Colleagues: UPDATED March 17, 1 pm)
In light of the recommendations from the university leadership for practicing social distancing and providing alternative work arrangements, as well as the recent closure of local school systems and daycares, I am sharing the following updates for CHASS Research.
- Beginning today (3/17/2020), in accordance with UNC System and NC State policy, the entire research office will be working remotely. We will forward desk phones to personal phones so you can reach us via phone or email. We are all available via Zoom or Google Hangouts as well. We will continue to perform their usual tasks, such as pre-award processing and post-award management.
- We ask that departments scan any paperwork to us during this period instead of delivering to our mailbox in the Dean’s Office or our physical office. Please email to both Paula and Missy, or place the files in a shared Google Drive folder, and then share that folder with Paula or Missy. There will be a few exceptions when this is not possible, such as return of unused cash advances. We will investigate ways to handle these matters without moving paper.
- The Research Office will continue to work with faculty on proposal development and submission, pre-award, and post-award matters. We will work with you via email or telephone, Zoom, or Google Hangouts.
- As you can imagine, federal agencies are expecting disruptions to normal operations, including to research and research reporting. Please plan accordingly and build in sufficient time to account for delays due to agency staff being overloaded.
- The Council on Government Relations, a consortium of research organizations, has posted information about federal agencies, including NSF and NIH, at https://www.cogr.edu/institutional-and-agency-responses-covid-19-and-additional-resources where information (on disrupted travel, late submissions, and related activities) is posted.
- NSF has also issued a FAQ for coronavirus related disruptions at https://www.nsf.gov/pubs/2020/nsf20053/nsf20053.jsp?WT.mc_id=USNSF_80#q9. It addresses issues such as disrupted travel, deadline extensions in case of illness, disruption of research and other pressing questions.
- NIH has posted an announcement ‘Flexibilities Available to Applicants and Recipients of Federal Financial Assistance Affected by COVID-19’ at https://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/NOT-OD-20-086.html
We will share additional information regarding the College Research Office functions and activities as it becomes available. Please feel free to contact me at tabirkla@ncsu.edu. We are here to support you, so let us know how we can help you.
Tom
