Chartered in 1812, Hamilton College is a coeducational, residential liberal arts institution of approximately 1800 students, nestled among the foothills of the Adirondacks in upstate New York. Education in all its forms is the central mission of Hamilton College. The pivotal commitment of the faculty, administration, and staff to the intellectual and personal development of students is the College's most important and enduring tradition. Hamilton's curriculum reflects an appropriate respect for breadth and depth in the study of the liberal arts, while continuing its traditional emphasis upon oral and written communication. The fundamental purpose of a Hamilton education is to enable young men and women of extraordinary talent to realize their fullest capabilities, for their own benefit and for the world in which they live.
Consistently ranked among the top 25 liberal arts colleges in the nation, Hamilton is a highly selective institution that provides students with an academic environment worthy of their ambitions and abilities. The student body is comprised of 53% females and 47% males. Our latest admitted class (2014) has a total of 25% multicultural and international students. Nearly 95% of Hamilton's enrollees are ranked in the top 20% of their high school graduating classes. Over 45% of Hamilton students receive need-based scholarship support, which approximates $6.5 million annually. We are committed to remaining a college of opportunity, with the near-term goal of adopting and sustaining a "need-blind" admission policy, which will ultimately enable students to matriculate regardless of their ability to pay for the cost of a Hamilton education.
Hamilton expects its students to develop the ability to read, observe and listen with critical perception, and to think, write and speak with clarity, understanding and precision. Students are taught to develop an appreciation for inquiry, combined with the confidence to evaluate arguments and to defend their own positions. Students are accorded the freedom to pursue their own educational interests within the broad goals of a liberal arts education. In consultation with their advisors, Hamilton students regularly plan, assess and re-assess their educational progress and their success in fulfilling the ideals of the liberal arts.
The faculty is composed of men and women who are dedicated to the promotion of academic achievement, integrity, respect for diverse backgrounds and viewpoints, and personal growth. There are just over 180 full-time faculty members, ensuring a 10:1 student-faculty ratio. Over 90% of these faculty members hold terminal degrees. The evolving pedagogical strategies of the faculty continue to define a Hamilton education – traditional lecture formats have given way to instruction that is active, hands-on, and collaborative. Such strategies challenge and motivate our student and often result in engaging student-faculty collaborative research projects.
While remaining steadfastly dedicated to our traditional liberal arts mandate, we have evolved from a small frontier school to a thriving modern institution prepared to meet the educational demands of the 21st Century. Above all, the Hamilton community develops and practices respect for intellectual and cultural diversity because such respect promotes free and open inquiry, independent thought and mutual understanding.
Policies and Procedures for Management and Reporting of American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) Funds
ARRA awards and proposals are subject to the same policies and procedures as other Hamilton College contracts and grants.
ARRA awards are also subject to additional requirements that are addressed by the following policies and procedures.
Quarterly Reporting
The College is following all guidance issued by the Office for Management and Budget (OMB) and the sponsoring agencies from which it receives ARRA funds. The reports required under Section 1512 of the Act will be submitted beginning in October 2009 and will contain detailed information on the projects and activities funded by the Recovery Act. The College has registered at www.federalreporting.gov for submission of these reports.
The Office of Foundation, Corporate, and Government Relations will be responsible for completing the appropriate data elements and submitting reports no later than the 10th day after each quarter.
Expenditure data will be posted in and reports will be derived from the College’s financial accounting system (My Grants) in the same manner as with other sponsored projects. University jobs data, if applicable to that grant and contract in question, will be calculated from payroll and other data in the University’s payroll/HR system. Subrecipient, and any qualifying vendor/ jobs data will be obtained from that entity’s administrative contact. To ensure accuracy and timely submission of data, the best available financial and jobs data will be reported. This data will primarily be as of the quarter end for which the College is reporting. In cases where quarter-end data might be incomplete or inaccurate, the most current, accurate data available will be reported. As reports are cumulative, any information for the previous quarter not reported by the 10th day after the end of that quarter will be included in the next quarterly report.
Subrecipients are informed of reporting requirements in the subaward from the College. Subrecipients delegated reporting authority will provide job data (see above) directly to the College and will enter “Subrecipient Data Elements” at Federalreporting.gov. This data will be subject to the same day 11-21 review as the University’s data. Subrecipients to whom the College does not delegate reporting authority will be required to submit the best available data to the College, which will be included in the College’s quarterly reporting.
“Project Status” and, when appropriate, “Quarterly Activities/Project Description” will be updated based on information received from each project’s Principal Investigator (PI). The Office of Foundation, Corporate, and Government Relations will be responsible for contacting the PIs prior to the end of the quarter and will receive assistance from the Dean of Faculty’s Office if information is not received in a timely manner. PIs may also be contacted for assistance if the Office of Foundation, Corporate, and Government Relations does not receive timely information from its subrecipient(s) or if information provided by a subrecipient does not correspond to the subrecipient’s awarded budget, including personnel categories.
During the ten day correction window, the data will again be reviewed by the Office of Foundation, Corporate, and Government Relations. Any needed adjustments will be made by the Office of Foundation, Corporate, and Government Relations or the delegated sub and rechecked and by OFCGR before the 21st.
If an agency identifies an issue during its day 22-29 review and opens a report for edit, the College will make corrections to the report as instructed. Any data issues identified beyond the date of publication (day 30) will be corrected or addressed in the next quarterly report.
Training:
The Office of Foundation, Corporate, and Government Relations is responsible for monitoring sources for OMB, State, and Agency guidance related to ARRA funding. The College’s ARRA policies and procedures are maintained by the OFCGR its website, https://my.hamilton.edu/ofcgr and are reviewed and approved by the Dean of Faculty’s office.
The Office of Foundation, Corporate, and Government Relations will read the guidelines for all proposals before submission to ensure the College’s compliance. The OFCGR is responsible for identifying when the potential funding source for a proposal is the Recovery Act. The OFCGR flag ARRA proposals in its grants tracking spreadsheet and inform the PI of the special requirements.
When an ARRA funded award is received, the Academic Business Manager will identify new ARRA in the College’s opening memo, usually noting ARRA in the formal title. The OFGCR will contact the PI and direct him or her to the College’s ARRA policy and will act as the point of contact for ARRA issues. The OFCGR also contacts the PI directly to provide a reminder of the additional requirements, including the importance of conducting the ARRA funded project in a timely manner to meet the objectives of job creation and economic stimulus.
ARRA Segregation:
Each ARRA award will have a separate set of accounts that has been established within the financial accounting system.
PIs are responsible for all aspects of management of their projects, including financial oversight.
Subrecipient Monitoring:
The College is responsible for ensuring that its subrecipients comply with all the requirements of the prime funding source including, when applicable, ARRA reporting requirements. Along with these policies and procedures, for ARRA funded subrecipients the College will:
1. If reporting is delegated, OFCGR will request the financial information prior to the subrecipient’s federal reporting, via e-mail or fax. This will allow a review of the financial information, giving the College an opportunity to compare to invoices and other information for reasonableness.
2. If it is not delegated, subrecipient and any qualifying vendors will be required to report financial and jobs information to OFCGR. OFCGR will review this information for reasonableness, consulting with the PI as needed, and will include this information in its quarterly reporting.
William Billiter, Director
(315) 859-4384
Amy Lindner, Associate Director
(315) 859-4678
