The Contracts and Purchasing Department under the division of Administration and Finance is responsible for providing and directing University faculty and staff to sources capable of providing a continuous supply of goods and services necessary to fulfill their responsibilities in support of the mission of the University. Therefore, the Contracts and Purchasing Department works closely with our vendors to ensure that the quality of goods and service they provide are acceptable and at a fair price. Thus, Contracts and Purchasing aims for quality customer service, earning the maximum value of every dollar spent, facilitate healthy business relations and to ensure that Gallaudet University abides by all the policies, laws and regulations set forth by Gallaudet University, the District of Columbia and the United States.

For companies interested in being added to our vendor list, please complete this form and return it here.

Important Notice

Purchase Order Process

  • An order for goods will be processed within 5 business days of receipt of the requisition provided that all the necessary information is on the requisition. (There are times when the order volume is high and this cannot be met - ex. fiscal year-end)
  • All campus requisitions are processed in the order they were received.
  • If you provided a vendor email address on the requisition form you and the vendor will receive an email notification that the order/purchase order has been placed. If an order is placed via Fax or mail then you will receive your PO via campus mail.

TECHNOLOGY NOTE: All software and technology equipment must be reviewed and approved by GTS prior to submitting the requisition to the Contracts and Purchasing department.  Please review link: http://www.gallaudet.edu/gallaudet-technology-services/services/technology-projects

FURNITURE NOTE:  All furniture orders must be reviewed and approved by Christopher Hoffmann, Manager, Design Services and Space prior to submitting a requisition to the Contracts and Purchasing Department.  Send all requests for furniture to Christopher Hoffmann at Christopher.Hoffmann@Gallaudet.edu.  Once reviewed and approved, include Christopher Hoffmann on the requisition signature process.

Vehicle Purchasing

All university vehicle purchases must be reviewed and approved by the Mechanic and Transportation Management Team prior to submitting a requisition to the Contracts and Purchasing department.

  1. Provide specifications of the vehicle and email to transporation@gallaudet.edu
    1. Golf Carts
    2. Utility Vehicles
    3. GEM Vehicles
    4. Pickup Trucks
    5. Sedans
    6. Box Trucks
    7. Flat Beds
  2. The Mechanic and Transportation Management Team will review specifications to ensure they are able to maintain the vehicle and that it meets all University standards.
  3. Once reviewed, Transportation team will work with the Contracts and Purchasing department to review vendors to ensure we are in compliance with GSA or the GSA AutoChoice Program
  4. A quote/estimate will be provided to the department for review and approval
  5. If accepted, the department must submit a Requisition to the Contracts & Purchasing Office.
  6. Once the vehicle arrives, the Department of Transportation will be in touch with the unit point of contact.

Contract Process

  • The Contracts and Purchasing department makes every attempt to send out all contracts within 5 business days, provided all necessary information is included on the requisition.
  • Current Gallaudet students and employees cannot be contracted and must go through HR.  A completed "Independent Contractor vs Employee Requirements" form must be completed and attached to the requisition form being submitted.
  • Contractor must provide a Certificate of Liability Insurance and attach to the requisition form being submitted.
  • A Scope of Work must be attached to the requisition form being submitted.  Scope of Work should include: Name, address, email address, dates of service, duties and costs.
  • A contract is sent to the vendor via Adobe Sign or FedEx (unless the address is a PO box then it is mailed) for signature.
  • A PO is not obligated for a contract until the signed contract is returned to Contracts and Purchasing.
  • Once the contract is received the PO will be obligated and you will receive a PO and a copy of the contract via email.
NOTE: Process will be delayed if all information is not included.

To the Gallaudet Campus Community

In order to prepare the University’s financial records for our annual audit, the Finance office will strictly adhere to the dates noted below. Please share this information with individuals in your department who are involved in the year-end closing process.

Please note important dates and timelines.

1. New for FY21: COVID-19 Expenses

If you know of any COVID-19 expenses your department may have incurred, but have not discussed them with anyone in the Finance office, please contact Jeffrey Leach at jeffrey.leach@gallaudet.edu or William Hughes at william.hughes@gallaudet.edu ASAP, but no later than Wednesday August 18, 2021 to schedule a discussion. During that discussion, we may decide to schedule a monthly review with you as needed and discuss the next steps.

2. Purchase Orders

a. If you need to create a new FY21 Purchase Order – If you wish to acquire goods and services using FY21 funds for your operating budget units, please check with the vendor ASAP to make sure they will be delivered to Gallaudet University, or the work will be completed by September 30, 2021. If so, please submit a purchase requisition as soon as you can to help make that happen. If the vendor is out of stock or unable to provide the goods or services by September 30, then the order will not be processed using FY21 funds.

Purchase orders for grant and construction departments are not subject to PO timeline restrictions.

b. Existing Purchase Orders – Purchase orders should be reviewed to determine if they can be closed and the remaining funds de-obligated. Purchase order details can be found in the departmental PeopleSoft report named GUPOSTAT- Purchase Order Status. Please review each purchase order and its payment activity. If 1) all the goods and services have been received to your department’s satisfaction and 2) all the payments have been made, please send an email to purchasing@gallaudet.edu ASAP to request that the purchase order be closed.

Invoices related to endowment and donation account purchase orders must be in the Finance office by Friday September 24, 2021. Invoices received after the deadline may be charged to the 2021 payout or to your operating account.

Invoices related to operating department purchase orders where the goods or services have been delivered by September 30, 2021 must be approved and forwarded to the Finance office as soon as possible. Make sure to annotate the purchase order number on the invoice if this information is missing. That will help to reduce the number and balances of purchase orders to review. Fiscal year 2021 PO’s with a remaining balance as of October 15, 2021 will be reviewed for closure or roll-over to FY 2021. Payments for goods or services that arrived or were provided after September 30, 2021 will be charged to the department’s fiscal year 2022 budget.

3. Invoices and Check Requests

Gallaudet accounts for expenditures on an accrual basis. This means that expenditures are recognized in the year in which goods or services are rendered, not necessarily the year in which they were ordered or the year in which the payment was made. Any invoices or check requests related to goods or services received prior to September 30, 2021 must be shown as fiscal year 2021 expenditures.

a. All invoices and check requests that are currently being held must be submitted to the Finance office by Friday, September 17, 2021. Please check your AdobeSign account for any outstanding invoices and check requests to be processed and notify the next person(s) in the approval chains to check their accounts to clear your department’s backlog.

b. If you have received any goods or services in the month of September but have not yet been invoiced, please contact the vendor and request a bill as soon as possible. If the goods or services have a value over $3,000 please contact tracy.berman-kagan@gallaudet.edu with this information.

c. In the instances where a vendor payment covers services after September 30, 2021, the portion of the expense relating to fiscal year 2021 will be removed from your fiscal year 2021 reports. If you have questions about bills that have been submitted in fiscal year 2021 but may relate to fiscal year 2022, please contact tracy.berman-kagan@gallaudet.edu.

4. Budget

Finance is reviewing Gallaudet’s entire FY22 budget including your divisions’ submissions. The Finance Office staff will get back to you with requests for additional information and/or further revisions over the next few weeks. Please respond to these requests as within the deadlines. If you come across information that has a significant bearing on Gallaudet’s FY22 budget that you have not discussed with Finance Office, please contact your division’s budget administrators and william.hughes@gallaudet.edu immediately for guidance and escalation as appropriate.

5. Interdepartmental Invoices

Interdepartmental invoices related to fiscal year 2021 must be submitted to the Finance office by Friday, September 24, 2021.

6. Travel order reimbursement, petty cash requests, and cash deposits

Any of these items related to fiscal year 2021 must be submitted by Friday, September 24, 2021.

7. Purchase cards

Purchase card charges related to fiscal year 2021 and posted to PaymentNet through September 30, 2021, will be included in FY21. Please complete the coding of expenses in the PaymentNet system by COB Monday October 4, 2021. That way, we have an additional day to enter our descriptions and correct object codes if needed, so as to be assured that all the codes are accurate when we download the transactions.

The due date for September receipts to be turned into the Finance office will be Monday, October 11, 2021. Send the purchasing card statements with electronic copies or scans of receipts and invoices in the same order they appear on the statement, in a single PDF file to pcard@gallaudet.edu.

8. Staples Advantage

Staples Advantage orders for fiscal year 2021 must be completed by Friday, September 24, 2021. That way, we can reasonably be assured the orders are delivered by September 30.

9. Deferred Revenue

When a department receives revenue in advance of providing the service it is considered Deferred Revenue. The revenue must be recorded in the year the service is rendered, not when it is received. If you receive a payment in FY21 for services to be provided in FY22, please notify tracy.berman-kagan@gallaudet.edu so that the revenue can be properly recorded.

The above timelines and procedures relate to all operating, endowment, and donation funds unless specifically noted.

If you have any questions, please e-mail Tracy Berman-Kagan at tracy.berman-kagan@gallaudet.edu, William Hughes at william.hughes@gallaudet.edu or me at lisa.clarke@gallaudet.edu. We will work with you to answer any questions you may have or to clarify any processes referenced in the memo.

Thank you for your assistance as we wrap up a very unusual fiscal year.