Updated: May 21, 2025

The Office of Research and Innovation is working with university leadership to carefully review executive communications and actions to understand how they impact Virginia Tech’s federally sponsored activities, including research and innovation. 

Virginia Tech will comply with all applicable laws and executive orders.

On this website, the research community can find guidance, updates, and links to relevant resources. In general, principal investigators should continue work to meet the goals of their programs, and to develop and submit proposals for new federal awards. 

Principal investigators are encouraged to monitor federal websites for changes in proposal deadlines, requirements, or other actions. Keep an eye out for communication from sponsors and share all communication with the Office of Sponsored Programs; if this communication includes a stop-work or termination notice, it is critical to act quickly. 

See below for agency-specific instructions; these will continue to be updated as they are received.

For Questions, contact the Office of Sponsored Programs

Foreign Assistance Institutional Questionnaires

Virginia Tech principal investigators are receiving questionnaires from federal sponsors regarding foreign assistance. These include questions about the particular program as well as general information about the university as a whole. A webpage has been created focusing on the answers to common questions.

View the Webpage

Leadership Messages

View All Messages

Latest Updates

Note: for agency specific guidance, see the section below for more information.

May 6, 2025

May 5, 2025

  • The Department of Energy has released a memo in regards to suspended activities related to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI), Community Benefit Plans (CBP), Promoting Inclusive and Equitable Research (PIER) Plans, and Justice40 initiatives with exceptions for certain subrecipients. See the following memo for details.

May 1, 2025

Apr. 23, 2025

Apr. 18, 2025

Apr. 16, 2025

  • Federal court extends temporary restraining order on the Department of Energy's cap on facilities and administrative (F&A) policy.

Apr. 14, 2025

Apr. 10, 2025

Apr. 3, 2025

  • A correction has been made to the United States Department of Agriculture guidance regarding no grant project extensions for projects funded by the American Rescue Plan under existing circumstances.

Proposals

The Office of Sponsored Programs will continue to submit proposals.

Be Proactive:

  • Principal investigators should reconfirm that the funding announcement has not been revised or postponed. If available, sign up for alerts from the federal agency or sponsor.
  • In some cases, changes in federal priorities are not yet reflected in requests for proposals and solicitations with upcoming deadlines. For questions about the requirements of a proposal you are working on, first contact the sponsor or program manager, and then contact Linda Duffy.
  • Sponsor proposal review timelines may be extended or updated. Double check deadlines.
  • For questions regarding the scope of activities under your proposal, reach out to the funding agency to have your questions addressed.

Awards

The Office of Sponsored Programs is receiving communications from federal agencies. They are reviewing agreements, terms, and conditions and working directly with the agency to revise contract clauses, if needed.

Be Proactive:

  • Continue to make progress on meeting research goals and timelines, especially for projects nearing the end of their award period. As you conduct work on project objectives, seek to accurately and quickly charge all labor and expenses so that the Office of Sponsored Programs can timely process invoices.
  • Consider fiscal restraints on financial commitments such as large equipment purchases or issuing subcontracts where such expenses are not critical to near-term progress.
  • Regularly check this page for new information. If you believe your program is impacted, communicate with the agency program or grant officer to confirm there are no changes to your award.
  • If you receive a communication directly from an agency, do not stop work on the award until you have confirmed with your award grant manager in the Office of Sponsored Programs the purpose of the communication. Some agency memos are only advising recipients of changes to some of the agreement clauses and not terminating the award. Thus, it is important to provide the communication to the Office of Sponsored Programs in order to be advised.
  • Monitor obligated budget balances to avoid deficits while awaiting future instructions from the agency. Anticipated future funding remains subject to availability of funds and should not be considered guaranteed.
  • Prioritize the submission of any technical reports or deliverables that may be past due and submit progress reports timely.

Agency-Specific Guidance

Virginia Tech has received messages from federal agencies with instructions for implementing executive orders. In some cases, the university has received instructions on specific awards; those messages are communicated with affected principal investigators. See these requirements below.

Note, information included is subject to change. Check the page frequently and monitor federal websites for changes in proposal deadlines, requirements, or other actions.

May 14, 2025

The Secretary of Defense instructed senior Pentagon leadership to begin the process to implement a 15% indirect cost rate cap of 15% for all financial assistance to institutions of higher education. The university is monitoring the Department of Defense process.

May 5, 2025

The Department of Energy has suspended activities related to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI), Community Benefit Plans (CBP), Promoting Inclusive and Equitable Research (PIER) Plans, and Justice40 initiatives; principal investigators should cease all further obligations of funds for these activities. There are exceptions for certain subrecipients. See the following memo for details.

Apr. 16, 2025

Federal court extends temporary restraining order on the Department of Energy's cap on facilities and administrative (F&A) policy.

Apr. 11, 2025

The Department of Energy (DOE) released a memo Adjusting Department of Energy Grant Policy for Institutions of Higher Education implementing a new cap on facilities and administrative (F&A) rate of 15% on all grants to institutions of higher education effective April 11, 2025. University leadership is monitoring this and actively engaging with higher education partners. The DOE stated it would be providing further guidance to this Policy Flash. The Office of Sponsored Programs will provide guidance if action is needed. Principal investigators do not need to take action at this time.

Jan. 27, 2025

Cease all activities associated with diversity, equity, and inclusion and community benefit plans

Jan. 31, 2025

Office of Science: Suspend all diversity, equity and inclusion, community benefit programs/promoting inclusive and equitable research (PIER) plans, and JUSTICE40

Mar. 26, 2025

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has updated the NASA Grant and Cooperative Agreement Manual and NASA Grant and Cooperative Agreement Terms and Conditions to comply with recently-issued Executive Orders. Both documents are now available on the NASA Grants Policy and Compliance website under the “Regulations, Guidance, and Forms” section.

 Jan. 23, 2025

Message for NASA Grantees on DEIA EOs

May 6, 2025

The National Institutes of Health has published a Notice of Civil Rights Term and Condition of Award; the university is accepting this term on new awards.

May 1, 2025

Effective May 1, 2025, an Updated NIH Policy on Foreign Subawards states that the National Institutes of Health (NIH) will not issue awards to domestic or foreign entities (new, renewal or non-competing continuation), that include a subaward award to a foreign entity. Additionally, NIH will no longer accept prior approval requests to add a new foreign component or subaward to an ongoing project.

Apr. 21, 2025

National Institutes of Health has published a Notice of Civil Rights Term and Condition of Award. The university is reviewing; no action is required by principal investigators at this time.

Apr. 4, 2025

A federal judge permanently barred the administration from limiting funding from the National Institutes of Health that supports research at universities and academic medical centers.

Feb. 21, 2025

Federal court extends temporary restraining order on the National Institutes of Health (NIH) cap on facilities and administrative (F&A) rate of 15%.

Feb. 7, 2025

NIH released Supplemental Guidance to the 2024 NIH Grants Policy Statement: Indirect Cost Rates (NOT-OD-25-068), implementing a new cap on facilities and administrative (F&A) rate of 15%.

May 19, 2025

The National Science Foundation (NSF) announced that it has entered into a consent agreement with the court to pause the implementation of NSF-25-034 Policy Notice: Implementation of Standard 15% Indirect Cost Rate pending resolution after a June 13, 2025 hearing. Effective May 19, 2025, NSF will revert to issuing awards according to the institution's negotiated rates while implementation is on hold. The university is currently submitting proposals to the NSF.

May 1, 2025

The National Science Foundation (NSF) released a Policy Notice: Implementation of Standard 15% Indirect Cost Rate implementing a new cap on facilities and administrative (F&A) rate of 15% on all grants and cooperative agreements to institutions of higher education effective May 5, 2025. University leadership is monitoring this and actively engaging with higher education partners. The Office of Sponsored Programs will provide guidance if action is needed. Principal investigators do not need to take action at this time.

Apr. 18, 2025

NSF has posted Updates to NSF Priorities.

Mar. 14, 2025

Letter to the community: From the Director of the U.S. National Science Foundation

Feb. 14, 2025

National Science Foundation (NSF) Implementation of Recent Executive Orders webpage, FAQ #12: Consistent with the district court's order, NSF awardees may continue activities consistent with the current terms and conditions of their NSF awards at this time.  

Feb. 2, 2025

Access to the Award Cash Management Service (ACM$) has been restored and the system is available to accept payment requests as of 12:00 p.m. ET on Feb. 2, 2025. See FAQs for more information.

Frequently asked questions (FAQs)

FAQs were developed from a review of community questions organized under major topics.

Jan. 29, 2025

Message to the National Science Foundation (NSF) principal investigator community

Apr. 3, 2025 (updated from Mar. 24)

The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has determined it is not feasible to grant project extensions for projects funded by the American Rescue Plan under existing circumstances. Principal investigators are encouraged to fully utilize the time remaining in the existing period of performance to maximize results.

Frequently Asked Questions

Continue work on your award unless notified by your sponsor to stop all work or restrict certain types of activities. It is important that you continue to make progress on meeting research goals and  timelines.  If you believe your award may be impacted, consider fiscal restraints such as large equipment purchases or issuing subcontracts at this time. Please also ensure you are meeting project reporting deadlines for existing projects. 

If you are contacted by your program manager, it is important to move swiftly in response. Share all communications with your Office of Sponsored Programs contacts. In some cases, work will not be stopped but may be re-scoped in response to recent executive orders.

Every sponsored project is different, and Stop Work notices (or similar instructions) have different requirements. First, promptly provide that notice to your grants manager in the Office of Sponsored Programs (OSP). They will help you interpret the instructions from your agency.

In general, you should cease incurring all expenses on the project as of the date indicated in the stop work notice. This includes stopping payroll charges to the grant. All projects with a full stop work order will have a hold (or freeze) placed on the account in the financial system that will automatically redirect incurred expenses to other funds. Reach out to your department about alternative sources of funding to use.

If you have applicable protocols associated with the program, notify Scholarly Integrity and Research Compliance (SIRC) at: IRB@vt.edu, IACUC@vt.edu, or IBC@vt.edu so your protocol coordinator can record this on your approval. Notify SIRC both when your work ceases and if or when it starts up again.

Every sponsored project is different, and Stop Work notices (or similar instructions) have different requirements.  

In general, all expenses charged to the sponsored project should cease. In some cases, essential activities may need to continue for safety, health, or preservation of critical research infrastructure, materials, and capability; at Virginia Tech, bridge funding for these cases will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis. It is possible that a limited portion of these costs could be reimbursed by the agency, so meticulous records should be kept.

A Stop Work notice gives the federal agency at least 90 days to:

  • Extend the stop work action;
  • Authorize work to restart;
  • Renegotiate the award or modify the statement of work and authorize the work to re-start; or
  • Terminate the contract.

In the event the contract is terminated, Virginia Tech may submit a proposal to the government to request costs incurred as a result of the stop work order, including rent obligations that can not be terminated, software licenses, etc. 

At Virginia Tech, projects receiving Stop Work notifications have seen all of these outcomes. 

Reach out to agency contacts for clarity on RFAs. However, the proposal should not have any activities that give preference to individuals or groups based on race, ethnicity, gender, religion, or national origin, as agencies have been instructed not to support these activities.

Federal agencies have been instructed not to support any activities that give preference to individuals or groups based on race, ethnicity, or gender. Other diversity, equity, and inclusion-related activities might be allowable and principal investigators should reach out to agency contacts for detailed guidance.

Principal investigators may receive a termination notice directly from the agency, but may also find this information in federal systems. If the information found in the system indicates a program has been terminated, reach out to the Office of Sponsored programs.

Every sponsored project is different, and terminations have different requirements. Instructions are typically clearly described in the termination notice or in associated regulations; the Office of Sponsored Programs will help principal investigators understand the  requirements.

In general, all expenses charged to the sponsored project should cease. All subcontracts should be terminated, no new purchase orders should be run, any travel under the award after the date of termination should be cancelled, and personnel expenses should be redirected to other funds. Principal investigators should work with the principal investigator’s Office of Sponsored Programs contact to document the costs Virginia Tech incurred as a result of the termination so that the university may seek compensation. 

The final invoice must be submitted to the sponsor by a date specified in the termination notice, frequently 30 days from the date of termination. Principal investigators should ensure that all outstanding expenses are reviewed and submit all expenditures in Banner for the final invoice..

Principal investigators will need to submit any outstanding progress reports to the agency prior to any deadline provided in the notice of termination; this may include a requirement to submit all work completed to date. 

If principal investigators have applicable protocols associated with the program, notify Scholarly Integrity and Research Compliance at: IRB@vt.edu, IACUC@vt.edu, or IBC@vt.edu so that the principal investigator’s protocol coordinator can record this on the approval.

It may be possible to appeal the termination to the agency. Note that not all project terminations can be appealed, and there are a variety of considerations the university will take into account when considering whether to appeal a termination. 

In addition, the appeal process requires substantial effort from both the principal investigator  and the department, and the likelihood of success is uncertain. Appeals typically must be submitted within a limited timeframe, so prompt communication will be key if the principal investigator chooses to move forward with an appeal.  

All invoices and reports are due as required in the termination notice, even if an appeal is pursued.  Note, that agencies may delay reimbursements for expenses during an appeal.

In some cases, principal investigators have received notice from the agency that all payments on a project have been suspended. This is an uncertain status that is neither a termination nor a stop-work order, but indicates that the university will not receive funding on the project until the suspension is ended. In these cases, the university recommends continuing to work on the project to meet deadlines, but refrain from making future commitments such as stipends or travel for students or other project participants.