To improve efficiency and to prepare for the implementation of new research administration software in 2011, the Office of Grants and Contracts Administration (OGCA) directed by Lynn Stedman has been reorganized.  In the new structure, staff who previously were assigned to functional groups  (NIH Grants; State, Local, and Other Federal; Pass-Throughs; and Industry and Government Grants and Contracts; etc.) now report to one of the two newly appointed Associate Directors:  Tim Parker, Associate Director for Federal Activities, or Doug Akins, Associate Director for Non-Federal Activities.

In addition, effective October 1, 2010, the Clinical Trials Office (CTO) became the Clinical Billing Review Unit within OGCA.  Tina Ayer, who has served as the Director of the CTO, will head up this unit as a third OGCA Associate Director reporting to Ms. Stedman.  Ms. Ayer also will serve as a liaison to the University Compliance Officer for billing compliance matters and will continue to provide training and assistance to researchers and study coordinators for the Fiscal Approval Process (FAP) and use of SiteMinder.  A member of the unit will be assigned to the Office of the Institutional Review Board (OIRB) to help address any clinical billing issues identified in clinical trial applications.

The CTO staff will be moving from CH20 to the OGCA (and IRB) offices in the Administration Buildings during the second week of October.  For the immediate future, there will be no change in submission processes for FAP or SiteMinder except that any hard copies should be sent to AB11 rather than to CH20.  All telephone or fax numbers and email addresses will remain the same.  The OGCA and CTO websites will be updated over the next few weeks to reflect the organizational changes.

We expect these changes to facilitate integration of procedures consistent with our goal of minimizing the regulatory burden for investigators and administrative personnel at UAB.