Dear Faculty,
This is just an annual reminder to those faculty who have F&A accounts to be sure to use the account regularly. Don’t allow long periods of time go without expending some funds from them (like a year), or
else they may become designated as dormant. When this happens, the university may elect to “repurpose” all or some of the funds in that account for other purposes. I don’t know the specific triggers of such a designation, but just know F&A accounts need
to have ongoing, at least annual, activity.
For those wondering what an F&A account is, an F&A account for Principal Investigators holds the 5% provided them from externally sponsored projects (from the total Facilities and Administration or indirect
costs distributions made the year following the expenditure of direct costs on their externally sponsored grants). Not all externally sponsored projects have F&A applied, but most do, ranging from 10 to 50% of direct cost expenditures. The F&A is calculated
as a percentage of award expenditures on direct costs each year (e.g., excluding cost categories that do not incur F&A like scholarships and participant incentives). In spring each year, F&A distributions are made based on expenditures the prior fiscal year
(i.e., year ending the prior Aug. 31).
So, just a friendly reminder.
Michael
Michael J. Karcher, Ed.D., Ph.D.
Associate Dean for Research
Professor of Educational Psychology
College of Education and Human Development (COEHD)—UTSA
COEHD-Office of the Dean, MB 3.304D (Main Campus)
(210) 458-2032 (direct); 458-2650 (department); 458-5200 (college)