Frequently Asked Questions
How Do I Submit A Proposal?
If you are a researcher (faculty, student or staff) preparing to do research with human subjects, you must submit a research proposal for review by the WCSU IRB.
To begin, read the following document, the WCSU IRB Research Application Guide. This document describes the entire process of submitting a successful research proposal for review.
The form that you will need to accompany your proposal, the HUM-1, can be found here: HUM-1 Form.
Research proposals will generally be accompanied by an Informed Consent letter or statement. Guidelines for preparing an effective Informed Consent statement are provided here: WCSU Informed Consent Guidelines.
A comprehensive guide to human subjects research, prepared by the WCSU Office of Grant Programs, can be found here:
Guidelines for Researchers
All proposals are due in full by the first of the month for consideration at the next IRB meeting. Any proposals submitted after the first of the month, will not be considered until the following month's meeting.
What Training Do I Need in Human Subjects Research?
All researchers submitting human subjects research must demonstrate that they have completed training in the principles underlying human subject protection, such as the principles of Respect for Persons, Beneficence, and Justice described in the Belmont Report. To this end, WCSU is part of the Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative (CITI) program. You can sign up for and complete human subjects training via this link:
Human Subjects Training (Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative)
If your students are submitting research proposals, you may provide certification of their training in your class. Please read the following section.
Guidelines for Faculty who sponsor in-class undergraduate research
Students who conduct human subjects research as part of their class learning must be knowledgeable about and adhere to the guidelines and principles set forth by the U.S. federal regulations and Institutional policies and procedures.
To this end, WCSU provides training modules available through the Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative (CITI) program. These modules include on-line self-examinations. The online training can be accessed at the link above.
Any student researcher who submits a proposal to the IRB for review can attach their certificate of completion of the CITI program as evidence of their participation in human subjects research education.
Faculty may also wish to teach students about the human subjects research process within class. This is likely to be an essential part of many research methods courses. If faculty members wish to provide the WCSU IRB with some certification that their students have been educated about human subjects research requirements (instead of the CITI requirement), the IRB requests that the faculty member provide to the IRB:
- A brief outline of the learning materials covered in the curriculum. Topics covered should include the Belmont Report, how human subjects are identified, the role of an IRB at a university, the steps involved in the IRB review process, and the use of students as research subjects and special protections provided to them. Other topics, especially those pertaining to the specific discipline, can be covered at the discretion of the faculty member.
- A form signed by the faculty member for any student submitting a research proposal to the IRB, stating that the student has attended all course work described above.
Either a CITI certificate or a form signed by a faculty member will be accepted by the WCSU IRB as evidence of student participation in human subjects research education.
Who is the WCSU IRB?
In accordance with the Federal regulations, an IRB must be comprised of at least five members, at least one of whom is a non-scientist, one whose interest is scientific, and one member who is unaffiliated with the institution. Members are appointed by the Provost.
The current membership of the IRB is:
Abbey Zink, Interim Dean of Arts & Sciences
Eugene Buccini, Management
Jessica Eckstein, Communication,Chair
Marcia Delcourt, Education/ED Psychology
Robin Flanagan, Psychology
Ron Drozdenko, Marketing
Wynn Gadkar-Wilcox, History
Jack Fong-Danbury Hospital
Lisa Smith-Danbury Hospital
If you have any questions about the review process, please contact any one of us.
Meetings are held on the third Wednesday of every month in Room 228 of the Student Center (midtown). Guests are welcome to attend. Research proposals for full or expedited review must be submitted by the first of the month (e.g., to be reviewed at the October meeting, the proposal must be submitted by October 1).
