Sponsored Programs Administration (SPA) is UMB’s central office for the institutional oversight and administration of externally funded sponsored projects. We partner with investigators and department administrators to support proposal submission, award negotiation, and compliance with sponsor, federal, and University requirements across the sponsored project lifecycle.

In Fiscal Year 2025, UMB investigators received $636 million in research, service, and training awards. SPA supports this enterprise by helping teams submit competitive proposals, accept awards, and manage sponsored projects responsibly.

How SPA Supports Research

  • Proposal & Award Oversight

    SPA reviews, routes, and submits sponsored project proposals on behalf of the University and negotiates and accepts grants, contracts, and cooperative agreements.

  • Agreements & Subawards

    SPA negotiates award terms and conditions and issues and manages subawards to external collaborators.

  • Compliance & Institutional Review

    SPA ensures proposals and awards comply with sponsor guidelines, federal regulations, and UMB policies, working closely with campus partners throughout the project lifecycle.

  • Campus Partnerships

    SPA collaborates with Sponsored Project Accounting and Compliance (SPAC), the Center for Clinical Trials and Corporate Contracts (CCT), and other offices to provide coordinated support.

Training & Learning Opportunities

Training sessions are available to support proposal development and submission in Kuali Research.

Kuali Research Proposal Training 

These meetings provide updates and shared guidance from SPA and Sponsored Project Accounting and Compliance (SPAC). Agendas and links are shared via RAC emails prior to each meeting.

February 18, 2026 | 2:00–4:00 p.m.

May 13, 2026 | 2:00–4:00 p.m.

September 2, 2026 | 2:00–4:00 p.m.

December 2, 2026 | 2:00–4:00 p.m.

NOT-OD-26-018 NIH’s Implementation of Common Forms for Biographical Sketch and Current and Pending (Other) Support for Due Dates on or after January 25, 2026 (12/5/25): The notice includes a table that includes the types of activities to be reported, where such activities must be reported in the application, as well as when updates are required in the application and award lifecycle.  
NIH Biosketch and Other Support Changes - SPA's training/guidance for the NIH implementation, including how to create an ORCID ID, getting started with SciENcv, and linking the ORCID ID with an eRA Commons account. 
NIH Biosketch Instructions
NIH FAQs

NOT-OD-25-104 Updated NIH Policy on Foreign Subawards (5/1/25):  "Effective with the date of this notice and until the details of the new foreign collaboration award structure are released, NIH will not issue awards to domestic or foreign entities (new, renewal or non-competing continuation), that include a subaward to a foreign entity. Additionally, NIH will no longer accept prior approval requests to add a new foreign component or subaward to an ongoing project."
More information and guidance

"Foreign Justification" attachment on NIH grants (4/18/25): In the Questionnaire labeled "S2S FAT & Flat", there is the following question: Does this project involve activities outside of the United States or partnerships with international collaborators? Respond YES if the project includes a foreign component. If YES:

  • Enter the countries with which international cooperative activities are involved. 
  • The "briefly explain" field is optional but will print to the Other Project Information form if entered. 
  • A Foreign Justification attachment is required. In the body of the text, begin the section with a heading indicating “Foreign Justification” and name the file “Foreign Justification.” Upload it to the attachment type Other and enter Foreign Justification in the description field.

This requirement/instruction is not new and is being enforced. See NIH NOT-OD-25-098. There is no eCommons or KR validation for this attachment. NIH R-series proposal checklist.

New NIH resource:  Implementation of New Initiatives and Policies - Keep up with the "status of changes impacting NIH grants process and plans for implementing new initiatives and policies."  

SPA Notices Archive:  Reminders, updates, and announcements from past months

Contact SPA

Email: spa@umaryland.edu

Virtual Office Hours: Weekly office hours to answer questions and provide informal guidance on proposals, awards, and compliance.

Mondays 10:00-11:30 am
Second and last Monday: SPA Contracts Team available

Wednesdays 2:00-3:30 pm
First and last Wednesday: Research Security Manager available

SPA Team Contacts