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Research and Sponsored Programs

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Information for UW-Madison CPAs

RED courses can count towards informal learning activities to meet CPA CPE requirements.

Learn more at the WICPA website.

Please apply professional judgement in computing the number of CPE credit hours claimed.

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Page Updated: February 6, 2026

The management and administration of sponsored programs is complex and must be carried out in compliance with UW policy, federal and state laws, sponsor requirements and award terms and conditions. UW Research Administrators must navigate policies, procedures, and systems in an effort to ensure that sponsored programs are appropriately managed while providing excellent customer service. The courses and resources below will help individuals understand and implement these responsibilities to ensure compliance and protect the university and faculty.

RED: Research-Education-Development is RSP's educational program for research administrators at the UW. RSP is currently collaborating with campus subject matter experts in dean's offices and departments to ensure development of high quality and beneficial learning experiences through the RED program.

Through RED, we hope to provide a network of resources to staff, build competencies across campus, and promote efficiency and compliance in an open and inclusive training environment.

RED Courses:

Now Available:

Coming Soon:

  • New Award Setup

Under REDevelopment:

RED Hot Topics:

Check here for more information as it becomes available. If you have questions or comments please contact the RED team in the Research and Sponsored Programs Office. red@rsp.wisc.edu or 608-282-3822

Sign up for the RSP RED listserve to receive notifications about new educational opportunities and resources from RSP.

RED Course Materials
Basic Introduction to Research Administration at the UW

This course will give learners an introduction to research administration and sponsored projects here at UW-Madison. Content includes an overview of the life cycle of an award, roles and responsibilities, an introduction to sponsored project policies, and more.

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Cayuse: Introduction to Federal Proposal Creation

Cayuse 424 is a system to system submission tool for preparing and submitting grant proposals to federal agencies. The system is easy to use, provides significant auto-filling of forms, extensive error checking and the ability to see the entire proposal before submission. Cayuse should be used for electronic grants.gov submissions to federal agencies.

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Cayuse: Proposals with Subawards and Multiple Projects

Cayuse 424 is a system to system submission tool for preparing and submitting proposals to federal agencies. The system is easy to use, provides significant auto-filling of forms, extensive error checking and the ability to see the entire proposal before submission. Cayuse should be used for electronic grants.gov submissions to federal agencies. This course will focus on creating complex proposals within Cayuse. We will cover populating subaward budgets as well as developing proposals with multiple projects.

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Cost-Share

This course will expand upon the RED On-Demand Introduction to Cost-Share course. The content will strengthen participant’s understanding and skills related to cost share on sponsored projects including how to determine appropriate sources for cost share, how to enter cost share details into WISPER, how to locate cost share information in WISER, and how to avoid and address cost share errors.

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Cost-Transfers

This course will give UW-Madison administrators the understanding and skills necessary to process and justify cost-transfers on sponsored projects successfully and avoid cost-transfers when possible.

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Effort 101 - Effort Coordinator Training

This session will cover the basics of effort reporting. Attendees will also learn about the responsibilities of an effort coordinator (EC) and best practices for carrying out these responsibilities.

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Effort 102 - ECRT Hands-On Training

The latest version of ECRT (v5.2, updated 2018) has a new look as well as several enhancements meant to make effort certification and processing more efficient. This course will provide an overview and demonstration of the changes along with hints and tips for working in the upgraded system as well as time for practicing in our Test ECRT environment.

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Excel-Harnessing the Power of Pivot Tables

If you work with numbers, being familiar with Excel can make your work faster and more accurate as it has the ability to calculate, summarize, visualize, and forecast data. However, while picking up tips and tricks in online courses can help, you really can only master Excel when you have the opportunity to use it often – and half of the battle of using it often is to know when it will be useful!

In this session, we are going to learn more about Excel pivot tables. Pivot tables are a feature in Excel that allows you to manipulate and visualize data in several different ways. While they have a reputation for being intimidating, pivot tables can be used by those with little Excel experience, and, using data we will export from WISER, we will review several real-life research administration examples which you can take back to your office and start using in your role today.

NOTE: It would be ideal for participants to have at least two monitors for this session to follow along in real-time with the course facilitators.

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Introduction to Agreement Types (On-Demand)

This RED On-Demand course from the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs (RSP) will provide an introduction to different types of sponsored agreements.

The course is intended for UW-Madison administrators who work directly with sponsored projects. This includes department administrators, financial accountants, dean’s office staff, RSP staff, and more. The content will introduce learners to the following agreement types– grants, cooperative agreements, contracts, subawards, clinical trials, confidential disclosure agreements, material transfer agreements, fee-for-service agreements, and data use agreements.

This course can be taken as a stand-alone learning opportunity. To deepen your understanding of agreement negotiation this course can be taken as a pre-requisite for our future RED: Understanding Contract Negotiation course in Zoom that will be offered later this summer.

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Introduction to Cost Share (On Demand)

The on-demand course includes a short 20-minute video that will introduce learners to Cost-Share – what it is, why we care about it, the different types, cost-share sources, cost-share policies, and cost-share resources.

This RED On-Demand course from the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs is intended for UW administrators who work directly with sponsored projects. This includes department administrators, financial accountants, dean’s office staff, RSP staff, and more. The online video will introduce learners to Cost-Share – what it is, why we care about it, the different types, cost-share sources, cost-share policies, and cost-share resources.

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Introduction to Proposal Preparation and Budgets

This course is an introduction to sponsored project proposal development. It covers the resources available to you and provides a foundation for proposal preparation, budget development, and regulatory topics related to proposal preparation and submission.

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NIH Budget Building

Budget preparation is an important part of successful proposal submissions. The National Institutes of Health awards investigators at more than 2,500 institutions and is the UW’s largest sponsor. Join us to learn NIH budgeting terminology and policies, as well as what reviewers look at in an NIH proposal budget. We will also spend time working through a case study to build an NIH budget in class.

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NSF Proposal Preparation

This RED course will highlight specific proposal preparation for research administrators new to the National Science Foundation (NSF). We will address unique areas of the proposal preparation process for NSF, including NSF Directorates, the NSF PAPPG, types of NSF submissions, and program solicitations. We will also discuss the advantages and items to note when using Research.Gov. Attendees will have the opportunity to review an example NSF solicitation and watch a facilitated demo of NSF proposal preparation in Research.gov.

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Post Proposal Submission Requests (JIT)

After a proposal is submitted and before an award is made, the university will typically receive requests from sponsors for more information. This process is often called “JIT” or “Just in Time”. This learning experience will give UW-Madison research administrators the understanding and skills necessary to successfully respond to JIT requests.

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Post-Award Management Payroll and Commitments

This RED Course from the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs is intended for UW administrators who work directly with sponsored projects. This includes department administrators, financial accountants, dean’s office staff, RSP staff, and more! This session will highlight post-award management practices related to setting up and managing salary encumbrances on sponsored awards.

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Post-Award Management Purchasing, Travel, and Subawards

This RED Course from the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs is intended for UW administrators who work directly with sponsored projects. This includes department administrators, financial accountants, dean’s office staff, RSP staff, and more! This session will highlight post-award management practices related to purchasing, travel, and subaward administration.

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Sponsored Project Audits

UW-Madison receives audit requests on a regular basis. This course will give UW-Madison staff an understanding of the audit process and the skills necessary to respond successfully to audit requests.

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Sponsored Project Closeout

This RED Course from the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs is intended for UW administrators who work directly with sponsored projects. This includes department administrators, financial accountants, dean’s office staff, RSP staff, and more! This session will highlight what needs to be done after a sponsored project is completed and before a project can be closed.

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The Award Setup Process

This course will highlight award setup practices including award review, compliance checks, and updating the WISPER Projects Tab.

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Understanding Contract Negotiation

For many agreements, negotiation is a major step within the award lifecycle. The process of negotiation ensures that the terms and conditions of agreement documents fit within federal law, state law, UW-System policies, university policies, and the needs of UW researchers. So, what exactly does this contract negotiation process entail? This course will focus on roles and responsibilities at the time of negotiation, the different agreement types, and how to provide what is needed in WISPER to aid the negotiation process.

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WISER for Grants Management

This RED course is an introduction/beginner session is for those who wish to navigate through WISER to perform various grant-related data searches and reports.

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You Have a Project, Now What?

The course will give learners an introduction to post-award management, including reviewing award documents, reviewing budgets, setting up milestones, and locating award information in WISER.

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RED Course Facilitators
Interested in being a RED presenter?
John Ackah
Research & Sponsored Programs
Post-Award Accountant
john.ackah@rsp.wisc.edu
608-263-7057
Ryan Albrecht
Research & Sponsored Programs
Post-Award Accountant
Ryan.Albrecht@rsp.wisc.edu
Divina Allan
Research & Sponsored Programs
Grant System Business Analyst
divina.allan@rsp.wisc.edu
608-890-3035
Jennifer Cox Bell Photo
Jennie Cox-Bell
Research & Sponsored Programs
Effort Compliance Manager
jcbell2@rsp.wisc.edu
608-265-9085
Kris DeArmond Photo
Kris DeArmond
Research & Sponsored Programs
Advanced Accountant
kadearmond@rsp.wisc.edu
608-890-3288
Alex Delvoye
College of Engineering
Research Administrator
delvoye@wisc.edu
608-263-4975
Shelly Earl
Research & Sponsored Programs
Grants System Business Analyst
shelly.earl@rsp.wisc.edu
608-262-0250
Brenda Egan
Research & Sponsored Programs
Financial Program Manager
baegan@rsp.wisc.edu
608-262-9029
Kyle Everard Photo
Kyle Everard
Research & Sponsored Programs
NSF/DOE Accountants Manager
kyle.everard@rsp.wisc.edu
608-890-2409
Sandy Fowler Photo
Sandy Fowler
College of Agricultural & Life Sciences
Director, Business Services and Post-Award
sandy.fowler@wisc.edu
608-262-3947
Courtney Griese
School of Medicine and Public Health
Research Administrator
courtney.griese@wisc.edu
608-262-6691
Erin Goeldner Photo
Erin Goeldner
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
Senior Research Administrator
egoeldner@wisc.edu
608-890-0104
Sheila Hayden Photo
Sheila Hayden
College of Letters and Science
Senior Research Administrator
sheila.hayden@wisc.edu
608-265-9655
Angie Johnson Photo
Angie Johnson
Research & Sponsored Programs
Assistant Director of Post-Award
angie.johnson@rsp.wisc.edu
608-890-3147
Timia Joseph
Research & Sponsored Programs
Grants System Business Analyst
timia.joseph@rsp.wisc.edu
Casey Kettler
School of Veterinary Medicine
Research Administrator
cfkettler@wisc.edu
608-262-4508
Amy Kuehn Photo
Amy ES Kuehn
School of Veterinary Medicine
Assistant Director
aeskuehn@vetmed.wisc.edu
608-890-2909
Allison Lynch Photo
Allison Lynch
Research & Sponsored Programs
Senior Grants and Contract Specialist
alynch4@rsp.wisc.edu
608-890-1624
Tammy Kuhn Martin Photo
Tammy Kuhn Martin
College of Engineering
Assistant Dean
tamara.kuhnmartin@wisc.edu
608-265-0504
Nick Novak Photo
Nick Novak
Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research
Assistant Vice Chancellor
nick.novak@wisc.edu
608-265-4868
Jennifer Rodis Photo
Jennifer Rodis
Research & Sponsored Programs
Policy/Planning Analyst
rodis@rsp.wisc.edu
608-890-2538
Chris Schulz
Research & Sponsored Programs
Miscellaneous Federal, DOJ Accountants Manager
cschulz2@rsp.wisc.edu
608-890-2941
Christy Schulz Photo
Christy Schulz
School of Medicine & Public Health
Administrative Program Specialist
crschulz@wisc.edu
608-265-3386
Catherine Shults
College of Engineering
Research Grants Administrator
catherine.shults@wisc.edu
608-890-3032
Zach Smith Photo
Zach Smith
Department of Mechanical Engineering
Research Administrator
rsmith48@wisc.edu
608-890-1090
John Varda Photo
John Varda
College of Letters and Science
Assistant Dean
john.varda@wisc.edu
608-890-1810
Andrea Zorbas
Research & Sponsored Programs
Award Acceptance and Set-Up Manager
andrea.zorbas@rsp.wisc.edu
608-890-1810
Effort and ECC Related Trainings

Payroll must be certified for faculty, staff and trainees who have salary charged (direct or cost shared) to federally sponsored projects. Project-based payroll statements are certified biannually by the project's Principal Investigator. ECC (Employee Compensation Compliance) is the web-based system used to facilitate these certifications. Learn more here.

"ECC for Certifiers" is mandatory for PIs who need to complete certifications.

"Basics of Effort, Commitments and Payroll Certification" introduces the most important concepts in all three realms. While not mandatory, faculty, and other members of the research community that engage in sponsored projects, will find the overview useful.

ECC for Certifiers Training
Basics of Effort, Commitments, and Payroll Certification Training
Additional UW-Madison Training and Resources for Research Administrators

UW-Madison Business Services Training provides relevant courses and resources to ensure that UW-Madison employees have the knowledge and skills to perform their purchasing and financial responsibilities accurately and efficiently. Find courses here on topics related to Accounts Receivable, Billing, Capital Equipment, Gift Management, Expense Reimbursement, Purchasing, and More.

UW-Madison research administrators should remain current on a variety of research compliance requirements both regulatory and financial. Find training and resources here from the university’s compliance offices.

External Resources (NCURA, SRA, Sponsor Sites, etc.)
National Council of University Research Administrators Resources (NCURA)
NCURA Life Cycle of the Award
2016 Webinar Series - Educational Videos

Toolbox (90-minutes)

Proposal Development (Each part is 90-minutes)

Pre-award / Budgeting (Each Part is 90-minutes)

Award Negotiation and Acceptance (Each Part is 90-minutes)

Award Monitoring and Management (Each Part is 2-hours)

Compliance (Each Part is 2-hours)

NCURA Publications
For UW-Madison use only. Do not share externally.

Council on Governmental Relations (COGR)

Grants.Gov - Grants Learning Center

Society of Research Administrators (SRA)

Research Administrators Certification Council (RACC)

New Faculty Guide to Competing for Research Funding

NIH Electronic Research Administration (eRA Commons) - Training Site
Updated: January 5th, 2022

NIH How to Apply Tutorials
Updated: June 7th, 2017

NASA NSPIRES Basics - Registration and Submission

NASA NSPIRES Help: Tutorials

NSF Fastlane Help