completed training. We anticipate similar training requirements to apply to NSF awards starting in October.

SIUC offers the Research Security Training (Combined) course via CITI, which takes approximately one hour to complete. For instructions on accessing the CITI training platform, please visit the Office of Research Compliance’s training resources webpage or email orc@siu.edu. Should you have any questions or need assistance accessing the training, contact the Office of Research Compliance.

FCOI and RCR Training Requirements

Starting November 4, 2024, all Investigators required to submit a Financial Conflict of Interest (FCOI) disclosure—i.e., federally funded (and flowthrough)research projects, including organizations that have adopted relevant PHS policies—must complete FCOI and Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) training before proposal submission. Training is available online through CITI and takes approximately 40 minutes to complete. It remains valid for 4 years. For CITI access instructions, please visit the Office of Research Compliance training resources webpage or email orc@siu.edu. 

Current and Pending Documents - Internal Guidance

Internal Requirements:
As some may be aware, OSPA is transitioning to the use of an electronic research administration system, Kuali Research (KR), to be released to the campus community for use soon. As OSPA has begun to internally transition to the use of KR to track proposals and awards, we would like to ensure that the campus community is aware of current and pending requirements and definitions and that processes are being followed consistently. This will help guide personnel once KR is released campus-wide. There are currently two internal sources from which effort for current and pending support is tracked: the proposal budget and the proposal checklist.

Proposal budget: includes effort for which salary is requested and/or included as cost share.

Proposal checklist: includes effort committed to the project but NOT reported to the sponsor as salary or cost share. This is entered on the checklist as a percentage of the PI/co-PIs’ SIUC-funded appointment.
For example, if a PI with a 9-month appointment enters 5% on the checklist, this would equal .45 person-months that they are committing to the project in addition to anything reported to the sponsor as a salary request or as cost share.

**If a PI wishes to update the effort reported on the proposal checklist after the appropriate levels of authority (director and dean or equivalents) have signed, an updated checklist will need to be approved showing the new effort, and the effort will be updated in KR.

While we are currently showing a percentage on the proposal checklist, this will become person-months once we fully transition to KR, and project personnel will be entering efforts individually. Every SIU employee will then be able to extract a current and pending support report directly from KR. Following this guidance will ensure that current and pending support is consistent and accurate and can save investigators and OSPA staff time in reviewing documents.

We’re providing this information because the federal government has been placing additional scrutiny on current and pending support and the impact on federal research. Our office is tasked with ensuring that our reporting is consistent and compliant. The federal updates can be accessed on individual sponsor websites, or OSPA’s website here. If you have any questions related to current and pending support being reported at the proposal or just-in-time stage, please contact your assigned OSPA team member. For questions on how to report changes to current and pending support at the award stage, please email contracts@siu.edu. The above directions may be downloaded here.

FY25 Fringe Benefit Changes

This memo details the FY2025 changes to the fringe benefit rate used for faculty and staff paid on sponsored projects.

Summary of NSF Changes

The National Science Foundation (NSF) released a revised version of the Proposal & Award Policies & Procedures Guide (PAPPG), version 24-1, on January 22, 2024. The new PAPPG is effective for proposals submitted or due on or after May 20, 2024. Below are some notable policy changes, for a complete list of the changes and additional details, please see the updated PAPPG (NSF 24-1). Please contact OSPA with any questions.

Foreign Organizations - updated guidance for justifying the inclusion of a foreign organization (sub-award) or foreign individual (consultant) in a proposal budget.  The justification must be included in the project description section of the proposal and the box for “Funding of a Foreign Organization or Foreign Individual” must be checked on the Cover Sheet.

• Malign Foreign Talent Recruitment Programs – guidance provided for individuals who are a party to a Malign Foreign Talent Recruitment Program. Such individuals are not eligible to serve as a Senior/Key Person on NSF proposals and awards.   This new policy is part of NSF’s implementation of the National Security Presidential Memorandum-33 (NSPM-33). Additionally, as part of the proposal submission, MSU must certify that all individuals identified as senior/key persons have been made aware of and have complied with their responsibility to certify that they are not a party to a Malign Foreign Talent Recruitment Program. 
• Biographical Sketch – implementing the new Common Disclosure form, removing the Synergistic Activities section, and removing the page limitation.  The Biographical Sketch will continue to be created in SciENcv, which will produce a pdf-compliant version that can be attached to the proposal on Research.gov.
• New Synergistic Activities Document – Synergistic Activities that used to be included as part of the Biographical Sketch have been moved to a separate document.  Each individual identified as senior/key personnel must include a one-page document with up to five examples that demonstrate the broader impact of the individual’s professional and scholarly activities that focus on the creation, integration, and transfer of knowledge.  This document is submitted as part of the Senior/Key personnel documents in Research.gov. 
• Current and Pending (Other) Support – implementing the new Common Disclosure form.  The Current and Pending Support form will continue to be created in SciENcv, which will produce a PDF-compliant version that can be attached to the proposal on Research.gov.
• Proposal Font, Spacing, and Margin Requirements - updated to allow for submission of proposal documents in landscape format.
• Mentoring Plan - the Mentoring Plan has been expanded, requiring a plan for graduate students and/or postdoctoral researchers supported on a project.  The page limit for a Mentoring Plan is still one page.
• Tribal Nation Approval – proposals that may impact the resources of a Tribal Nation must seek and obtain approval from the Tribal Nation before award.

Resources:

• NSF provided a special PAPPG webinar -- Updates to the NSF Proposal and Award Policies and Procedures Guide (PAPPG) (NSF 24-1 ), which will cover the changes and clarifications to the PAPPG. A link to the recording can be found here: https://nsfpolicyoutreach.com/2024-pappg-webinar/.

NSF Updates: New Proposal Guide and Research Security Training

New NSF Research Security Training Modules

NSF has launched four interactive online research security training modules, now available to researchers and institutions across the U.S. These modules are designed to facilitate principled international collaboration in an open, transparent, and secure environment that safeguards the nation's research ecosystem.

Fueled by the "CHIPS and Science Act of 2022," these training modules signify a major first step in reconciling the needs of the research, law enforcement, and intelligence communities to pursue trusted relationships in the global research community while minimizing economic and security risks. They provide researchers with clear guidelines and effective strategies to protect against existing and emerging research security threats. The modules also reinforce NSF's commitment to President Biden's priorities to strengthen protections of U.S. government-supported research as outlined in the National Security Presidential Memorandum-33.

MODULES:

Module 1: Introduction to Research Security

Module 2: The Importance of Disclosure

Module 3: Manage and Mitigate Risk

Module 4: The Importance of International Collaboration

These training modules can be taken online, and users can download a completion certificate. 

Changes to Approvals for Sponsored Projects

Sponsored project administration is a shared effort between the principal investigator (PI), fiscal officer (FO), and the university. The PI is responsible and accountable for the management and administration of their award within the constraints imposed by the sponsor and in accordance with university policy. Along with the PI and FO, the university is legally and financially responsible and accountable to the sponsor for the performance and proper use of funds for the award and relies on the oversight of the PI and FO in fulfilling its stewardship role.

All costs charged to a sponsored project must be in conformance with the award terms and conditions of the sponsored project, the Uniform Guidance in the case of federal-sponsored projects, federal and state law, and university policy.

Effective July 1, 2023, OSPA approval is no longer required on travel vouchers for domestic travel or purchases of  $9,999.99 or less, processed via an invoice distribution form (excluding equipment and furniture). For more information detailing the updated approval process for these transactions as well as a reminder of transactions that do require OSPA prior approval, click here.

Please check with the OSPA Grant Assignee before charging any expenditures not included in the approved sponsor budget.

If you have questions or concerns regarding these changes, please contact your OSPA Grant Assignee.