Institutional Review Boards are mandated by federal law for any research conducted on human beings.  Additionally, many publications and some conferences require that any research being presented that involves human participants has been approved by an institutional review board.  Perhaps most importantly, however, the IRB plays a critical role in the life of our institution, helping faculty, staff, and students in their work as scholars.  We also help to provide reassurance to the public that our educational community meets all appropriate ethical standards, and we provide consultation and assistance to investigators to help improve the quality of research while protecting participants.

This website is designed to provide you with access to all materials, including policies and forms that you will need.  Additionally, manuals are provided to help in the completion of forms. If you want additional information, contact [email protected].

In most cases, projects that are returned to investigators without IRB approval can be modified and resubmitted with minor changes.  In all cases, your proposal will be returned with extensive feedback and suggestions to help guide you in your re-development efforts.

According to IRB policy, approval is given for up to one year.  Anytime a project continues after the end of the 12-month approval period, re-approval must be obtained.  Generally, this simply means that a letter of request needs to be filed with the IRB.  The letter should include any preliminary findings, and should explain either that no adverse impact has been noted among participants, or explain any adverse impact that has occurred.  If there has been any change to the research project that has not already been approved, the update request must include notification of these changes..

The IRB meets as needed. In most cases, a lead time of three weeks is required to ensure that your paperwork is ready for distribution and can be acted upon at the next meeting. Therefore, when planning, investigators should always look at the scheduled meeting times (see the "meeting dates" link on this page) and plan to submit their proposal at least three weeks in advance.  Investigators are never approved to begin projects, and may not begin any project on any Baker College campus, with members of the Baker College community, or as a student or employee of Baker College until notification has been received from the IRB.

Any project that involves an investigation of human beings or human behavior are subject to review by the IRB.  There are different levels of review (exempt, expedited, full board) depending on the type of research being conducted.  However, regardless of the level of review, the IRB maintains the authority to review ALL human subjects’ research on a Baker College campus, or any research conducted by, or on, any member of the Baker College academic community.  A more complete explanation of review policies and procedures can be found under "links" and "policies."