Grants and Contracts Coordinator

Department Overview

The Grants and Contracts Coordinator will apply for and monitor grant funds for OHSU programs and projects and/or will enter and administer contracts with other governmental agencies or the public for the provision of services in adherence to regulations and OHSU policies and procedures. Coordination includes pre-award and/or post-award activities.

In the Department of Diagnostic Radiology, the Grants and Contracts Coordinator will work closely with the Director of Research and department principal investigators in the development of grant budgets and will assist with post-award grant accounting. This position will liaise with the OHSU Office of Proposal and Award Management (OPAM) and work closely with OHSU faculty collaborators and support staff as well as external collaborators to submit successful and timely grants and reports. Knowledge of and ability to interpret federal, state, and internal guidance and regulations are critical to the role. Effective communication with research and support staff in written and oral formats is also critical. The successful candidate will have excellent written and oral communication skills, time management and problem-solving skills, ability to track multiple tasks and projects through various stages of development and implementation, and will maintain confidentiality of intellectual property and other sensitive information throughout the grant life cycle.

This is the first level of a three-level series. It is distinguished from the Senior Grants/Contracts Coordinator by a higher level of direct supervision, lower-level decision making, and a more narrow scope of responsibility.

Function/Duties of Position

Pre-Award Assistance and Coordination:

• Grant Planning and Development:
  • Interpret sponsor guidelines and requirements in support of proposal development and submission;
  • Collect data;
  • Work with management to identify priorities;
  • Develops policy statements and annual plan; 
  • Prepare grant budget and application; 
  • Review applications for funding and process.
• Contract Coordination:  
  • Translate program requirements into contract terms in consultation with management; 
  • Develop or ensure development of contract requirements containing quantifiable specifications and measurable performance criteria; 
  • May use "Request for Proposal" to gather information from potential contractors leading to the awarding of a contract; 
  • Represent OHSU to potential contractors to negotiate and clarify contract issues, may negotiate within contract service requirements limited to metrics, dates, and services provided; 
  • Compose contract wording and calculate contract payment rates and amounts. 
  • Coordinate proposal submissions, discuss proposed resources (labor and non-labor), draft administrative components of the proposal (including the budget and required subcontract documents) and coordinate submission to the sponsor with the Office of Proposal and Award Management (OPAM).
• Conduct regular searches of internal (i.e., Knight, BCC, SOM, OHSUF) and external (NIH, DOD, NSF) funding opportunities tailored to the research interests of our active principal investigators (PIs)  
• Meet with department PIs on a regular basis, during lab meetings or schedule ad hoc meetings to plan for future grant submissions and/or reporting. 
• Track timeline requirements for proposal submission to meet OPAM and sponsor deadlines.
• Work with PIs, co-investigators, postdocs, grad students, research staff and other proposal contributors, including subaward organizations, to ensure clear and timely communications regarding contributions to the proposal, effort, and deadlines.
• Develop grant budgets in conjunction with the PI, director of research, external departments and institutions to ensure DHHS research rates are applied, when applicable, and staff effort is sufficient, ensuring that grant budgets align with proposal aims and approach.
• Collate and organize all required documentation for grant proposals, including documents from external (sub-award) institutions and consultants/contributors.
• Review all grant documents for accuracy and compliance with sponsor and institutional guidance and ensure that general proofreading is complete prior to submissions. 
• Liaise with OPAM staff, including pre-award grants and contracts administrators (GCAs), to ensure timely and error-free applications receive institutional approval and are submitted in advance of grant deadlines. 
• Maintain pre-award grant tracking, ensuring that new submissions are documented on relevant trackers and through the review process, while also maintaining a record of annual volume and ratio of submission to award.

Post-Award Assistance and Coordination

• Grant/Contract Coordination: 
  • Coordinate and provide support to accounting, reporting, and other management requirements with grant recipients or contractors; 
  • Review plans/agreements, schedules, budgets, progress reports, or other grant/contract monitoring instruments to ensure contract or grant project/program performance;
  • May conduct on site reviews;
  • Identify and resolve problems, assures appropriate and timely correction of grant administration and/or contract compliance issues. 
• Ensure and confirm compliance for project setup, including the verification of regulatory compliance (i.e., IACUC, IRB and IBC), staff effort, and completed compliance courses (i.e., CITI and eCoIR). 
• Work in collaboration with the director of research to track grant expenditures against budgets, including sub-award budgets, ensuring that spending aligns with budget categories and that appropriate salary and effort are reported on grants and RPPRs (progress reports). 
• Meet with department PIs on a regular basis, during lab meetings or ad hoc meetings to present grant financials and spending projections and to alert the PI as to any subaward spending concerns.
• Review subaward invoices with the director and other relevant research staff to ensure that invoices align with sub-site effort, and work with OPAM and PI to resolve any discrepancies or other issues, including approval or rejection of invoices, if needed.
• Provide PIs with guidance on policy and other requirements regarding post-award project activities, including mid-term and final reports.
• Work with OPAM post-award GCAs to ensure accurate financial reports to sponsors. 
• Work with OPAM and the PI for any prior approval requests for changes to grant budgets and/or proposal staff or other elements.  
• Coordinate the accurate and timely submission of post-award materials to the sponsor, including just-in-time requests and progress reports, entering information into portals, such as eRA Commons, as needed.

Technical Assistance

• General Assistance:  
  • Provide consultation, advice, and direction to all levels of OHSU staff regarding grant and/or contracting issues and methods which will best meet legal requirements and objectives; 
  • Safeguard the integrity of grant administration or contracted services and protect OHSU from financial losses due to adverse legal action or audit irregularities; 
  • Respond to requests for information from other agencies, other governmental entities, and the public; 
  • Provide assistance in developing guidelines for internal and public use relative to grant application and administration and/or contract requirements.
• Knowledge of federal regulations related to funding as well as OHSU policies and procedures; advise faculty/PI’s on policies and procedures affecting their proposals/funding.
• Work in conjunction with OPAM and PIs to provide timely and accurate responses to federal, state, foundation, and internal sponsors. 
• Work closely with PIs, director, and OPAM staff to ensure that grant personnel are registered in relevant systems.
• Work with faculty and PIs to ensure they remain in compliance with the NIH Public Access Policy, including submission of out-of-compliance manuscripts. 
• Ensure compliance with formatting and other requirements for federal documents, such as biographical sketches and other support documents.
• Provide consultation and direction to all levels of OHSU staff regarding grant and/or contracting issues and requirements to facilitate compliant applications and post-award management. 
• Expert use and guidance around internal systems that support grant/contract submissions and tracking (i.e., InfoEd, Cognos, Matrix, UFO).
• Utilize project management tools, such as Smartsheet, to track proposal development and submissions. 
• Maintain organized files ensuring efficient document sharing, tracking, and archiving.
• Contribute to and follow standard operating procedures and work instructions that guide pre- and post-award activities in support of grants and contracts coordination.

Other duties as assigned by research leadership (e.g., director and vice chair of research) 

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree AND one year of grant/contract administration experience, OR

• Three years of grants and contracts administration experience OR

• Equivalent combination of training and experience.

  • Note: Some positions may also require experience locating sources of available grant funds and developing programs that qualify for those funds.

• Intermediate to advanced computer skills required, using Microsoft applications and Adobe.
• Prioritize and organize multiple projects to meet deadlines.
• Detail oriented with ability to communicate complex instructions using excellent written and verbal skills.
• Ability to meet deadlines with excellent time management skills.
• Ability to handle high stress situations well.
• Ability to perform the job duties with or without accommodation.

Preferred Qualifications

• Business administration with major courses in accounting, finance, or a related field
• Knowledge of grant guidelines, regulations and OHSU research procedures, protocols, and policies in support of research grant submissions.
• Responsibility for obtaining and monitoring the use of grant funds and/or coordinating and administering public or private service contracts.
• Experience in submitting grants, including training grants, for multiple PIs.
• Experience submitting DOD and NIH grants.
• Experience with progress reports.
• Experience using InfoEd, eRA Commons, NCBI, and SciENcv

• Knowledge of OHSU grant submission process, including NIH and DOD submissions.  

• Experience working with joint VAMC/OHSU faculty, including processing of MOUs.

• Must be comfortable working in a paperless environment.

Additional Details

Schedule is Monday through Friday, during regular business hours of 8:00 – 4:30pm. Occasional overtime is required, typically due to increased workload around grant deadlines.

Why apply to OHSU?

We are Oregon's only public academic health center. In addition to caring for patients, we lead groundbreaking research. We also train the next generation of health care professionals. As Portland's largest employer, we give you opportunities to learn and advance in a system of hospitals and clinics across Oregon and Southwest Washington. All are welcome. OHSU welcomes people of all ages, ethnicities, genders, national origins, religions and sexual orientations. We are striving to build an anti-racist, multicultural institution and encourage people with diverse backgrounds to apply. To request reasonable accommodation, contact askhr@ohsu.edu