NSF Issues Revised PAPP, Effective Jan 4, 2010

The National Science Foundation (NSF) has just posted a revised version of the NSF Proposal & Award Policies & Procedures Guide (PAPP) [NSF 10-1]. The new PAPP Guide will be effective for proposals submitted on or after January 4, 2010 and is available on the NSF website at: http://www.nsf.gov/publications/pub_summ.jsp?ods_key=nsf101> 
 
As with all revisions to the PAPP Guide, NSF has included at the beginning of each section – the Grants Proposal Guide and the Award and Administration Guide – a summary of significant changes. 
 
Notable changes in the PAPP Guide are:
The implementation of two of the remaining requirements included in the America COMPETES Act:  required institutional plans for training in the ethical and responsible conduct of research (RCR) for students (undergraduate and graduate) and, postdoctoral fellows, and,
 project outcomes (final) reporting requirements for principal investigators (PIs).  
 
NOTE: The RCR training requirement was described in a Federal Register notice issued on August 20, 2009 (74FR42126).  The addition of the project outcomes reporting is the solution NSF devised to address the requirement to post final reports.  NSF does not have a formal final report but the last annual report has served as final for NSF purposes.  The new project outcomes report will be submitted electronically through research.gov.
 
The UW Office of Research in concert with other university offices included Office of Graduate Studies is developing a program and guidance to comply with the new NSF requirement for RCR training. This guidance will be announced within the next few weeks by the Office of Research.
 
Lynne Chronister
Ass't Vice Provost for Research & Director of Sponsored Prog, Office of Sponsored Programs
UW Box # 359472
4333 Brooklyn Ave
University of Washington
Seattle, WA 98105
206-543-4043
lchronis@u.washington.edu