November 2008
Welcome to
RES News, a newsletter from Research Enterprise Services, serving the administrative needs of numerous science units on campus. Look for this update every other month, and please keep an eye on
res.berkeley.edu, where you can access all services and information.
The SPO deadline for proposal submissions is fully in force. Please take this deadline seriously, as late proposals will not be processed. Information on how to request an exception is included in this edition of RES News. Please note that exceptions will only be given by the Vice Chancellor for Research in extremely exceptional situations.
We have just finished a number of recruitments in both HR and Contracts & Grants and have active recruitments in Payroll. Over the next few weeks we will be fully staffed, at which time each investigator will be assigned an HR analyst and some investigators may receive a new Contracts & Grants analyst assignment.
REMINDER: Please feel free to share your comments and suggestions through the
RES Investigator Feedback page. Postings go directly to me, and can be kept confidential if desired. I appreciate your help in ensuring RES provides exceptional service to our researchers.
Sincerely,
Diane Leite, Assistant Vice Chancellor, RES
Need to contact the RES staff?
Contracts and Grants:
resgrants@berkeley.edu
Human Resources:
reshr@berkeley.edu
Purchasing:
respurchasing@berkeley.edu
Receiving:
resreceiving@berkeley.edu
Stockroom:
stanleystockroom@berkeley.edu
CONTRACTS & GRANTS
New SPO & VCRO policy on proposal deadlines implemented:
Effective November 3, the VCRO and SPO implemented a new policy regarding deadlines for proposal submissions. As of November 3, complete proposals must be received by SPO five business days prior to the sponsor deadline.
NOTE: To obtain approval to submit a proposal after the SPO deadline, the Principal Investigator must send a request via e-mail to Diane Leite, Assistant Vice Chancellor for RES, dianel@berkeley.edu, with a copy to Marcia Smith, Assistant Vice Chancellor for Research Administration and Compliance, m_smith@berkeley.edu. The request must explain why the proposal is late and describe the reasons why it could not or cannot be submitted on time. The justification will need to be very compelling for it to be considered for exception to this policy.
http://spo.berkeley.edu/procedures/submission.html
NIH Updates:
***Urgent Attention***
NIH has recently announced changes to the grant application and review process. This new policy will eliminate the A2 submission for future proposals. They will be phasing in this new policy that effect new and first time renewals submitted after Jan. 25, 2009. For these new and first time renewals, NIH will only accept a single resubmission. See below for details.
New NIH Policy on Resubmission (Amended) Applications
(NOT-OD-09-003)
National Institutes of Health
http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/NOT-OD-09-003.html
Reminder Concerning Grantee Compliance with Public Access Policy and Related NIH Monitoring Activities
(NOT-OD-08-119)
National Institutes of Health
http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/NOT-OD-08-119.html
Encouraging Early Transition to Research Independence: Modifying the NIH New Investigator Policy to Identify Early Stage Investigators
(NOT-OD-08-121)
National Institutes of Health
http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/NOT-OD-08-121.html
Non-Competing Grant Awards under the Current Continuing Resolution
(NOT-OD-09-002)
National Institutes of Health
http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/NOT-OD-09-002.html
NSF Updates:
NSF has a new grant proposal guide that is effective for any submission after Jan 5th, 2009. http://www.nsf.gov/publications/pub_summ.jsp?ods_key=nsf091
Here is link to a list of changes. http://www.nsf.gov/pubs/policydocs/pappguide/nsf09_1/gpg_sigchanges.jsp
Selected Highlights of changes:
Chapter II – Section C.2d(i), Project Description, has had entirely new guidance added regarding mentoring activities. This was done to address the mentoring requirement of the America COMPETES Act. Each proposal that requests funding to support postdoctoral researchers must include, as a separate section within the 15-page project description, a description of the mentoring activities that will be provided for such individuals. Examples of such activities are provided and the monitoring plan will be evaluated during the merit review process, under the Broader Impacts criterion. Proposals that do not include a separate section on mentoring activities within the Project Description will be returned without review. The Proposal Preparation Checklist (Exhibit II-1) and Chapter IV.B. on Return without Review have been updated to reflect that.
Chapter II – Section C.2g(i), Salaries and Wages, has undergone a major revision of NSF's salary reimbursement policy. In general, the Foundation will now limit salary compensation for senior project personnel to no more than two months of their regular salary in any one year. This limit includes salary compensation received from all NSF-funded grants. This change moves away from the concept of summer salary and allows for reimbursement of two months of salary per year whenever appropriate during the year.
Chapter II – Sections D.1 and 2, Grants for Rapid Response Research (RAPID) and EArly-concept Grants for Exploratory Research (EAGER) have replaced the Small Grants for Exploratory Research (SGER) program. RAPID is a funding mechanism to support quick-response research on natural or anthropogenic disasters and similar unanticipated events. Requests may be for up to $200K and of one year duration. The EAGER mechanism supports high-risk, exploratory and potentially transformative research. Requests may be for up to $300K and of up to two years duration. RAPID and EAGER proposals are only required to be reviewed internally at NSF; further submission information is contained in these sections.
Exhibit II-7 – Definitions of Categories of Personnel, has had the (co) Principal Investigator definition clarified to state that NSF does not infer any distinction in scientific stature among multiple PIs, whether referred to as PI or co-PI. All of the senior personnel are equally responsible for the conduct of the project and submission of the requisite project reports.
HUMAN RESOURCES
Open Enrollment for 2008
UC Open Enrollment for Health and Welfare Benefits, October 30 to November 25. Any changes you make will be effective January 1, 2009.
All changes must be made online. You will need your UC password in order to login and use the application. Please read all the information you need to make an informed decision regarding changes (or not) for Open Enrollment. If you need to make changes, go to the Open Enrollment Section of
At Your Service (
http://atyourservice.ucop.edu/).
Important Recent Changes for J-1 Exchange Visitors
New Berkeley International Office Fees effective January 2, 2009:
- Expedite fee of $200
- Extension fee of $200
US Department of Homeland Security SEVIS Fee:
Increasing from $100 to $180 effective October 27, 2008
Learn more about the SEVIS Fee at
http://internationaloffice.berkeley.edu/multiple_use/sevis_fee.php
See a list of our recharge fees at:
http://internationaloffice.berkeley.edu/departments/rechargefees.php
PURCHASING
RES Purchasing offers comprehensive support for all procurement activities as well as travel, entertainment, and general reimbursements.You can find information on purchasing processes, procedures, and policies at
http://res.berkeley.edu, as well as instructions for using the online purchasing system,
http://resaccess.berkeley.edu/news/news.php. All orders must be processed through the online system.
RECEIVING & STOCKROOM
The Stanley Hall Stockroom is open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday-Friday to all customers. Stanley Hall occupants can access the stockroom with card key 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Johann Yopp, your Fisher representative, is on site from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday-Friday for assistance. Orders placed on
fishersci.com by 1:30 p.m. can be delivered within one hour on the same day, or can be picked up in person within 15 minutes of placing the order. All orders placed after 1:30 will be delivered the next morning or can be picked up by the customer until 3:30 on the day of the order.
If you still need a username and password come down to 156 to pick it up so you can start using the stockroom.
