Research Administration Portal Releases
Release 3.05
Date: May 7, 2026
- Upgrade application APEX platform to version 24.2.15
- No new features enabled and existing application functionality validated
- Apex Release Notes
Release 3.04
Date: April 2, 2026
New Features
- Training Expiration Dashboard – A new tab called “Training Summary” provides visibility into training expirations across all researchers.
- Time in Current State Column – A new column has been added to the Items in Process view to display how long an item has remained in its status.
- Research Security Training Summary – Research Security Training is now included in the summary section of the Portal Person Profile for improved visibility.
- Project Relationships Improvements – Enhanced Project Relationships to allow partial ID searches and improved grouping/filtering by system.
- Project Relationship Filters Clarification – Updated filtering behavior for “Only Projects with Relationships” and clarified functionality between “Additional Related Projects” and grouped views.
Background Enhancements
- Project Relationships Researcher Filter – Updated dropdown logic to display only researchers with an active project or item in process for the Project Relationships tab. This improved the page load time.
- Researcher Items to Do Performance – Improved load time for the Researcher Items to Do tab, particularly for the Central Office role.
- IACUC Records Visibility – Adjusted visibility rules for IACUC records to better align with role-based access.
- Primary Department Selection – Added the ability for Administrators to select additional primary and secondary departments in the administration page.
Bugs
- Frozen Header Alignment – Improved header text wrapping behavior to prevent column misalignment and hidden sort options.
- Duplicate Project Relationships – Resolved an issue where project relationships were displaying repeated entries.
Release 3.03
Date: January 29, 2026
New Features
- Bulk Notification Management for MFTRP Covered Individuals – Portal Admins can now bulk suppress or enable email notifications for MFTRP Covered Individuals, improving efficiency when managing large groups of users.
- Central Office Staff Project Visibility Performance Improvement – The Project Relationships and Project Teams views for Central Office Staff have been optimized to significantly reduce load times, providing faster access to project-related data.
- Report Subscription Help Texts – Separate and more detailed help text is now available for report subscriptions, giving users clearer guidance when subscribing to different report types.
Background Enhancements
- Report Processing Performance Optimization – Internal authorization logic used during report condition processing has been improved to resolve slow page load issues and enhance overall report performance.
- Central Office Staff Department Validation – Validation was added to ensure that only Central Office Staff can check whether individuals are already included in primary or secondary departments, improving data integrity and role-based access control.
Release 3.02
Date: November 13, 2025
New Features
- OAS Report Access Through Apex – users will now be able to download Active and Pending Projects report from “My Settings” in the Portal.
- Central Office Staff Researcher Portfolio – Users can now be added to the Portal as Central Office Staff upon request from system administrators. This allows Central Office Staff to have all members in their primary and secondary departments to be added to their researcher management portfolio. Once departments are added, the Staff will see all researcher information across the application.
- MFTRP Admin Update – MFTRP reviewers can now attest on behalf of Active Covered Individuals only if an attestation does not already exist. This will allow reviewers to add document context in a more flexible timeline.
- GMAS Profile Link – The GMAS Profile link can be accessed from “My Profile” panel.
- Subscription – Users can subscribe to recently inactive, active and relationships tab from the Portal.
- Training Completion Date – In “My Profile” panel, the training completion date now displays if it’s available.
Background Enhancements
- Skip Notices – Internal code was updated to remove skip notices functionality which is no longer being used.
- Enable/Suppress Notifications – Additional context added for enabling and suppressing notifications for Covered Individuals in the Portal Admin Panel.
- MFTRP Attestations Report – A column context was added to understand who took an action on behalf of a covered individual.
Bugs
- Segments HART – Segments HART link was previously broken and now updated to reflect the new HART landing page.
Release 3.01
Date: September 4, 2025
New Features
- Items in Process Subscription – Application users can subscribe to the Items in Process list to get a daily, weekly, or monthly emails of any outstanding items that require action in any of our compliance applications.
- Amendments in Progress – An icon now shows next to projects in the Active Projects list to indicate any open modification, amendment or continuation.
- Bulk Remove Researchers – Grant managers have the ability to bulk remove researchers that are on their portfolio.
Background Enhancements
- Manage Background Jobs – Application admins can now run background jobs on demand if necessary from the administration screen.
Release 3.0
Date: June 26, 2025
New Features
- View Notification History – Grant managers can view notifications that have previously been sent out to researchers.
- Central Office Staff user role – A new user role is now available for Central Office staff where they can administer MFTRP attestation completion and customize views for researchers that they want to manage.
- Add Additional Emails for Notification Reminders – Grant managers can add additional emails to send reminders to researchers.
- MFTRP Update – MFTRP Non-HUID/Inactive attestations will update to "Expired" status if over one year old.
- Bulk Add Researchers – Grant Managers and designated Central Office Staff can add researchers in bulk to their portfolio for easier management.
Background Enhancements
- Deep Linking – Deep linking has been enabled for the MFTRP admin tab.
- Auto Pausing Materialized Views – Added ability to pre-schedule pausing and enabling materialized views for known future downtimes of connected applications.
Bug Fixes
- Incorrect GMAS Segment Status Entry Date now shows the correct dates
- Fixed the Attestations Report non-HUID/inactive tab not displaying correctly due to diacritic characters
- Conducted checks and updates for WCAG Accessibility Requirements.
Release 2.10
Date: May 1, 2025
- Upgrade application APEX platform to version 24.2.4
- No new features enabled and existing application functionality validated
- Apex Release Notes
Release 2.9
Date: April 3, 2025
New Features
- View Person Profile – A new profile page that consolidates current and pending trainings and attestations for easier tracking.
- Enhanced left-panel navigation – redesigned with grouped sections for a more intuitive and streamlined experience
- Set NA Status for Non-HUID / Inactive HUID records – reviewers can now mark “Not Required” for otherwise required attestations.
Background Enhancements
- Materialized View Error Timestamps – added timestamps for error logs for easier troubleshooting when Materialized Views Refresh fail.
Release 2.8.1
Date: January 30, 2025
New Features
- Ability to Enter Attestation Date for Non-HUID Inactive CIs – Reviewers can now manually enter the attestation date when recording a new attestation for Non-HUID Inactive CIs. Past attestations cannot be edited; instead, a new attestation must be recorded if changes are needed.
Background Enhancements
- Apex Theme Refresh Update – The Oracle APEX application theme has been updated to align with the latest Oracle enhancements, improving UI consistency, performance, and accessibility.
Bug Fixes
- Sticky Heading Issues – Fixed an issue where sticky headers were displaying a width larger than intended. Adjustments have been made to ensure headers maintain the correct width and do not duplicate styling changes.
Earlier releases
Release 2.8
Date: November 21, 2024
New Features
- Preferred View for Delegates - Delegates can now star individuals to set them as a "Preferred View," establishing a customized default view for future logins.
- CSV Export for Grant Managers - Grant Managers can now download a CSV list of the researchers they oversee, simplifying data management and reporting.
- Expanded Project Team Information - The Project Teams page now displays team members' titles and affiliated schools for more comprehensive team insights.
- Attestation Recording for MFTRP Administrators - MFTRP Administrators can now record attestations on behalf of Non-HUID and Inactive HUID Covered Individuals. Additionally, they can upload, edit, and delete documents linked to these attestations.
Background Enhancements
- Enhanced Feedback Accessibility The "Provide Feedback" button is now more prominent, generating a ticket to system administrators for quicker response times.
- Daily Error Reporting - System administrators now receive a daily error digest, improving issue tracking and resolution.
- Sticky Column Headings - Column headings are now fixed on all pages, allowing easier navigation and data analysis.
- Recent Attestations Limit - The "Recent Attestations" section in user settings now displays the 10 most recent attestations for a cleaner view, replacing the previous full-history display.
Bug Fixes
- Help Text for Expiring Projects - Extra columns in help text for projects nearing expiration have been removed to streamline guidance.
- Updated Background Views - Background materialized views have been updated to provide additional information, supporting new features and improving content delivery.
Release 2.7
Date: October 11, 2024
- Upgrade application APEX platform to version 24.1.4
- No new features enabled and existing application functionality validated
- Apex Release Notes
Release 2.6
Date: September 5, 2024
New Features
- A new banner notifies users of data discrepancies when the Portal cannot retrieve the latest data due to GMAS and Huron app outages.
- Better instructions besides “attest” button for individuals who never need to attest if they are not considered Covered Individuals in the GMAS/Portal applications.
- Attestation history no longer shows all the historical attestations on the attestations page. The display has been revamped to only show the most recent attestation and its status. Historical attestations have been moved so that a user can access it by clicking on “View History”.
- Automatic notifications go out to users who must attest and have not taken any action in the Portal application. Users are reminded once at a cadence of 7, 14, and 21 days to remind the user to complete their attestation.
- One month prior to the attestation expiration, user sees a banner in the portal indicating attestation expiry date is approaching.
- Two weeks prior to attestation expiration (1 year since the previous MFTRP attestation), user gets an automatic system notification to complete their re-attestation to maintain an active attestation record in the system.
- For Grant Managers, a new tab Pending Attestations tab appears on the Researcher Items To Do page showing all your researchers’ incomplete/pending attestations. The view now includes users whose attestations are approaching expiry. Grant Managers can also email the researchers directly from this page to send a reminder notification to complete their attestations.
- An automatic email is sent to users one year after their last MFTRP attestation, reminding them to re-attest as their previous attestation has expired.
Background Enhancements
- Submitting feedback in the Portal application triggers an automatic ServiceNow ticket for a quicker response to any comments or concerns from end users.
Release 2.5.1
Date: June 17, 2024
- Upgrade application APEX platform to version 23.2.6
- No new features enabled and existing application functionality validated
Release 2.5
Date: May 16, 2024
New Features
- New integration feature with Grants Management Application Suite (GMAS) informs the Portal of who is required to attest under new Malign Foreign Talent Recruitment Program (MFTRP) policies. The Portal also sends attestation status (of done or pending) back for reference on GMAS projects.
- New banner on Items To Do page informing covered individuals of an outstanding attestation requirement. Banner includes link to a page to complete the requirement.
- Under User Settings for the logged in user, a new Attestations section is available for completing attestation requirements tied to the users’ sponsored projects.
- New automatic system notification functions for when a person is first identified as needing to attest, a request for reviewer consultation is made, or there is an attestation update following consultation request.
- For Grant Managers, a new tab Pending Attestations tab appears on the Researcher Items To Do page shows all your researchers’ incomplete/pending attestations. Grant Managers can also email the researchers directly from this page to send a reminder notification to complete their attestations.
Background Enhancements
- Background queries were updated to help decrease page load times.
- Special characters in help texts that were showing as symbols were corrected.
Bug Fix
Additional related projects only showed a limited set of related projects IDs. The update now shows the comprehensive list of additional related projects IDs.
Release 2.4
Date: March 21, 2024
New Features
- New tab on the lefthand navigation panel called “Project Relationships” shows project relationships grouped by an ID. Users have ability to filter search results and toggle between seeing All Projects or only Projects with Relationships.
- External Links tab now has a link to the HART RACR Landing Page.
Background Enhancements
- Deep-linking enabled in Portal across the application which will allow users to directly share links to navigate to the intended pages.
- The issue with Materialized View Refreshes Failure notifications due to outdated syntax post APEX 23.2 upgrade has been addressed.
- Application copyright was updated to say 2024
Bug Fixes
- Clearer naming convention for all tabs in the left-hand navigation for more consistency.
- Some help texts that were getting encoded into symbols were addressed.
Release 2.3
Date: January 18, 2024
New Features
- A number indicates the number of related projects on the link to the related projects modal.
- New tab on the lefthand navigation panel called “Project / Protocol Teams” shows the HUID/affiliation status of PI’s study teams across all the PI’s projects.
Background Enhancements
- Rich Content Text Editors library has been updated to use TinyMCE after the Apex upgrade to ensure functionality remains intact.
- Materialized View Refresh Failure notification faced errors due to outdated syntax post APEX 23.2 upgrade has been addressed.
Bug Fixes
- The color of the column header for the interactive report region is now black, making it consistent with other reports across the application.
- GMAS requests where the type is Initial Request is no longer included in the “In Process” list to address concern around the Initial Request list’s relevance.
- Related projects modal now reads “Projects Related to” in order to make the information presented in the page clearer.
Release 2.2
Date: December 14, 2023
- Upgrade application APEX platform to version 23.2
- No new features enabled and existing application functionality validated
Release 2.1
Date: October 5, 2023
New Features
- Researchers can view their COMS records and relationships on the To Do and other project lists.
- Researchers on HMS-IACUC projects can view their records and relationships on the To Do and other project lists. Note that only the researcher (or a delegate they assign in the Portal) can see the HMS-IACUC project listing, link, or relationship.
- Grant manager will now receive a copy of notices they send from the Portal. This new feature can be managed when sending the email by de/selecting the option to “include me as a recipient”.
Background Enhancements
- Search capability for person names with diacritics by using alternate characters without diacritics.
- Site management of the schedule for data updates and view of application metrics.
Bug Fixes
- Ecrt statements with no PI are no longer missed in list spaces and will show for appropriate parties, including ecrt-delegate or proxy.
- Smart Filter performance improvements for My Researchers' Portfolio (including when there is unanticipated punctuation in record values).
- Corrected warning message for IRB projects that are active but past their end date.
- Updated “Items Near Expiration” warning on Home page to only include items that have not passed their expiration date.
Release 2.0.1
Date: June 8, 2023
Bux Fixes
- The error preventing information displaying on the Info page has been corrected.
- On the My Settings page, the list of researchers will now sort by first and last name.
- The additional blank space that displayed on the Detailed View tabs on the Items To Do page when a user had a large number of items in their list has been removed.
- The blank columns that appeared in the column selector on the Researcher Items To Do page have been removed.
- The number of items that will display in the To Do lists on the Items To Do page has been increased from 100 to 1000. The lists displaying researcher portfolio information on the Items In Process, Active Projects, and Recent Inactive pages have been updated to display 100 items at a time, with Next and Previous buttons allowing users to page through the lists.
Release 2.0
Date: May 24, 2023
New Features
- Grant managers with the Department Administrator role in GMAS will have the ability to select researchers in order to view their To-Do lists, and project and submission information..
- Grant managers will have access to a new Researcher Items To Do page which will display To Do list items for the researchers they have selected. Items displaying on this page can be sorted, filtered, and exported.
- From the Researcher Items To Do page, a grant manager will be able to send a reminder email to a researcher for a specific To Do item. The grant manager can add their own comment to the item details that are included in the reminder.
- The Researcher Items To Do page offers two default reports: the Primary Report, which organizes To-Do items by Researcher Name, System, Title, and Type, and a Grouped by Researcher report with Due Dates Highlighted report, which highlights overdue items and those due within 14 days.
- Items that are currently included on a person’s To Do list in GMAS will now also be displayed in the person's To Do list in the Portal, including items for non financial deliverables, notice review and revision, and confirming the research team.
- ecrt Project and Annual Statements will display in the To Do list for the certifier and the certifier designee/proxy, as appropriate, when they are available for certification. The end of the certification period will display as the Due Date for the statement in the To Do list. Statements placed on hold in ecrt will be removed from the certifier's Portal To Do list for the duration of the hold.
- Information about relationships between projects and submissions will now display in the Portal. For each To Do list item or project list item, a related projects icon will display to the right of the item. Clicking on the icon will open a pop-up window that will show a list of other projects and submissions related to that project in the list. For each related project, the title and status will display. If a related project has been inactive for longer than 12 months or if the submission has been withdrawn or discarded, only the ID for that project or submission will display.
- Researchers who are required to complete research data security training because they are a principal investigator or a study team member on one or more Data Safety protocols will see a task in their To Do list to complete the required training.
- To Do items will display when a required Data Safety protocol has not been created and linked to a Data Use Agreement or IRB protocol. To Do items to create the required submission and relationship will display in the To Do list of the Principal Investigator and Primary Contact of the relevant Data Use Agreement or IRB protocol.
Enhancements
- The Links page now includes links to frequently-used reports in HART and elsewhere and links to user guidance and job aids. The page name has been changed from Application Links to Links.
- For the Info icon that displays in the To Do lists, a hover text of "Access additional information about this item" has been added.
- The Status Entry Date column was removed from the To Do list and moved to the right in the project listings, next to the Due Date or End Date column.
- A search option is now available on the Items for Me To Do List and the Items for My Colleagues To Do List. Submissions/projects can be searched by system, title, submission type, and principal investigator.
- On the Active Projects page, an icon will display next to GMAS projects that are still active and have passed their end date. Clicking on the icon will display instructions related to continuing or closing out the project.
- OAIR certifications that are currently in review will now display on the Items in Process page for the discloser.
Bug Fixes
- A bug that caused the Items Nearing Expiration warning on the Home page to include GMAS projects has been corrected. Only projects from Agreements-DUA, Data Safety, and ESTR-IRB will display a warning when they are nearing expiration.
- Reportable New Information submissions did not previously display correctly in the Portal. Submissions in the Action Required status did not display in the To Do list for the party responsible for that action. In addition, information on Reportable New Information submissions will now correctly display for the Reporter, Principal Investigator on parent projects, and PI Proxy on parent projects roles.
Release 1.2
Date: December 13, 2022
New Features
- Announcements related to the Portal will now display on the Home/Items To Do page. Announcements may include information about upcoming system downtime and highlights of new features.
Enhancements
- Emails from the Research Administration Portal will now include the Harvard logo.
- Previously the Agreements-DUA system name displayed as Agreements in the project lists. Now the system name will correctly display as Agreements-DUA.
- The email from name now correctly displays the name of the application instead of the help address.
Release 1.1
Date: October 5, 2022
New Features
- Researchers can now assign one or more delegates to view their information in the Portal. Assigned delegates will receive a notification upon assignment. A delegate is able to view their own submissions/projects or select to view another researcher’s information.
- Assigned training courses from the Harvard Training Portal that are incomplete are included in the researcher’s To Do List.
- Assigned incomplete ancillary reviews from Agreements-DUA, Data Safety, and ESTR are included in the researcher’s To Do List.
- The Portal now includes a My Settings page providing access to settings.
- From the My Settings page, the researcher can download their GMAS Other Support and Activities report.
- A warning displays on the Home/Items To Do page if the researcher has Agreements-DUA, Data Safety, or ESTR submissions that are expiring in the next three months. The Active Projects page will also show a warning for submissions that are nearing expiration.
Enhancements
- Submission/project lists display the total number of items at the bottom of the list.
- A search option is available on the Items In Process, Active Project/Protocols, and Recently Inactive lists. Submissions/project can be searched by system, title, submission type, and principal investigator.
- The Home/Items To Do page includes a link to find more information about how often submission information refreshes in the Portal.
- The date of the most recent application release displays in the footer.
- Alt text was added for any links where it was missing.
Bug Fixes
- On the Info page, submission/project titles were not displaying correctly if they included special characters.
- Certain Data Safety submissions were not displaying for PI Proxies.
- When providing feedback, the Feedback form did not warn the user if they tried to close the form with unsubmitted information.
Release 1.02
Date: June 29, 2022
- Fixed font size of bulleted text on the project info modal window.
- Added usage tracking to Inactive Projects page.