Officials at the National Institutes of Health conditionally returned authority to the University of Minnesota to manage its own federal grants, lifting the shackle of “exceptional status” that the agency placed on the institution in 1995.
The thumbs-up from the N.I.H. means that campus administrators can approve, by themselves, certain decisions about how grant money is spent -- such as making capital purchases and carrying unspent money over from one year to the next.
The problems date to 1992, when university administrators uncovered and reported mismanagement and criminal activity in the medical school, including by faculty members who had been illegally selling an experimental drug since the early 1970’s.
The federal government eventually filed suit to recover $109-million from the university, which countersued to have its “exceptional” status lifted. The parties settled their dispute in 1998, with the university agreeing to pay the government $32-million.
University administrators and faculty members designed a program of corrective actions, which the N.I.H. approved in 1997. Since then, the university has worked to carry out the plan by revising grant-management rules and procedures and retraining faculty and staff members.
The university also established an electronic system for designing grant budgets, submitting proposals, and managing grant funds.
“The N.I.H. has been very pleased with what we’ve done to improve our grants-management system and our procedures for ensuring compliance with federal regulations,” said Frank B. Cerra, senior vice president for health sciences.
In all, Mr. Cerra says that instilling a “culture of compliance” has cost the university $10-million.
The university received $150-million in the 1999 fiscal year from the N.I.H. for research conducted through more than 500 grants and contracts.
Diana Jaeger, director of the N.I.H.'s Office of Policy for Extramural Research Administration, said institutions on the “exceptional” list typically have few research programs and might be financially unsteady or have little experience with federal grants. Minnesota’s situation was “particularly major” because the university receives so many grants, she said.
The N.I.H., which sent a team of investigators to the campus in October, will completely remove the “exceptional” spot from the university’s record after the institution puts remaining provisions of its corrective plan in place. Mr. Cerra said that should happen by September.
http://chronicle.com Section: Government & Politics Page: A36
