uconn health | Office of the Vice President for Research

Name	Training Area	Phone	Email
Matt Mroz, PhD	Grantwriting Workshops	860.486.6378	matthew.mroz@uconn.edu
Erin Ballou	SPS Training – Storrs and Farmington		erin.ballou@uconn.edu
Brenda Lowther	SPS Training – Storrs and Farmington		brenda.lowther@uchc.edu
SPA Training Team	Generic SPS Training Email		spa.training@uconn.edu

The Sponsored Programs Administrators (SPA) Meeting is held monthly during the academic year to provide information to department administrators. SPA meetings are typically held the 3rd Wednesday of the month at 2:00 p.m. Please send any suggestions or comments to SPA.training@uconn.edu.

For a full list of all SPA Training Team training resources, check out the extensive list on our job aids webpage.

Next Meeting – May 20, 2:00 – 3:00 p.m., Hybrid Meeting

In-person details:

UConn Health Cell and Genome Sciences Building – Grossman Auditorium

400 Farmington Avenue, Farmington, CT 06032

Upcoming Meetings

June 17, 2026

For information from previous meetings, visit the SPA Meeting Archive.

Sponsored Program Services (SPS) is developing a comprehensive research administration education program. The program will include in-person interactive learning experiences, online training modules, video tutorials, reference guides, and other workshops and events meant to provide support and professional development for research administrators, faculty, and students involved in research.

As the program develops, opportunities will be listed below and emailed to the Farmington Research Administration email group. If you would like to be added to the Farmington Research Administration email group or you have any suggestions or comments, please send them to spa.training@uconn.edu.

For a full list of all SPA Training Team training resources, check out the extensive list on our job aids webpage.

Are you interested in learning more about research administration?

Sponsored Program Services (SPS) and the SPA Training Team are pleased to introduce our new research administration training initiative, the LevelUp Micro-Credential Program, now available to all UConn and UConn Health staff members.

Developed and maintained by the Society of Research Administrators (SRA) International, the LevelUp program offers online modules and mGuides that cover key topics relevant to today's research administration professionals, including pre-award administration, post-award finance, and regulatory and financial compliance.

These courses are accessible at any time and from any location, allowing for flexible learning. Participants who successfully complete the modules will earn a certificate from SRAI.

The modules typically require 3 to 5 hours to complete and include a randomized exam, while the mGuides take less than an hour and feature knowledge checks throughout.

If you’d like more information about or access to the program, please reach out to spa.training@uconn.edu.

This 7-hour course is taught in two 3.5-hour sessions. Topics include:

Defining research and research administration at UConn and UConn Health
Clarifying a sponsored project, its lifecycle, and the roles and responsibilities of all involved
Exploring the Office of the Vice President for Research and Sponsored Program Services
Defining agreement, sponsor, and funding types
Explaining compliance and audit regulations and findings
Introducing the subjects and terminology of pre and post award management

This is a highly interactive course, meant to deliver a lot of information in a conversational manner to help you retain the information discussed. Participants must have access to a reliable device with audio/video capabilities (laptop/desktop/tablet) to participate in class. Teams will be the platform used to administer the course. Register for classes through Saba. Please Note: classes must have 5 participants to run. Please email spa.training@uconn.edu with any questions.

2026 Class Dates - All classes run from 8:30 am to 12:00 pm

January 6 and 8, 2026 (Tuesday, Thursday)

March 4 and 5, 2026 (Wednesday, Thursday) 9:00 am to 12:00 pm (this session only)

May 12 and 14, 2026 (Tuesday, Thursday)

Federal Costing Principles - Instructor-Led

OVERVIEW: This course is now offered in two formats. Employees may now opt for either an instructor-led course offered via Teams, or a self-paced, on-demand course. The course description and registration link below is applicable to the instructor-led course.

Participants of the Federal Costing Principles courses will engage in activities designed to help them:
• confidently explain the importance of Uniform Guidance in research administration
• evaluate costs to federally funded accounts against Uniform Guidance requirements to ensure compliance
• make informed and accurate costing decisions using Uniform Guidance requirements as the foundation
• make use of available UConn/UConn Health resources for questions and assistance

Instructor-led: This 3-hour training is highly interactive. You will be engaging with your peers to solve questions through a variety of interactive exercises. Participants must have access to a reliable device with audio/video capabilities (laptop/desktop/tablet) to participate in class. Teams will be the platform used to administer the course. After you register, a link to participate will be sent by email.

2025-2026 Instructor-led class dates - All classes run from 8:30 am to 12:00 pm

November 25, 2025 (Tuesday)

January 27, 2026 (Tuesday)

March 24, 2025 (Tuesday)

May 28, 2026 (Thursday)

Please email spa.training@uconn.edu with any questions.

Federal Costing Principles - Self-Paced, On-Demand Learning

OVERVIEW: This course is now offered in two formats. Employees may now opt for either an instructor-led course offered via MS Teams, or a self-paced, on-demand course. The course description and registration link below is applicable to the self-paced, on-demand course.

e-Learning Course - This self-paced, on-demand module should take approximately 20 minutes to complete. Participants will engage in several activities designed to test your knowledge and increase subject retention.

This class may be accessed in Saba.

Budgeting Basics - Self-Paced, On-Demand Learning

OVERVIEW: This introductory course provides research administrators with the fundamental knowledge and tools to develop compliant, accurate sponsored project budgets in accordance with sponsor guidelines, institutional policy, and federal cost principles. This module should take you approximately 45 minutes to complete and includes knowledge checks to help you retain the information covered.

By the end of this module, learners will be able to:

Identify the key cost categories in a sponsored project budget and distinguish between direct and indirect (F&A) costs.
Apply sponsor and institutional requirements to create compliant budget line items and justifications.
Ensure budgets meet Uniform Guidance standards for allowability, allocability, reasonableness, necessity, and consistency.

This class may be accessed in Saba.

This course is now being offered in an e-learning format.

Part One

This self-guided, 20-minute module will discuss the basics about the theory of subawards, including:

the definition of a subaward,
a review of common subaward terminology,
and a discussion about Cost Composition and Modified Total Direct Costs.

Part Two

Part two will cover everything you need to submit for a new subaward or amendment:

the information requirements for initiating a subaward,
the initiation process,
drafting a subaward,
monitoring subaward activities, and
amendments to a subaward.

This class can be accessed in Saba.

If you would be interested in Subawards as an instructor-led training, please email spa.training@uconn.edu.

So you want to study for the Certified Research Administrator (CRA) exam?

Do yourself a huge favor and join the Virginia Tech Study Group!

They maintain a comprehensive program that includes weekly topics, daily study tips, and more! To join the VT CRA Study Group, go to their website and click on the topic “How do I get involved with the study team?”. Please read all the information on their page as it gives you a lot of information about the exam as well as the study group.

If you want a study buddy, add your name to our CRA Study Buddy spreadsheet and reach out to the people already on the list! If you no longer want people to contact you, please return to the spreadsheet to delete your information. This spreadsheet is not monitored. If you see any problems, please email spa.training@uconn.edu.

Pertains to UConn Health Faculty and Staff members who use the Account Management System (AMS).

This 10 minute video explains the funding module available in the (AMS). Faculty and Staff can use this video to learn how to navigate the AMS system to find the information needed to manage their awards. Please contact ersadmin@uchc.edu for questions regarding the AMS system. For questions regarding any UConn or UConn Health Training, please contact brenda.lowther@uchc.edu.

NYU has a free research administration webinar series that anyone can attend. The 2026 season consists of 19 sessions throughout the year.

Please RSVP for any RAD sessions via our online registration.

All current RAD materials (slides/videos from Fall 2021-present) are available via the RAD 2021-2026 google drive folder. All historical RAD content from The New School (slides/videos held before October 2021) are still available. Audience members are encouraged to send questions ahead of the session to david.ngo@nyu.edu and we can incorporate into the session

The goal of RAD is to provide information/knowledge sharing for all research administrators.

All RAD sessions are taught by national level, expert presenters. All RAD sessions are free ($0 cost).

For more information about the program and each session, please read this NYU RAD Series announcement.