Externally Funded Programs

Externally Funded Programs

POLICY OF BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF PEARL RIVER COMMUNITY COLLEGE 

Adopted: Tuesday, August 8, 1995 
Revision Number: 4 
Revision Date: Friday, February 15, 2013 
Reference: Administrative

Policy:

Externally funded grants and contracts are accepted by the College when they conform to the stated purposes of the College, provide an appropriate balance between the externally funded program activity and instruction, and are institutionally controlled.

Procedure:

Externally funded program participants (faculty/professional staff) have the freedom to investigate and report results.  

The College solicits and accepts external funds for the purpose of providing supplement to the College’s regular operating budget for service, development, and institutional research opportunities. 

Externally funded grants and contract programs must meet all federal and state mandates and laws. 

Externally funded grant proposals and contract requests for funding must be approved by the administrator(s) of the division(s) under which program activities will occur, Vice President for Enrollment Management and Business Services, Vice President for Planning and Institutional Research, other appropriate Vice Presidents, and the President. 

The President’s Office is the official external funding clearinghouse and resource for the College. The Office acts as the liaison between external agencies, the program, and the College. 

All requests to pursue funding, internal approvals, notification/declination of funding and agency correspondence are processed by the President’s Office.  Program records, reports, and/or audit documents are processed, forwarded, and maintained in the Office of the Vice President for Enrollment Management and Business Services and the Office of Planning and Institutional Research.  Appropriate and timely reports are submitted to the Board of Trustees, President, and the Vice President for Planning and Institutional Research. 

All federal programs, multi-disciplinary projects, and cooperative programs with other educational institutions or private sector entities are coordinated and administered by the Office of the President. 

Release Time

The College’s usual manner of providing for faculty involvement in research, institutes, or projects is in terms of release time from other faculty obligations.  Faculty members or administrators arrange release time with their department chair and appropriate Vice President, with the final approval by the President for an appropriate amount of time commensurate with the level of effort required for successful completion of the proposed research project or sponsored program. 

  1. Time and Effort Release Time amounts are arranged and agreed upon in advance by formal form submitted and/or contract.
  2. Time and Effort or Release Time/Percentage of Time Sheets are maintained on a monthly basis and are on file in the program office and submitted to the Vice President for Enrollment Managment and Business Services.  

The College allows faculty or administrators, upon approval by the appropriate Vice President, to be compensated for the summer or sponsored research or program provided such compensation is within the guidelines of the funding agency and upon approval of the Vice President for Enrollment Management and Business Services and the College President. 

Patent and Copyright  

The College does not actively pursue invention or publication.  The Board, therefore, affirms the principle that research or creation conducted by the institution or its personnel under its supervision is dedicated to the furtherance of learning and knowledge and to the public welfare. However, the Board of Trustees considers that, since the institution under its control is a publicly supported college, the obligation of the institution is to the public. Consequently, in order to protect the interest of individuals, the equity and/or benefits earned through the support of research or programs by public funds and the public welfare, the Board hereby authorizes the institution to participate in such equity or benefits. The Board further requires all employees to disclose their invention or creation to the Office of the President as soon as possible after the creation or invention has been reduced to practice.  It is also the Board of Trustees intent to protect the individual as well as the public. 

Human Subjects Protection and Animal Care

The President will convene the Institutional Review Board, if needed, to ensure that adequate safeguards are established to protect any individual or animal which may be at risk as a consequence of participation as a subject in research, development, demonstration, or other program activities.  The Vice President for Planning and Institutional Research will serve as the Chair of the Institutional Review Board which will ensure that proposals submitted for federal funds are in compliance with the federal policy regarding the protection of human subjects.  All investigations, experiments, or demonstrations involving human subjects, regardless of the source of funds, must have approval from this committee BEFORE the activity is undertaken.  

Records and Fiscal Compliance

Externally funded programs and activities must comply with federal, state, and institutional accounting rules and practices.  All funds of externally funded programs are maintained in a separate restricted account and are subject to state and federal audit on an annual basis.  Agencies are granted access to records of their agency’s funded programs upon request unless otherwise stipulated in the official funded proposal.  Externally funded grants and contracts program and fiscal records are maintained for at least five years after funding secession.  Records of projects that are closing are submitted to the Office of the Vice President for Enrollment Management and Business Services for archiving. Fiscal records are maintained by the Office of the Vice President for Enrollment Management and Business Services. 

Indirect Costs are those College expenses associated with the conduct of its sponsored programs which by their accounting nature cannot be readily associated with a direct line item cost on a project by project basis. These costs do not differ from direct costs as real expenses to the College.  It is not the practice of the College to negotiate for a rate for indirect costs.  The College uses the fixed rate amount of ten (10) percent of direct costs or the agency mandated rate limit.  The College allocates recovered funds to the College’s general fund. 

Updated on October 20, 2023

Each community college president is asked to bring two (2) wrapped door prizes, minimum value of $50 each. We will have a station set up at the conference for you to drop off the door prizes.

Each community college is asked to provide name tags for their Board members, administration, and staff attending the conference.