Frequent Questions from Proposers

All LaSPACE Program Guidelines include a program summary page which lists all important dates related to the upcoming cycle. We make every effort to complete reviews and issue notifications about 30 days after proposal submissions close. We often issue notices sooner than that and rarely, if ever, take longer than 60 days. 

For LaSPACE, this restriction only applies to our NASA Internship Fellowship (NIF) category programs (HIS, GIRAF, GPS, GSRA, LaSSO, LURA, Internships), which directly fund undergraduate and graduate students at significant levels. The NIF category of programs and the U.S. citizenship requirement component are both defined by and mandated by NASA and cannot be waived by LaSPACE.

Most subawards can request an extension to the Period of Performance without requesting additional funding. This is called a No-Cost Extension (NCE) request.

There are several general criteria that must be met to submit an NCE request. Reach out to LaSPACE Management for verification (there may be restrictions) in your specific situation. General rules for NCE requests:

  • Must be submitted via email to LaSPACE no later than 60 days before the contractual project end-date. LaSPACE does not give verbal NCEs.
  • Must include a status report (see Document Center) which addresses all accomplishments made to-date on the project (including publications, proposals, presentations, patents, etc.), where the project is in relation to the original end date, reasons for delay, and proposed plan for project completion. The status report must identify all participants on the project (students, post-docs, faculty, and staff).
  • Should be submitted by an authorized official to LaSPACE@lsu.edu.

This is not a common occurrence and depends on each situation. You must reach out to LaSPACE to confirm if it is allowable in your specific situation. Once you have received the green light, you must submit a formal rebudget request including the completed LaSPACE Budget Revision Request Form (see Document Center) to LaSPACE@lsu.edu.

In general:

  • Even for small adjustments, you must email LaSPACE for confirmation of allowability.
  • If you want to shift funds from one budget category to an already budgeted category, this may be allowed without a formal amendment. The new budget must still meet the spirit and requirements of the program.
  • If you want to shift funds from one budget category to a category that was not in the awarded budget, this may be allowed if the new budget still meets the spirit and requirements of the program. This type of rebudget requires an amendment to the subaward, so a full Progress Report approved by an authorized signatory for your institution is required in addition to the Budget Revision Request Form.
  • The LaSPACE Budget Revision Request Form and Progress Report resources are available in the LaSPACE Document Center.

If you have issues downloading the files, please reach out to us at LaSPACE@lsu.edu.

 

Frequent Questions from Students

LaSPACE Management staff members are not tax experts, and so we encourage interns to consult with a qualified accountant/tax consultant. LSU does not prepare tax documents for programs of this type, so we do not have a W-2 nor a 1099. This type of stipend does not fall into a traditional non-taxable scholarship/fellowship award. These internships are not for course credit, do not cover tuition or tax expenses, and DO require you to perform a service (maintain the internship) in order to be paid your stipends. Please refer to LSU’s Tax Guide for Fellowship Award Recipients; the taxable fellowship language is most closely related to the terms of the internships we fund.

Some eligibility requirements vary by program (see citizenship question & answer above), but all students must be enrolled and in good standing at one of our affiliate institutions in Louisiana.

  • Guidance for completing the LaSPACE Student Demographic Forms is included in all LaSPACE program guidelines. Additionally, we have provided guidance in the LaSPACE Document Center.
  • Email LaSPACE@lsu.edu if you are a student on an active LaSPACE-funded project and need the link to the form.
  • The link to our LaSPACE Student Participant Information Form will be included on the Student Participant List page in all LaSPACE program guidelines starting in 2024. All guidelines are available under the Programs tab.
  • The student demographic form contains questions about personal demographic information, so it should only be completed and submitted by student participants.
  • You will receive a confirmation email after submitting a completed form. Save this email for your records and forward it to your project’s Principal Investigator to confirm you have submitted the form.
  • Do NOT submit screenshots or copies of this information to LaSPACE via email or in proposal documents. This is to comply with NASA regulations in place to protect your Personally Identifiable Information.
  • LaSPACE keeps all student demographic information confidential and secure. We NEVER share individual information with anyone. We ONLY report aggregate data sets as required by NASA.
  • If you have any questions when completing the online form, first contact your Project PI/Lead. If they cannot answer your question or if you have other issues, please email us at LaSPACE@lsu.edu. Include your full name, your institution, your Project PI/Lead’s name, and the LaSPACE program name.

General Frequently Asked Questions

LaSPACE manages several email listservs in order to disseminate information to LaSPACE affiliate institution staff, faculty, and students about LaSPACE programs, NASA opportunities, workshops, and other communications. Our two main lists are the LaSPACE Student Listserv and the LaSPACE General Subscriber Listserv.

  • LaSPACE Student Listserv
    • This listserv is open to undergraduate students, graduate students, and student organizations (clubs, societies, etc.) associated with LaSPACE affiliate institutions. If you are staff/faculty whose role requires regular communication with students, you are welcome to join this listserv.
    • This listserv focuses communication to Louisiana higher education students/student organizations about programs we fund, relevant student workshops, & student opportunities from NASA and other space-related organizations.
  • LaSPACE General Subscriber (Gensub) Listserv
    • This listserv is open to faculty, staff, and other non-student stakeholders associated with LaSPACE affiliate institutions.
    • The purpose of this listserv is to more broadly communicate relevant opportunities and updates related to LaSPACE and/or NASA programming. Anything sent out to the Student Listserv is typically shared with the Gensub Listserv.

You can request to be subscribed or unsubscribed at any time by emailing LaSPACE@lsu.edu. Include the following information in your request:

  1. In the subject line and body of the email, include the name of the specific listserv and your request (e.g. Request to be added to LaSPACE Student Listserv).
  2. In the body of the email, include your full name (if making the request as an individual) or the student organization’s name. If requesting on behalf of a student organization, please tell us your role with the organization.
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Page Last Updated: 10/06/2023 2pm