Princeton University encourages faculty and research staff to pursue new initiatives and opportunities that will advance the quality of instruction, enhance intellectual resources, and/or contribute to knowledge. Such projects may require funding beyond what is available through the university budget. To support external funding efforts, the university has established a set of policies and procedures in order to administer the manner in which funding is sought, acknowledged, and managed. Adherence to these policies insures that the university's fiduciary responsibilities are met, individual and institutional donor relationships are maintained, fundraising efforts are prioritized, and funders receive appropriate acknowledgement, stewardship, and/or grant reports.

The Office of Development and the Office of Research and Project Administration (ORPA) coordinate all external fundraising activity on behalf of the University. All efforts to obtain gifts from individual donors must be coordinated by the Office of Development, and all such gifts must be managed by the Office of Development for purposes of gift acknowledgement, pledge fulfillment, donor relations, and compliance with federal and state regulations. All efforts to obtain funding support from institutional donors, including foundations and corporations, must be coordinated and similarly managed by ORPA or by the Office of Development's Office of Corporate and Foundation Relations (CFR), or, in some cases, both offices. All efforts to obtain funding support from governmental sources must be coordinated through ORPA.

This document, which supersedes a memorandum of April 24, 2002, summarizes the university's policies and procedures for individual faculty members interested in seeking funding from institutional donors. For information regarding the process for seeking approval to fundraise for departmental or programmatic initiatives, see Approval of Projects and Programs Involving Fundraising at http://www.princeton.edu/~provost/fund_raising_review.pdf. If you are unsure about the process through which you should work contact the Office of Development or ORPA for guidance

Faculty members and research staff members seeking funding from any public or private source for any University-related purpose, including sponsored research, program support, or unrestricted funds, must contact and pursue funding either through ORPA or through CFR. In general, grant requests for sponsored research projects (involving contractual obligations, deliverables, sub-contracts, grant accounting, and/or overhead) and all grant requests to public/governmental funders are established and managed through ORPA. All other grant requests for outside funding from institutional sources (foundations and corporations) are handled by CFR, and all requests for gifts and grants from individuals must be coordinated through the Office of Development. Contact ORPA or CFR for guidance if you are unsure about the appropriate office with which you should work.

OBTAINING GRANTS AND GIFTS FROM EXTERNAL SOURCES:

The following policies and guidelines govern all external funding:

1. Departments, centers, or programs may not solicit external funds or establish or manage gift or grant funds independent of ORPA, CFR, or the Office of Development. All requests for funding support from public (government) sources must be coordinated through ORPA. All efforts to obtain funding support from institutional donors, including foundations and corporations, must be coordinated and managed by ORPA or by CFR, or, in some cases, both offices (see below). All efforts to obtain gifts from individual donors must be coordinated through the Office of Development, and all such gifts must be managed through the Office of Development (contact Michele Minter, Director of Development, 8-5612, mminter@princeton.edu). All funds that come to the University from any of these sources or through these efforts must be processed through either ORPA or the Office of Development.
2. Proposals and preliminary inquiries to external institutional and governmental funders should not be sent out independently by faculty or staff members without an initial prior consultation with either ORPA or CFR. Consultations should take place as early in the grant-seeking process as possible.
3. The proposal and budget for all external grant requests, regardless of amount, must be reviewed by ORPA or CFR prior to submission to funders. All research and instructional proposals which average $150,000 per year or more over the grant period must be reviewed and approved by the University Research Board. However, projects involving curriculum development or new programs or centers must be approved by the Academic Planning Group before submission to prospective funders. ORPA or CFR often can assist in seeking review and approval.
4. The prior endorsement of a University officer, department chair, or program director is required for all proposals submitted by faculty or staff members. Such endorsement is usually conveyed electronically through Coeus for most ORPA proposals. However, for smaller departments and for CFR proposals, proposals may be routed manually and signed by the department chair, program director, and/or dean. Some proposals require endorsement by the University's president or board of trustees. All such endorsements are arranged through CFR or ORPA.
5. Proposals that address prioritized University needs are usually transmitted with an endorsement letter from the president or another senior University officer.
6. All grants or gifts to be used for sponsored research, all research efforts supported by federal, state, or local government sources, and certain research projects supported by corporate or foundation sources will be handled through ORPA in accordance with policies adopted by the University Research Board. ORPA will establish project accounts through the -4xxx or -6xxx series of project/grants (Fund 40 and 60). ORPA has oversight responsibility to ensure that the University's policies and procedures for sponsored research projects are followed, regardless of the sponsor or the indirect cost rate.
7. For other grants and gifts, CFR will establish accounts, usually in the -2xxx series of project/grants (Fund 20), for funding received from corporate and foundation sources. CFR will also initiate the University's acknowledgements of all gifts and most private grants, and manage stewardship, including reminders to grantees when reports are due on grants of $50,000 or more.
8. Faculty and research staff must consult with ORPA or CFR for specific direction concerning solicitation, acceptance, and acknowledgement of all gifts-in-kind, such as equipment, software, databases, or other donations.

MANAGING GRANTS AND GIFTS:

Grants or gifts to the University from institutional or government sources will be managed by ORPA, by CFR, or jointly by ORPA and CFR, in accordance with the following guidelines:

1. Any of the following identify sponsored research projects that must be managed through ORPA:
1. The proposed project involves government funding, or contributes to work being provided to a government sponsor.
2. Grants or gifts for research that involve exchange relationships and obligate the University to deliver to the sponsor either tangible property (such as equipment, records, technical reports), or intangible property (such as rights to data, copyrights or inventions), which may result from the supported research.
3. As a condition of the award, the University must make a commitment regarding the level of personnel effort.
4. Grants that require subawards, subcontracts, or disbursements to non-University entities.
2. Gifts or grants from institutional sources that meet any of the following criteria must be managed through CFR:
1. The prospective source for the gift or grant is a foundation or corporation with which the University has an established and managed ongoing relationship (a list of such funders is available through the CFR office. Call 8-5953 for more information). Some such gifts or grants, once received, may be managed by ORPA if they entail subcontracts, overhead, deliverables, or detailed grant accounting.
2. Funding is sought from institutional donors for projects that have been identified as priority University needs.
3. The University has been invited by an institutional funder to submit a single University-endorsed proposal in response to a competitive request for proposals.
4. Otherwise unrestricted gifts or grants for purposes such as endowment, capital projects, general student support, or general research support that do not involve an exchange relationship or constitute sponsored research.
3. Because foundations and other institutional funders are increasingly adding federal-like terms and conditions to gifts and grants, and because compliance with such terms and conditions are a binding obligation, many projects that were historically managed as gifts must now be managed under the University's sponsored research guidelines. Therefore, grants that meet any of the following criteria also constitute sponsored projects, and will be managed either by ORPA or jointly by ORPA and CFR when established institutional relationships are involved:
1. The proposed work commits the University to a specific research task or area of scholarly investigation.
2. As a condition of the award, the funds must be used to support a specific faculty member's research.
3. A budget detailing expenditures by activity, function, or project period must be adhered to as a condition of funding.
4. A fiscal or activity report (subject to internal audit and sometimes also subject to external audit) is required at intervals during the course of the work and/or at the end of the project period.
5. Any unexpended funds must be returned to the sponsor at the end of the project period.
6. The grant or gift includes both support for sponsored research and outright gifts.

ACCEPTING AND ACKNOWLEDGING GRANTS AND GIFTS:

The University is required by law to acknowledge gifts and grants. The University is also obligated to comply with donors' expectations and conditions when it accepts gifts and grants. Moreover, ongoing favorable relationships with all donors are best cultivated by prompt acknowledgement and periodic contact. In addition, sponsored research agreements and other research-related grants usually require progress and expenditure reports. To ensure that such requirements are met and relationships maintained, all award letters, contracts, and gift and grant checks that are received by principal investigators, program directors, or departments should be copied and the originals promptly forwarded either to ORPA or to CFR for acknowledgement, stewardship, accounting and reporting. When forwarding, please indicate the account into which the gift or grant should be deposited. ORPA or CFR will record the gift or grant and forward checks to the Treasurer's Office for deposit.

All proceeds of bequests from any source and for any purpose must be forwarded to the Office of University Counsel. All receipts, releases, and refunding agreements associated with bequests must be forwarded to and reviewed by University Counsel.

ORPA or CFR must be consulted for specific direction concerning solicitation, receipt, and acknowledgement of all gifts-in-kind.

Please contact Michelle Christy, Director of ORPA (mchristy@princeton.edu; 8-3090) or Bill Layton, Acting Director of CFR (wlayton@princeton.edu; 8-5954) to discuss any questions or specific circumstances regarding the applicability of the above policies and procedures.