Institutionally (Internally) Funded Projects
The “Grants” module is the place for you to enter sponsored program activities. A sponsored program or a sponsored project is defined as any externally funded research or scholarly activity that has a defined scope of work and/or set of objectives, which provides a basis for sponsor expectations.
Any institutionally (internally) funded research or scholarly activity that has a defined scope of work and/or set of objectives should be entered into Elements manually. Examples of such internally funded research or scholarly activity include:
- College or Department Internal Grant programs
- Office of Research Seed programs
- Scholarly Activity and Research Incentive funds (SARIF)
- Strategic and Transformative Investments in Research (STIR) programs
Externally Sponsored Projects
In the majority of cases, Elements will automatically import externally sponsored program activities that are recorded in Cayuse SP. Cayuse SP is our institutional system for electronic routing and approval of sponsored program proposals and documents. However, there are a few exceptions of when externally sponsored program activities have to be entered into Elements manually:
- If you are a new faculty member, then you can enter proposals/projects that you worked on at your previous place of employment,
- If only a certain number of investigators are allowed to be listed on the externally sponsored proposal/project, but in reality more people may be contributing to it. If you are working on such project and you are not listed as investigator in Cayuse SP, you can enter your proposal/project manually in Elements,
- If your role on a sponsored project recorded in Cayuse SP is listed as something else other than investigator, then you can also enter your proposal/project manually.
Sponsored Projects vs. Gifts
Sponsored program activities are sometimes confused with Gifts. Gifts are charitable contributions that should not be entered into Elements’ “Grants” module.
A sponsored program is a contractual agreement or a grant that:
- Contains a specific statement of work with a detailed, line item budget
- Addresses intellectual property rights OR
- Includes other requirements such as deliverables, financial accounting reports, etc.
A gift is funds or property voluntarily given to the university without expectation of return or compensation on the part of the donor.
The Gift or Sponsored Program page can provide assistance determining the difference between a sponsored program and a gift.
Sponsored Projects vs. Award, Distinction, or Recognition in the Professional Activities Module
Sponsored program activities are also confused with honorific awards, distinctions, and recognitions. Honorific awards, distinctions, and recognitions are given to faculty in recognition of outstanding contributions in research, teaching, and/or service to their university, students, profession, or field. Honorific awards may have funding attached. However, it is given to a specific person to spend it as the recipient wishes with no accountability attached. Examples of honorific awards and recognitions include:
- University of Tennessee Chancellor’s Award of Excellence in Teaching
- Lifetime Achievement Award
- Outstanding Faculty Award
- Outstanding Nurse Researcher
- Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics
Honorific awards, distinctions, and recognitions should not be entered into Elements’ “Grants” module. Such activities should be recorded in the “Professional Activities” module in Elements as an “Award, Distinction, or Recognition.”