Advancement · Grants & Funding

See where the award
lands before it does.

Enter the award, the budget by category and what has been spent each month. The dashboard compares money spent with time gone, carries the recent pace to the end of the period, and tells you what a month of spending has to look like to use the award, with the closeout dates that follow.

Open the dashboardWhat you get
$19one-time · every device you sign in on
Buy · $19

Included with Caveat Classroom and Whole-school licenses. Or get it in the Grant writer’s desk, $49 for 32 items.

The spending forecast

The worked example is made up: a $360,000 first-year award, October to September, with books through April. Change any figure or start blank. Nothing you enter leaves this browser.

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What you get

Advancement · Grants & Funding$19 · included with Classroom and Whole-school licenses

What you finish with
The share of the award spent against the share of the budget period gone, and the burn ratio between them; the end of the period projected at the last three months’ pace and at the average pace; the monthly spending needed to use the award; a projection for every cost category with the ones heading over budget and the share of the total budget a fix would move; a check that the monthly ledger matches the category totals; and the dates costs must be incurred by and obligations liquidated by. A one-page status summary prints, and the figures download as a spreadsheet.
Who it is for
Grant managers, business officers and program directors in schools, districts and education nonprofits who run one or more grant awards, and the principals and directors they report to.
Format
Browser tool. Works on a phone, tablet or computer; every figure recalculates as you type. Prints a status summary; downloads a spreadsheet (.csv); export and import a file to move between computers or keep one file per award.
Access
$19 one-time, yours on every device you sign in on; the tool opens once you are signed in with it. Included with Caveat Classroom and Whole-school licenses. Also in the Grant writer’s desk ($49) and the Advancement Suite pass ($99), and 1 more bundle. Everything you type stays in this browser; nothing is sent to Caveat.
Where it lives
The Grants & Funding space in Caveat Advancement.
Support
Questions, a correction or a request: team@caveatacademic.com.

How to use it

  1. Enter the award total for the budget period, the months it runs and the last month your books are posted through.
  2. On Categories, enter each line of the approved budget with spending to date and open commitments. Mark equipment bought once or a single contract as one-time.
  3. On Monthly ledger, enter what posted in each month. The page checks the total against the categories.
  4. Read the Pace view: the burn ratio, the two projections, the monthly spending needed and the flags.
  5. Print the status summary for your business office or program meeting, or export a file per award.

Open the dashboard

How the forecast is worked out

Arithmetic on your own figures, with the federal closeout dates in general terms.

1 Compare money spent with time gone7 of 12 months reported5 leftTime gone58.3%7 ÷ 12 monthsSpent43.6%$156,800 ÷ $360,000Burn ratio0.7543.6 ÷ 58.32 Carry the recent pace to the endLast 3 months average$26,467($26,100 + $27,400 + $25,900) ÷ 3Projected by September$289,133$156,800 + 5 × $26,4673 Then the deadlines that follow the end dateCosts must be incurred bySep 30, 2026the end of the periodObligations liquidated byJan 28, 2027120 calendar days later1 Spent against time gone7 of 12 months5 leftTime gone58.3%7 ÷ 12 monthsSpent43.6%of $360,000Burn ratio0.7543.6% spent ÷ 58.3% of time2 Carry the recent pace onLast 3 months$26,467a month, averageBy September$289,133+ 5 × $26,4673 Deadlines after the endIncur costs bySep 30, 2026end of the periodLiquidate byJan 28, 2027120 days later
The worked example: seven of twelve months reported, $156,800 of a $360,000 award spent. At the last three months’ pace the year ends near $289,133, leaving about $70,867 unspent.

Pace and projections

The burn ratio divides the share of the award spent by the share of the budget period gone. Near 1.0, spending is keeping time; well under 1.0 means money is likely to be left at the end; over 1.0 means it may run out early. The page flags under 0.85 and over 1.15 as its own rule of thumb.

Two projections carry spending to the end: the average of the last three months, which reflects where a program is now, and the average month since the start. Neither is allowed below what is already spent plus what is committed. Each category is projected straight-line from its own average month unless you mark it one-time, when it is held at spent plus committed.

The federal rules behind the dates

Under the Uniform Guidance for federal awards (2 CFR 200), a cost is allowable only if it is incurred during the approved budget period, and at closeout a recipient must liquidate all obligations incurred under the award no later than 120 calendar days after the end of the period of performance, unless the agency authorizes an extension. Agencies may restrict transfers among direct cost categories without prior approval once the cumulative transfers exceed 10 percent of the last approved budget on awards whose federal share exceeds the simplified acquisition threshold. Foundations, state awards and subawards set their own terms; the award document governs.

Sources

  1. Office of Management and Budget. Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards, 2 CFR Part 200, as revised April 2024 (89 FR 30046), effective for awards from October 1, 2024.
  2. 2 CFR 200.403(h): to be allowable, a cost must be incurred during the approved budget period.
  3. 2 CFR 200.308: revision of budget and program plans, including the option for agencies to restrict transfers among direct cost categories when cumulative transfers exceed 10 percent of the total budget last approved.
  4. 2 CFR 200.344: closeout, including liquidation of all financial obligations no later than 120 calendar days after the end of the period of performance.
  5. 2 CFR 200.305: federal payment, including minimizing the time between the transfer of advance funds and their disbursement.

The worked example is made up. The forecast is arithmetic on the figures you enter and is not an accounting record or legal advice. The federal rules are described in general terms; the terms of each award, your funder and your organization’s policies decide what applies. Your figures stay in this browser. Support: team@caveatacademic.com.