Information for Researchers
The Alverno College Institutional Review Board (IRB) provides independent review of research proposals for the purpose of protecting the rights of human research participants.
Do I need IRB approval?
The Alverno IRB’s charge extends to activities that involve Alverno’s personnel and/or facilities in the conduct of research with human participants. The responsibilities are laid out in the Code of Federal Regulations, Title 45, Part 46 (45 CFR 46).
Only activities that meet the definition of “research” are under IRB jurisdiction:
“Research means a systematic investigation, including research development, testing, and evaluation, designed to develop or contribute to generalizable knowledge” (45 CFR 46.102
(l)
There is no need to get approval for classroom activities designed to improve one’s own classroom instruction, or the improvement of a program internal to Alverno, or for collection of
data intended to illustrate the educational practices that we use. However if the research activity is meant to generate evidence to support generalizable claims (that is, claims meant to
apply to other situations) then it is research under this definition. In general if you publish or present your findings and use the term “research” in that publication or
presentation, your work needs IRB approval.
Only research involving human participants is under IRB jurisdiction:
Research using nonhuman animals as participants must be conducted ethically, of course, but the IRB has no jurisdiction there. Nor does the IRB have jurisdiction
over the collection of data from existing sources such as historical records or public records. The IRB’s jurisdiction is for studies in which data are collected from human beings for
the purpose of the study.
Human Participant Research involving members of the Alverno community is under Alverno IRB jurisdiction.
This means that you should not pass along requests for participants from external researchers to your colleagues or students unless you have gotten approval from the IRB first.
Types of approval
There are two slightly different processes for getting IRB approval for a study. Many studies can qualify for “Exempt” status, which means a simple process and somewhat relaxed
rules. Before you fill out any forms to apply for IRB approval, you should decide whether you want to apply for an Exemption. If your study does not qualify for Exempt status, you will follow
the other process, which asks a little more about how you intend to protect participants.
Process for Exempt Determination
If you believe that your study can qualify for Exempt status, complete and submit two forms:
Submit the completed forms by email to irbchair@alverno.edu. A reviewer will look over both forms to determine whether or not the study can be
granted Exempt status and either respond with an approval of that status, a request for more information about the study, or a list of changes that will need to be made to get approval for
the study.
Exempt status can be granted for certain studies that present no more than minimal risk, do not use participants who belong to a “vulnerable population," and do not receive federal
funding. The Exempt determination form explains those disqualifiers.
Process for Expedited Approval
If you believe that your study does not qualify for Exempt status, then the process to follow is for Expedited review. “Expedited” means that the review is conducted by just one
member of the IRB or by someone designated by the IRB to conduct such reviews. The review is “expedited” in the sense that it does not have to wait for a full IRB meeting and
consideration by the entire IRB membership.
If you choose to apply for Expedited review, you will need to complete and submit two forms:
Submit the forms by email to irbchair@alverno.edu. A reviewer will look over the forms and either respond with an approval letter, a request for more
information, or a list of changes that will need to be made in order to get approval for the study.
Additional Information for Researchers External to Alverno
If you are a researcher with no Alverno affiliation who wants to use members of the Alverno community as participants in your research, there are some special considerations for you to be aware of. Alverno has a history of attracting research proposals aimed at understanding either our innovative educational practices or aspects of our status as a women’s college. Over the years, we have welcomed those proposals, but we have to be guarded about both the amount of and the nature of external research done here. We also have to be concerned with conflicts between research projects between research projects and our ongoing practices (educational and research).
As a result, we have taken the position that these proposals should go through a single channel at Alverno. If you want to conduct research using members of the Alverno community as participants, please contact the Chair of the Institutional Review Board first at irbchair@alverno.edu.
Please do not directly recruit Alverno students, faculty, or staff, or ask Alverno faculty or staff to recruit for you. Again, we are concerned about conflicts between activities and we are also concerned about excessive requests for the use of our community members’ time. We will try to accommodate your request, but may decide to deny your request even if your proposed study is valuable and appropriately protective of participants’ rights.
