Grants Management Handbook

Table of Contents

Part II. Implementing the Project

J. COMPLETING AND CLOSING OUT THE PROJECT

Finishing a grant project is just as important as starting one.  In many cases, the way in which closeout procedures are handled, such as timely submission of final reports and the quality of these reports, can have a direct effect on the chances for future funding at your College or District wide.  Final reports are increasingly being saved in funding source electronic systems and can be retrieved by a Program Officer considering making a new award. Proposal application processes are extremely competitive so a sloppy or poor quality final report on a previous award impacts consideration of funding of future proposals. A poor quality final report or one that indicates poor results will negatively impact prospects for new awards in the future.

Most funding agencies have specific processes associated with closing out a grant project.  During the last three months of the grant, the Project Director must work with the Grants Accountant, appropriate Fiscal Agent, District Grants, and appropriate College Grants officer (if there is one) to ensure that necessary processes and procedures are followed. 

During the closeout of a grant or when a piece of equipment is no longer needed, the disposition of equipment should be discussed with the project Grants Accountant.  In a closeout situation, the equipment may remain and continue to be used for the activities that it was used for during the life of the grant.  Equipment (or property) may be used for other activities currently or previously supported with federal funds.  In some situations in which this is not feasible, arrangements may need to be made to transfer it to another program that can make use of the equipment.  Agency regulations need to be consulted to determine whether special permission is required before a transfer can occur.  For example, years ago, agency permission was sought and approved to transfer a “helicopter in a box” from one of the colleges to a high school with an aviation program.  Both Grants Accounting and Property Accounting need to be consulted, informed, and paperwork completed before equipment or computers are moved to another location or department.

Examples of necessary procedures include:

  • Secure record retention of electronic and paper files.
  • Review encumbrances and liquidate those no longer needed.  (CFS accounts will be closed soon after the grant’s ending date so inform staff that no more charges can be made against the grant account).
  • Complete termination paperwork for all staff and, if required, payroll changes for staff members transferred to other cost centers or to the new grant number assigned to a continuing grant.
  • Make sure that all goods and services have been received prior to the end of the grant although payment may occur soon after the end of the grant.  Large purchases at the end of the grant are usually not appropriate and will be questioned by an auditor.
  • Report final outcomes in a final programmatic report to be submitted to the funding agency.  This report may have to be submitted electronically through the funding source grant site.
  • Make sure that all publications funded by the project credit the funding source before approving the printing of the document.
  • Do not make unusual expenditures at the end of the project.  Purchases of supplies or equipment may be disallowed by auditors if they occur too late in the program to be legitimately needed by the project.
  • Arrange for appropriate storage of grant files if the project is not a continuing one or if a logical responsible party to the files is not on the horizon.

Questions commonly asked by Project Directors include the following:

  • When is the final programmatic report due and what should it contain?  Review the program guidelines to determine final reporting requirements.  If you do not know what should be included, contact District Grants.  Final programmatic reports are usually due up to three months after the grant ends.  Nevertheless, the Project Director should aim to have most of the final programmatic report completed by the end of the grant.  In preparation for preparing the final report, the Project Director should review any programmatic reports previously submitted, compile final project data, results, and progress, and draft a final, summative programmatic report. 

  • Do I need to utilize an external evaluator?  Most grants do not require an external evaluator.  An external evaluation is conducted when required by the approved project activities and funds for this purpose are included in the budget.

  • Does anyone else need to review the final report before I submit it to the funding source?  Yes, other individuals who have played a major role in implementing the project should have an opportunity to review and provide input into all reports, including the final report.  In the case of National Science Foundation grants, for example, projects have Co-Principal Investigators who perform roles in the projects.  Some projects have advisory council or management teams who should be provided the opportunity to review a draft of the final report. The final report should also be reviewed before it is submitted by District Grants and/or your college Grants Officer, if your College has one.  The Vice Presidents or other administrators who supervise the Project Director should also review the proposal evaluation.  Presidents or Vice Chancellors, in the case of District projects, should also be provided with the opportunity to review the evaluation before it is submitted. 

  • Why do so many people need to review the final evaluation?  These reviews are important because final reports must be complete, in keeping with program requirements and of the highest quality.  The quality and outcomes reflected in the final report influence the institution’s qualifications for future grants and gifts. This is also an opportunity to share what your grant has accomplished with key college administrators.

  • Who prepares the final fiscal report?  The Grants Accountants will prepare and submit the final fiscal report.  A few months prior to the end of the grant, you should review, with your Grants Accountant and a District or College Grants Officer, the balance of your budget and develop a final spending plan to ensure that all grant funds will be expended completely and appropriately.

  • Do we need to do anything about matching and effort documentation?  Throughout the project, copies of project matching and effort documentation need to be periodically provided to the Grants Accountant.  As the project draws to a close, the remaining documentation should be provided to the Grants Accountant who will need to review and confirm that matching and time and effort documentation satisfies project requirements.

  • How long do we need to retain grant records?  The terms of the grant stipulate the length of time that project records must be retained.  The average length of time required for maintaining all records for auditing purposes is three to five years from the closing date of a grant, or until a final audit is completed.  If an audit has been scheduled or if audit findings are unresolved at the end of the agency’s record retention required length of time, all records should be retained until the audit is complete and all related activity has been resolved.  Never discard paper source documents without checking with District Grants and your Grants Accountant.

  • How should records be stored?  Electronic and paper records need to be stored in a secure location.  Review program records to eliminate duplicate documents.  Organize and label boxes to store project records.  Documents of similar purpose and content should be grouped together, preferably in the same box.  All boxes should be clearly labeled on the outside of the box with a box number (e.g. 1 of 6, 2 of 6 etc.), funding source and program title (e.g. National Science Foundation, ATE), project title (e.g. Student Success in the Sciences), grant year and budget period of documents (e.g. Year 2, 10/01/00 – 9/30/01), and a destruction date.  This date should be obtained from Grants Accounting.

  • Do I need to develop a list of what is in the boxes?  Yes.  An inventory list of boxes and their contents plus the exact physical location of the boxes should be provided to District Grants and to Grants Accounting.
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