Progress, completion, and post-project reports
Principle investigators are required to provide Washington Sea Grant (WSG) with progress, completion, and post-completion project reports, which are used in program management at local, state, and national levels. The reports are WSG’s primary mechanism for evaluating project progress, informing action related to project continuation, and tracking publications, theses, and application of results. In addition, they are used in developing outreach products, including WSG website content, WSG newsletter (Sea Star) articles, and media releases.
The reports are the basis for WSG’s required reporting to the National Sea Grant Office, evaluating research investments, developing WSG program impacts, and meeting performance measures. The reports form the basis for information entered into a national database that is used to evaluate the productivity of the National Sea Grant College Program and set national priorities and funding levels.
Required project reports are as follows:
- Annual Progress Reports. At the end of every funding year, Principal Investigators must report on the results from the preceding grant year. Investigators also must report all presentations, publications, interactions, and media interviews.
- Final Project Reports. At the end of the project, two reports are required:
- The Final Annual Report summarizes the results of the final grant year of the project (or part of the year since the last annual progress report).
- The Project Completion Summary Report provides a lay summary of the entire project. This report will be submitted by WSG to the National Sea Grant Office and will be available to the public.
- Post-Project Follow-Up Reports. Upon request, principle investigators are required to provide brief follow-up reports to inform WSG of project results, publications, products, interactions, impacts, and benefits that occurred after the project award period ended.
Report templates and instructions for their completion will be provided to the principal investigator in advance of the due dates. National Sea Grant reporting requirements can change annually and those changes will be reflected in the WSG reporting guidance. WSG may withhold project funds if appropriate documentation or required reports are not provided by stipulated deadlines.
Guidelines for reporting Sea Grant matching fund requirements
Requirements
- Matching must be from non-federal sources. Any foreign funds are allowable as matching.
- To be eligible as matching, the funds must be expended during the time period of the grant.
- The exact amount of the matching expenditure must be reported after the fact. Auditors will disallow estimates.
Reporting
Salary expenditures that occurred through the University of Washington (UW) system, and which are to be reported as matching, must be reported on Faculty Effort Certification (FEC) forms for faculty. A Grant and Contract Accounting (GCA) form is available for reporting professional staff, classified staff, or student effort for matching. In addition:
- Other expenditures (services, travel, supplies, and equipment) that occurred through the UW system can be claimed as matching by using the same GCA form.
- All expenditures that occurred outside the UW system can be reported by having a responsible official for the cooperating agency or firm sign a dated letter on letterhead to the Director, Washington Sea Grant, 3716 Brooklyn Avenue NE, Seattle, WA 98105, stating:
- the exact amount of the matching expenditures (provide as much detail as possible),
- the time period of the expenditures (must coincide with a specific grant year), and
- that they were made as a part of a Sea Grant project (specify which one: project code and project name) and how the project benefited.
- University of Washington volunteer efforts may be reported as matching (if appropriate/allowable for the position) on the basis of the person’s rate (if on a part-time appointment) or a reasonable estimate of value. Cover points a, b, and c shown in #2 above.
Publications
Publication of research results in peer-reviewed journals and proceedings is an important metric for evaluating research programs. Investigators and students should plan to publish the results of their WSG-funded work in an appropriate formal (e.g., scholarly) or informal formats, or both. WSG and NOAA must be properly acknowledged in all materials that are published as a result of the project. In addition, WSG must be notified of these publications (even after the project has ended). If you are interested in developing a publication (book, technical report, bulletin) under WSG auspices, please consult with the WSG Communications Team Lead, Samantha Larson (larsonsa@uw.edu).
All print and electronic publications resulting fully or partially from WSG funding should acknowledge that support with the following statement (note: alternative/optional wording in brackets):
This work [report, activity, publication] was funded [in part] by a grant from Washington Sea Grant, University of Washington, pursuant to National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Award No. NA14OAR4170078 [other grant number]. The views expressed herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of NOAA or any of its sub-agencies.
If the publication does not lend itself to the above statement, as may be the case with a workshop agenda, poster, or presentation, the WSG logo should be incorporated into the design. WSG has high-quality logos; contact WSG Communications, sgpubs@uw.edu, to obtain one or to ask questions about the acknowledgment statement or federal award numbers.
Investigators are required to provide WSG with copies of both print and electronic publications resulting from WSG project investments, including those produced after the project has ended. New project-related papers, reports, and other documents should be reported via email to WSG Communications as they are published instead of waiting for the annual reporting cycle.
Copies of publications provided to WSG are posted on the WSG website; sent to the National Sea Grant Office; added to the collection of the National Sea Grant Library; and may be submitted for consideration to the NOAA Central Library.
To meet distribution requirements for most publications, we require investigators to submit, in most circumstances, a PDF or 1-2 printed copies. Distribution for specific publication formats is as follows:
- published journal articles, book chapters, proceedings, technical reports, and advisory publications — a PDF or 2 reprints (from the publisher or printed from the PDF)
- books — a complete copy, either PDF or print
- magazine articles written by project staff — a PDF or 2 photocopies
- theses/dissertations — a PDF or 2 photocopies of entire manuscript
- electronic publications — URL or PDF or both
- websites/webpages — no copies required; just the citation (date published or date revised) and URL
Contact WSG Communications for other publication format reprint requirements. For all submissions, investigators must identify the WSG project number associated with the publication.