What is Grants.gov?
Grants.gov is a web portal that allows organizations to electronically find and apply for competitive grant opportunities from all Federal grant-making agencies. The two primary features of the Grants.gov site are:
Find - The 'Find' portion of Grants.gov allows users to search for funding opportunities and their corresponding application packages (if available).
Apply - The 'Apply' function allows users to directly download application packages to their individual computers. Once downloaded, the user can work on the application locally on his/her own machine, rather than online within Grants.gov.
To access the GRANTS.GOV web site, go to www.grants.gov. To search for funding opportunities click on the 'Find Grant Opportunities' tab.
Getting Started
Important Information for Principal Investigators/Project Directors
You do not need to create an account with Grants.gov. The 'account holders,' the individuals who submit applications via 'Grants.gov' on behalf of the College, are in the Office of Sponsored Programs. While the Grants.gov Help Desk may tell you that you need an account, please be assured that you do not need one.
Simmons College already has a Data Universal Number System (DUNS) number and is in the Central Contractor Registry (CCR). DO NOT request another DUNS number for the institution.
It is highly recommended that you visit the Applicant Resources page and familiarize yourself with Grants.gov by viewing the following animated tutorials: Grants.gov Overview and Adobe Reader Application Overview. With Grants.gov the application package resides on someone's computer hard drive. The work is not done online, as it is with NSF's FastLane system. Contact Valerie Beaudrault via email at valerie.beaudrault@simmons.edu or telephone at x2415, to discuss the best way in which to complete the application package.
On March 3, 2009, through the combined efforts of Grants.gov and the 26 federal grant-making agencies, the transition to Adobe was successfully completed. All funding opportunities have been migrated from the PureEdge System to the Adobe System. Compatible versions of Adobe Reader for completing the Adobe application forms are currently 8.1.1, 8.1.2, 8.1.3 and 9.0.
NOTE: Compatible versions of Adobe Reader may change as newer versions are released and tested for use with Grants.gov application forms, however, if you use the wrong version to complete the application forms your proposal will be rejected and you will have to complete a new application using the correct version of Adobe Reader.
Simmons College Office of Sponsored Programs (OSP) Policy Update on Proposal Submission
Simmons College is currently submitting proposals through the Grants.gov e-system. In the interest of successful e-submission, the Office of Sponsored Programs has instituted the following policy:
For applications requiring submission via Grants.gov, the completed proposal documents must be received by OSP five business days prior to the Grants.gov submission deadline. As a result proposals must be ready for circulation to Deans, Department Chairs, and Accounting Services 7 to 10 business days prior to the submission deadline.
The manner in which the Grants.gov system operates requires the establishment of a buffer of time to protect the application against the agency deadline, as the system may experience technical difficulties or detect application errors at any point in the submission process. It may, for instance, take up to 48 hours following e-submission to learn whether an application has been accepted by the sponsoring agency or rejected for corrections. If errors have been detected, the applicant must make all corrections and repeat the e-submission process. Applicants cannot assume the first submission will be successful and must allow time for resubmission(s).
Principal investigators are not authorized to submit their applications to Grants.gov. Instead, you must forward the completed and checked final application package to the Office of Sponsored Programs. You may do this by sending the completed application, as an email attachment Grants.gov email inbox. (See details below.) If the package is too large to attach to an email message, please deliver it on a USB Flash Drive or CD-ROM.
The Office of Sponsored Programs has set up a centralized email inbox for receiving applications. The address for that mailbox is: grants.gov@simmons.edu. When you forward an application please send a notification email to valerie.beaudrault@simmons.edu.
It should be noted that the policy/procedure pertaining to electronic submission is evolving, and is expected to develop and shift over time. Please contact the Office of Sponsored Programs prior to beginning any Grants.gov application, to obtain information on current policy and procedure.
Other Information
Location
Main College Building
Room E-206
300 The Fenway
Boston, MA 02115
Contact
Jon Kimball
Director
Phone: 617-521-2411
Valerie Beaudrault
Grant & Contract Administrator
Phone: 617-521-2415
Hours
Monday -Friday
8:30am - 4:30pm
