Over the past nine months, the College of Engineering and Applied Science (CEAS), College of Arts & Sciences (A&S), and the Office of Research (OoR) have been working together on the formation of a Cooperative Grants Office (CGO) to provide centralized pre-award services to both colleges. This office combines the talent and resources of the pre-award offices in each college to create a more robust, resilient, and responsive team. 

Leaders in both colleges approached the OoR regarding the creation of this office to enhance our ability to provide support for all manner and size of proposals, coordinate pre-award support during absences or job vacancies, and help train and develop the next generation of pre-award support specialists. A committee was formed of faculty and leaders from all three offices, and a charter was drafted and approved by the colleges. This charter commits the office to a shared governance structure, with a steering committee from the colleges directing the strategy of the office, which will report to OoR Operations. Over the last several months the three units have been working to develop policies, determine responsibilities, and recruit leadership for the new office.   

The new Cooperative Grants Office will provide the colleges with the ability to tap into greater resources when submitting large or complex proposals; to train staff to familiarize themselves with units or sponsors that require extra attention or have special requirements; to cover for staff who are on vacation or leave; and to afford staff time to engage in professional development and training. 

Emily Meier has been hired as the Executive Director of the CGO, and she has been working closely with the staff members of the A&S and CEAS pre-award offices to integrate policies, processes, and operations. For now, all deadlines and policies in effect for each college will remain in place. For the time being, faculty who wish to submit proposals in A&S should contact Kellee Adams, and faculty in CEAS should contact Lesley Calvin, per your college's normal procedures. Questions regarding the CGO, including questions about policy, procedure, and workflows, should be directed to Patrick Clark at clarkpk@ucmail.uc.edu.