North Carolina State University, Office of Research and Graduate Studies, Sponsored Programs and Regulatory Compliance Services Records 1962-2003

North Carolina State University's Sponsored Programs and Regulatory Compliance Services (SPARCS) provides services to facilitate the submission of proposals, negotiation of agreements, and the administration of internally and externally funded projects. SPARCS also provides services involving subagreements supported by funding provided to North Carolina State University. All aspects of the externally sponsored research and scholarship enterprise, including the pre-award management and the non-fiscal post-award management, fall under the leadership of SPARCS personnel.

All administrative bodies at the university with responsibility to oversee grants and contracts or matters of regulatory compliance are responsible for seeking guidance from SPARCS to provide optimal stewardship of external funds, regulated research subjects and other matters. To facilitate this guidance, an Associate Vice Chancellor for Research Administration, who also serves as the Director of the office, leads SPARCS. An Associate and an Assistant Director and a team of EHRA (exempt from the State Human Resources Act) professionals provide additional leadership. The directors and EHRA professionals hold overall responsibility to negotiate and accept legal terms and conditions for conducting externally sponsored research, as well as for managing compliance with a myriad of federal and state regulations.

External sponsors include federal, state, local governments and private enterprise. These sponsors provide funding via grants, cooperative agreements or contracts wherein deliverables are identified and progress reporting is expected. The office enjoys a robust and close relationship with the development arm of the institution. Both entities foster coordination in determining the best fit between opportunities and sponsorship. Additionally, SPARCS partners with the Office of Technology Transfer to ensure that NC State University remains in the best possible position to execute licensing agreements for intellectual property disclosed and ready for commercial application by our federal, state and industrial partners.

SPARCS also maintains primary regulatory compliance responsibilities, including human and animal subjects, conflicts of interest and commitment management, export controls, facility security matters, and research integrity. The goal is to provide stellar continuing education necessary to facilitate the understanding of these critical areas of compliance as we endeavor to reduce the overall regulatory burden on the institution's faculty and staff. This goal extends throughout the SPARCS' organization and is illustrated in its motto to Achieve: respect by knowing our clientele; leadership through service; compliance through facilitation;improvement by seeking feedback; and excellence through caring.

The records of the North Carolina State University Sponsored Programs and Regulatory Compliance Services contain Summary Financial Status Reports, listings of then-active contracts and grants, summary of research and training grants, Summary Reports on Support for Research and Related Activities, and other assorted administrative files.

This collection is arranged alphabetically.

The NC State University Libraries generally claims only physical ownership of most Special Collections materials. These materials are made available for use in research, teaching, and private study, pursuant to U.S. Copyright law. Libraries staff are unable to advise on copyright and other legal matters; the user assumes full responsibility for any use of the materials, including but not limited to, infringement of copyright and publication rights of reproduced materials. Helpful resources for assessing copyright include Cornell Libraries' "Copyright Services: Copyright Term and the Public Domain" and copyright.gov. This collection may contain materials with sensitive or confidential information about identifiable living individuals, which may be protected under federal or state laws and regulations. Researchers are advised that there may be legal ramifications for disclosing this information.

The University Archives operates in accordance with the State Public Records Act, with unrestricted access to records not covered by state and federal statutes and regulations.

[Identification of item], North Carolina State University, Office of Research and Graduate Studies, Sponsored Programs and Regulatory Compliance Services Records, UA 011.004, Special Collections Research Center, North Carolina State University Libraries, Raleigh, NC

Transferred from North Carolina State University Sponsored Programs and Regulatory Compliance Services.

Collection guide encoded by Steven Mandeville-Gamble, 2006 March; updated by Cate Putirskis, 2008 October; updated by Caitlyn Sosbe and Linda Sellars, 2018 July.