What’s essential?

There are numerous ways in which private, programmatic support is offered to and received at the University of New Hampshire, including gifts, grants and contracts.  Each varies in how revenue should be accepted and administered, and what the sponsor should reasonably expect to receive in return for providing support.  

Why it’s important

Proper classification and processing of gifts, grants, and contracts assures the University's ability to be an appropriate steward, comply with contractual requirements and grant terms specified by a sponsor/donor, meet reporting requirements, and recover its direct and indirect costs.

How to comply

The checklist How to Determine if Revenue is a Gift or Sponsored Program is intended to assist in establishing whether an award is a gift, which should be administered by the UNH Foundation, or a sponsored program, which should be administered by the Sponsored Programs Administration office.  The terms “gift” and “grant” are often considered equivalent, which creates confusion in determining how an award should be managed. Use of the term “grant” by a sponsor/donor does not necessarily mean that the award is a sponsored program. The terms of the award—how the money is to be used—determine whether an award is a gift or a sponsored program.

Classification and processing of awards can be complex and requires the exercise of informed judgment; SPA and UNH Foundation Staff are available to assist in the interpretation of how an award should be administered.  Final decisions are at the discretion of the Vice President of Advancement and the Senior Vice Provost for Research. 

Additional Information

UNH is pleased to accept unrestricted gifts to support the general research of a particular College or Principal Investigator. Gifts provided for general research support are not subject to facilities and administrative costs (F&A, or “indirect cost”) charges. The original gift award letter from the donor and the accompanying check should be forwarded to Diane Schaefer, Director of Foundation Relations, UNH Foundation/University Advancement, (603) 862-4483.

Solicitation of philanthropic gifts for non-research activities and the processing of equipment gifts and other gifts for research programs are coordinated through the UNH Foundation.  All Principal Investigator-initiated research proposals in response to a program announcement or Request for Proposal should be processed through the Sponsored Programs Administration office.