Launch of Pilot Post-Award Services in the Office of Research

October 27, 2025

 

Dear Colleagues, 

As part of the Columbia Climate School’s continued evolution, we are pleased to announce the launch of a new Post-Award Unit within the Office of Research (OOR). This marks an important step toward providing comprehensive, PI-centered support across the full grant lifecycle, from proposal development to award management and closeout.

Until now, post-award responsibilities have been managed by the Finance & Administration team. Beginning November 3, 2025, the Office of Research will begin a phased pilot transition of these services. The Finance & Administration team will continue to oversee core HR and financial functions (e.g., hiring, Concur, purchase orders, accounts payable), while OOR will serve as the central hub for pre-award and post-award research administration.

For Principal Investigators, this means the Office of Research will now be able to assist with:

  • Managing the IPASS process
  • Re-budget requests and sponsor approvals
  • Reviewing active award portfolios and forecasting
  • Addressing budget-to-actual discrepancies
  • Supporting grant closeout in coordination with SPF
  • Handling additional post-award requests during this pilot phase

 

The first phase of this transition will focus on training, standardization, and feedback collection. We have created a new Post-Award Roles & Responsibilities Matrix to clarify support functions and ensure smooth coordination with divisional and center administrators. We will also be adding more resources to our website and Climate Connect intranet page soon. 

This effort will be led by Linette Sandoval-Rzepka, Director of Grant Management Services, alongside new staff joining the Post-Award unit. Thomson Batidzirai, Director of Research Development, will oversee the existing Pre-Award unit and their research development services. We are committed to a collaborative and responsive process, and your input will play a vital role in shaping how we deliver these services.

For now, questions and feedback should be directed to [email protected]. *A dedicated Post-Award email will be launched next week when the pilot officially begins on November 3rd.

Thank you for your partnership as we take this important step toward strengthening research support at the Climate School.

Sincerely,
Office of Research