Institutional Review Board

Columbus State University promotes and supports human research. Basic tenets of human research are voluntary participation and the ethical treatment of the subjects in the research process. The basic ethical principles are defined in the Belmont Report. The Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) defines the basic rules by which research should be evaluated (45 CFR 46).

Chair, Dr. Clay Nicks - 706-507-8293 nicks_clayton@columbusstate.edu

Position Statements:

- All research involving human subjects will undergo preliminary evaluation by the University Institutional Office for Human Research.

- Neither the amount of funding nor source of the research funds will interfere with or influence the review process of human research subject protocols.

- All research will adhere to the Federal Codes, State laws, and University rules and regulations regarding the use of human participants in research. (Note: This includes FERPA and HIPAA regulations).

- A full Institutional Review Board (IRB) will review proposals that do not meet the Federal guidelines for “exempt” or “expedited” status. Use this link to determine if your research project is exempt or expedited. Exempt research qualifies for a streamlined review process; however, it still must be submitted to and approved by the IRB.

- All researchers that use human subjects must complete human subject research training.

Resources:

Belmont report can be downloaded at: http://ohsr.od.nih.gov/guidelines/belmont.html

Code of Federal Regulations can be downloaded at: www.hhs.gov/ohrp/humansubjects/guidance/45cfr46.html

Office for Human Protection in Research (OHRP) - The regulatory office of the federal government can be accessed at: http://www.hhs.gov/ohrp/

Note: Research that involves the use of animals as research subjects must get approval from the Institutional Animal and Care and Use Committee (IACUC).