Changes in UF Personnel

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Prior Approval Requirements
To Request Prior Approval for a Personnel Change
Resources

Most awards are made to institutions, not individual faculty or staff. However, funding determinations are often made based on the qualifications and effort commitments of the Investigators and other Senior or Key Personnel participating in the project.

Prior Approval Requirements

Typically, sponsors must provide prior approval for any changes in the PI, co-PI, co-Investigator, or other named Senior or Key Personnel.

Decreases in effort commitments for Senior or Key Personnel may also require prior approval. Sponsors’ terms and conditions regarding tolerance for changes in levels of effort for Key Personnel may differ. Always consult the award terms and conditions to determine the sponsor’s requirements for the individual award. Any changes in effort which the sponsor’s prior approval, and any reductions in effort commitment by 25% or more, must be routed through UFIRST for review.

Sponsors also typically must approve a PI’s disengagement from the project for more than 90 consecutive days (during which time, the PI does not have active direction over the project).

Certain sponsors may waive some or all prior approval requirements, however, this waiver does not lessen UF’s responsibility to ensure the action is appropriate. In essence, the sponsor is delegating responsibility to UF to approve the action. UFIRST Award Modifications should be routed for these changes to ensure sponsor requirements are met, per UF’s Effort Reporting Directives & Procedures and Effort Commitment Entry Guidelines.

To Request Prior Approval for a Key Personnel Change, Effort Change, or PI Disengagement:

Instruction Guide for UFIRST Award Personnel Modifications

1. Create a UFIRST Award Modification.
2. Select “Personnel” as the modification type.
3. Upload supporting documentation including a letter indicating how the work, as originally proposed, will be completed due to the change in personnel, decrease in effort, or absence of the PI.
4. Enter any named replacement personnel in UFIRST and ensure they have completed any required compliance activities.
5. Attach any forms required for the Sponsor to approve the replacement. (These may include a biosketch or CV and Other Support documents.
6. Route the modification for review.

Resources

UF Effort Reporting Directives & Procedures
UF Effort Commitment Entry Guidelines
UFIRST Award Modification – Personnel Instruction Guide

Last updated 11/4/24