Pre-Award Administration and Grant Development

College of Natural and Mathematical Sciences Grants Administration

The College of Natural Mathematical Sciences (CNMS) offers Pre-award grants administration services to support all grant applications for all departments.  The team assists with seeking funding opportunities and administration guidance/assistance from the proposal development phase to final grant submission.  The pre-award team works closely with the PIs, Office of Sponsored Programs (OSP), Corporate and Foundation Relations (CFR), Office of Research and Creative Achievement(ORCA),  CNMS business office, Office of Contract Grant Accounting (OCGA), and all federal and non-federal grant sponsors. They are primarily responsible for administering and coordinating all grant applications and contract agreements with the Office of Sponsored Programs (OSP) in preparation for final submissions to the sponsor.

To request assistance, please submit an RT Ticket at  CNMS BC Request

(First time submitting an RT ticket to CNMS BC? Click here for detailed instructions)


 

Meet the Pre-Award and Proposal Team:

Sarah Jackson

Sarah Jackson

Specialist Grants and Contracts

Natural and Mathematical Sciences

University Center 116

sjackson@umbc.edu

+1 410 455 2247

Sarah Jackson (Biology, Mathematics, and Marine Biotechnology, Physics, Chemistry, and the CNMS Dean’s office) is the departmental contracts and grants specialist who provide expertise and guidance throughout the proposal submission process as the primary liaisons to OSP.  They are primarily responsible for administering and coordinating all grant applications and contract agreements with OSP in preparation for final submission to the sponsor. Both Sarah and other support staff work together and as each other’s backups should one be out. If you have further questions, comments, concerns or requests please feel free to contact either of them for assistance.

Responsibilities include:

  • Review and interpret sponsor policies and guidelines
  • Coordinate new PI accounts set up to meet UMBC OSP system requirements and sponsor account registrations Click Here for PI Registration and Trainings Info
  • Administer the proposal preparation process
    • schedule and facilitate grant planning meetings with the PI
    • provide templates for proposal preparation
    • assist with budget and budget justification preparation
    • review all proposal documents to ensure compliance with sponsor and university policies and guidelines
    • upload and route all proposals in Kuali and sponsor application platforms
  • Support non-financial post-award grants administration activities, including rebudgeting requests, submitting sub-award invoices, submitting sub-award modifications, submitting pre-award account requests, and submitting no cost extension (NCE) requests to OSP

To request pre-award assistance, please submit an RT Ticket at  CNMS BC Request

(First time submitting an RT ticket to CNMS BC? Click here for detailed instructions)

Meet the Dean’s Office Administrator for Grant Development & Support:

J. Abarro is the primary CNMS liaison to the Office of Research and Creative Achievement (ORCA, previously OVPR), Corporate and Foundation Relations (CFR), Albin O. Kuhn Library and Gallery, and other grant support services available on campus internally or externally.  Grant support consultations are available by appointment by submitting an RT Ticket under grants development support RT Ticket.

Responsibilities include:

  • Identify funding opportunities to support research, equipment, conferences, travel, etc.
  • Develop strategic funding plans to identify the most appropriate funding opportunities to increase proposal submission and yield.
  • Coordinate grant training and development workshops and  seminars
  • Provide proposal development support for large scale proposals involving CNMS teams.
    • Provide sponsor specific guidance
    • Provide successful sample proposals upon request
    • Collect and compile large institutional data sets
    • Review large-scale proposals for consistency with sponsor guidelines.