Sponsored Research Agreements

A Sponsored Research Agreement (SRA) is a contract between Lehigh and a sponsor for the purposes of funding and conducting research at Lehigh. An SRA may be supported by for-profit (e.g., private industry) or non-profit (e.g., state or federal government, foundations, etc.) sponsors.

The Office of Research and Sponsored Projects (ORSP) is the office responsible for reviewing, negotiation, and executing SRAs. Preliminary discussions between the Principal Investigator (PI) and sponsor regarding the research may begin long before a sponsor is ready to establish an SRA. However, ORSP approval must be obtained prior to sending a related proposal to a sponsor.

TO INITIATE AN SRA:

The PI must initiate a LIRA proposal record and upload the following information before sending the record for Department Review in LIRA:

• Statement of Work
• Internal Lehigh Budget
• Budget Justification

Additional information and documents may be requested during the proposal review process in LIRA.

Once the CGS reviews and approves the proposal in LIRA, the final proposal documents may be sent to the sponsor.

PIs are encouraged to send Lehigh’s SRA (template below) to the sponsor along with the proposal. In the event that the sponsor provides an agreement, the CGS will route, negotiate, and sign the CRA using LIRA Agreements. Generally, SRAs include/address the following:

• Scope of work to be conducted, including reporting and other deliverables
• Period of performance, typically defined with “start” and “end” dates
• Type of agreement (typically and preferably cost reimbursable or fixed price or fixed fee)
• Invoicing frequency or payment obligations
• Publication of the research results
• Options to license the intellectual property arising from the research
• Care of data and confidential information exchanged during the research
• Compliance with export control and other laws and regulations
• Indemnification, warranty disclaimer and liability
• Insurance
• Rights and procedures to terminate the project
• Audit, access to records, and record retention
• Use of name restrictions
• Choice of law and jurisdiction
• Identification of allowable or unallowable costs
• Requirements for prior approvals for particular expenditures, etc.
• Termination

Budget Notes:

It is expected that Lehigh's full Facilities and Administrative (F&A) rate (also known as indirect cost rate) is reflected in the budget.  Any reduction or waiver of F&A costs is considered to be cost sharing and must receive the appropriate prior approval. If there is an approved waiver, it should be forwarded to your CGS.

Consistent with federal regulations, all faculty members listed as the PI on a sponsored project must contribute some level of effort to that project to provide necessary supervision/administration.  For additional information, refer to Effort Reporting.