The Principal Investigator (PI) is responsible for initiating all hiring and payroll actions, as well as supervision of sponsored project personnel. All personnel must be paid in accordance with University guidelines. Salary rates, job classifications and regulations for personnel employed on sponsored projects are the same as those established for all other employees of the University.
Personnel costs for employees working on a sponsored project must follow institutional policies and procedures. The Office of Research and Sponsored Programs will provide guidance on all payroll procedures related to your sponsored project.
Personnel paid from a sponsored project account are subject to institutional benefit policies. Contact the Benefits Representative in Human Resources for information on policies and procedures, or refer to the Human Resources Policies/Procedures Manual. The Office of Research and Sponsored Programs can also assist with estimating fringe costs for personnel working on a sponsored project.
For sponsored project paid assignments for SCSU faculty and staff:
Grant funded positions will use the Unclassified Change Form to initiate payment of extra duty days, overload credits, or reassignment time. After the form has been completed, submit to the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs for approval and the form will be routed to your faculty workload system administrator for entry.
If the sponsored project covers a portion of the employee’s regular time, the Principal Investigator must complete the Unclassified Change Form submit to the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs for approval. Once approved, the form will be routed to Human Resources for entry.
The Principal Investigator (PI) is responsible for initiating all hiring and payroll actions, as well as supervision of all undergraduate and graduate students working on the sponsored project.
Students being paid by a sponsored project must be approved to do work and have work authorizations prior to work beginning.
The Principal Investigator (PI) is responsible for hiring student employees and needs to work with their Department’s designated personnel to authorize student employee payroll.
Students are allowed to work up to 20 hours per week when classes are in session and 40 hours per week during university breaks. The hourly cap includes all work assignments the student may have on campus.
For more information please see the Student Employment Handbook.
The PI is responsible for hiring Graduate Assistants that will be working on their sponsored project. Graduate Assistants are allowed to work 20 hours per week (full-time) or 10 hours per week (part-time). Graduate Assistants receive a stipend and tuition remission depending on their status – see Graduate Assistantships website for more information.
To hire a Graduate Assistant, the PI needs to work with their Department’s designated personnel to create a position description that includes the position type (teaching assistantship, research assistantship, or program assistantship), hiring department, responsibilities, learning outcomes and qualifications.
The Graduate Assistant must be hired as an hourly employee during breaks or over the summer months.
Information for Graduate Assistant Supervisors can be found on the School of Graduate Studies website.
To award tuition remission to undergraduate or graduate students (ONLY those graduate students without a Graduate Assistantship), a scholarship is processed through the Financial Aid Office and the sponsored project is charged for the accompanying tuition charges.
There are two forms that need to be completed to facilitate payment of tuition remission for undergraduate and graduate students:
To hire a consultant or contractor, the PI must complete an Independent Contractor/Employee Status Form and send to Human Resources (HR) for determination prior to moving forward with the contract.
Additional information on contracts can be found at:
Sponsored project budgets are authorized for setup in alignment with the associated approved budget and award terms. Any requests to deviate from the authorized budget must be reviewed and approved by Research and Sponsored Programs, please see Budget Revisions for additional information.
Procedures for purchasing on a sponsored project are the same as for other University expenditures. Prior to purchasing, designated personnel must receive purchasing access.
To facilitate access, the Principal Investigator (PI) needs to email the Purchase Control System (PCS) Account Security to request full purchasing rights to the appropriate cost center. To find the PCS Account Security contact information, please visit: Business Services.
Once the access is granted, designated personnel or another party can make purchases on the PI’s behalf.
All purchases, with the exception of the Purchasing Card, need a vendor number. If a vendor has not been set up, the vendor will have to complete the vendor registration process. To complete this process, please visit the vendor registration website (registration instructions).
Purchasing cards (PCards) are the preferred method to use whenever possible. Training on PCard use is required before issuance and use of the credit card. For more information on uses of PCards, special expense instructions and guidelines, visit: Business Services Purchasing Card Policy and Procedures Manual.
A PCard application must be completed for each employee receiving a PCard, signed by the responsible person on the cost center. After a PCard application has been filled out, a delegation of authority form must be completed.
Every month, a copy of the PCard statement and original receipts must be sent to designated personnel to be entered into the shadow system.
Purchase Orders (PO) are requested when the vendor does not accept PCards or the cost center does not have a PCard associated with it. All purchase orders will require a Vendor ID.
The PI needs to communicate with designated personnel the following information to complete purchase orders:
The Travel Authorization Form must be completed 10 to 15 days prior to making travel arrangements. The following travel authorization signatures and approvals are required:
The SCSU Travel Expense Report must be authorized by the employee, the supervisor, and the responsible person for the identified cost center. Students who travel should use this same form.
Grant supported travel reimbursement rates for meals and incidentals and lodging follow rates determined by the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA).
Original receipts are required for all expenses except mileage and meals. Mileage needs to be accompanied by a map route and mileage. Acceptable sources to report mileage:
Reimbursements/Advances are included in the employee's paycheck. Each employee will be reimbursed only for his/her own expenses.
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) requires employee business expenses to be submitted for reimbursement within 60 days after the expense is incurred. If not submitted within 60 days, the reimbursement becomes taxable for federal, state, FICA and Medicare; and withholding tax must be taken.