Institutional Review Board

Guidelines

The purpose of these guidelines is to assist those planning to conduct research involving human participants with the process of submitting a proposal for review to the Institutional Review Board. SUNY Niagara’s Institutional Review Board (IRB) reviews human subject research proposals to ensure that the rights and welfare of human subjects used in research studies by College personnel, students, or researchers are protected; that risks have been considered and minimized; that the potential for benefit has been identified and maximized; that all human subjects only volunteer to participate in research after being provided with legally sound, informed consent; that any research is conducted in an ethical manner and in compliance with established standards.

Any faculty, staff, student or external person who wants to conduct research under the auspices of the College or on the grounds of the College must have prior approval of the College’s IRB. Research conducted for course evaluation, institutional research, or ongoing college processes does not need to be reviewed. If the research results will be disseminated in publications or external presentations, then the research must receive IRB approval prior to beginning the research. If no dissemination are planned at the time the data is gathered, but the possibility of future dissemination exists, the researcher should submit the project for approval before beginning research.

The IRB tries to be as flexible as possible and reviews each project as a separate case. The IRB sees its role as primarily educational and facilitating, and encourages consultation at all stages of the research process. The IRB’s role is not to determine the reliability of the proposed research, the merits of the research nor the possible contribution of the research to scholarship. The IRB’s purpose is to evaluate the project to ensure compliance within ethical standards related to informed consent, confidentiality of data collected and disseminated, and potential risk to the participants.

To gain IRB approval, please complete the Research Request Form found on this website. Please see the Human Subject Decision Charts to determine where your project should be categorized and complete that form. Submit all forms and attachments to the IRB Chairperson, Dr. Fabio Escobar. Feel free to contact Fabio or any committee member should you have a question about the process.

Membership

Fabio Escobar, Ph.D., Assistant Vice President of Academic Affairs (Chairperson)
Katherine Johnson, Ph.D., Sociology
Robert Morris, English
Deborah J. Robinson, Ph.D., Counselor
Brenda Simonson, Health and Physical Education Studies
Daniel Kish, Community Member