Northcentral Technical College’s (NTC) Institutional Research department serves the community by reviewing proposals to conduct research at NTC by external individuals as well as by NTC staff and faculty. This review is intended to ensure that all required safeguards of the rights of research participants are met, and to minimize the risk of negative consequences befalling participants.

Research includes any activity that obtains generalizable data or obtains data for any purpose other than measurement of student performance for the student’s benefit.

Examples of research that might require review include:

  • Activities intended to provide material for presenting at a professional meeting or conference
  • Activities that provide a benefit to the staff or faculty member that is independent of the interests of the student and/or College, such as gathering data for use in a paper, thesis, or dissertation
  • Activities conducted at the request of a third party for external use

About the Institutional Review Board

NTC’s Institutional Review Board (IRB) was established the review all proposed research involving human subjects. It seeks to ensure that an individual subject’s rights and welfare are protected and all individuals are treated ethically.

The IRB is authorized to review, approve, require modifications in, or disapprove research activities conducted by or through the College using human subjects. The IRB will annually monitor compliance for research projects extending across academic years.

The IRB ensures federal requirements are met for the protection of human subjects. It maintains procedures, forms and propose appropriate revisions.

The role of the IRB does not include evaluating:

  • The soundness of the proposed research study
  • The merits of the research design
  • The potential contribution of the research to scholarly literature

The IRB only evaluates compliance with ethical standards concerning:

  • Informed consent
  • Confidentiality
  • Benefits or risk to participants
  • The potential impact of the research on College resources or reputation
  • The potential contribution of the research that is beneficial to NTC

NTC’s IRB is administered through the Institutional Research department. The lead person for the IRB process is the Institutional Research Manager. IRB members include:

  • NTC President (Chair)
  • Vice President of Community & Government Relations
  • Vice President for Learning
  • Executive Dean of Academic Excellence
  • Other Executive Leadership Team members as it it pertains to their area of expertise and College leadership

Records

IRB records, including applications, membership lists, and research reports, are maintained for a period of three (3) years.

Prior to Conducting Research

Individuals planning on conducting a research project at NTC will need to obtain IRB approval prior to collecting data. The purpose of this is to provide a single, comprehensive standard of protection for human subjects of research conducted by students, staff, faculty or visiting researchers at NTC. The intent is to assure that investigators do not unduly put at risk or harm humans who are the subjects of research, and that the subjects of such research are aware of their rights as defined in Title 45, part 46 of the Code of Federal Regulations. IRB approval must precede commencement of any work involving human subjects.

NTC is committed to safeguarding the welfare, rights and privacy of all persons who participate as subjects in research projects conducted under its auspices, and to ensuring that the subjects of such research are aware of their rights and the protections available to them. These safeguards derive from the following ethical principles, which were first articulated in the Belmont Report issued by the National Commission for the Protection of Human Subjects of Biomedical and Behavioral Research in 1979.

IRB Review Process Overview

All research projects to be conducted at NTC, including that which the investigator believes falls into the Exempt category, must be submitted to the IRB.

Individuals seeking to conduct research activities that involve NTC students, employees, data and/or College resources shall follow the Approval Procedure.

Approval Procedure

A form (Institutional Review Board Research Request) must be submitted to the Institutional Research department (research@ntc.edu) before such activities occur. The Institutional Research Manager will seek approval from the IRB. NTC has the discretion to determine if and when it will be able to fulfill the request based on criteria such as, but not limited to:

  • Benefit to NTC and relevancy to NTC’s vision, mission, core beliefs and strategic directions
  • Whether the individual’s educational program is being supported by the NTC Tuition Reimbursement program
  • NTC personnel and resources required
  • Current workload within the campuses, divisions, or departments that will be involved in the study
  • Purpose of the requestor’s study or report
  • Other requests and demands placed on research subjects

If the research includes a survey or interview, requestor must submit a copy of the proposed questions for NTC IRB approval.

If the research request is originating from a researcher internal to the College (employee), the employee should work with his/her supervisor and ELT representative prior to submitting the request form

A decision of approval or denial will be returned to the requestor within ten (10) business days.

External Requests

If the research request is originating from a researcher external to the College (non-student, non- employee), the request may require more than ten (10) business days to provide a decision.

Potential Institutional Review Board Outcomes

For proposals reviewed by the IRB, a letter/email will be sent to the investigator by the Institutional Research Manager indicating one of four possible outcomes:

  1. Approved. A protocol that has been approved by the IRB requires no further action from the investigator prior to initiating the study. If the study should extend beyond twelve (12) months, the investigator should send a letter to the Institutional Research Manager (research@ntc.edu) informing him/her of the current status of the project, any changes in the protocol, and whether any adverse events have occurred.
  2. Approved if Designated Changes are Made. A protocol that has been approved by the IRB on the condition that designated changes are made by the investigator and given to the IRB prior to initiating the study. It is up to the investigator if they want to make the required changes. If the study should extend beyond twelve (12) months, the investigator should send a letter/email to the Institutional Research Manager (research@ntc.edu) informing him/her of the current status of the project, any changes in the protocol, and whether any adverse events have occurred.
  3. Revise and Resubmit. A protocol that has been deferred by the IRB usually requires that additional information be submitted to the IRB prior to approval. It is up to the investigator if they want to make the required changes. If so, the additional information should be submitted to the Institutional Research Manager (research@ntc.edu) clarifying the issues involved or providing the requested documentation. The IRB will review the revised application material prior to make another decision.
  4. Denial. A protocol that has been denied approval by the IRB cannot be initiated by the investigator. The reasons for the denial will be provided in writing. If the proposal is not approved, the research cannot be conducted. The researcher is welcome to appeal the decision.

Appeals

In the event that an application is denied because the IRB believes the risks outweigh the benefits of the research, ad the investigator disagrees with the IRB’s disapproval decision, the researcher may appeal the decision by re-submitting the same application form and 1) a request of appeal presenting the researcher’s arguments for approval, and 2) any other pertinent information in support of the appeal. The request should be directed to the Institutional Research Manager (research@ntc.edu). Applications submitted for appeal will be considered by the IRB within ten (10) business days. If the proposal is not approved, the research cannot be conducted.

Approved Research

If information is requested from NTC, the College will deidentify students, faculty, and staff prior to releasing information to the requestor.

If the research is being conducted as part of a postsecondary educational project (e.g., thesis, dissertation), the requestor must provide a copy of the higher education institution’s IRB approval prior to the release of NTC data or conducting any qualitative research.

All costs associated with the research beyond normal NTC business will be incurred by the requestor (e.g., cost of surveys not normally conducted by NTC, cost of software not already in use by NTC).

The requestor may not name Northcentral Technical College or its students, faculty or staff specifically in its findings without prior written approval from the College. The requestor must keep individual responses and information confidential. The requestor must make every effort to prevent anyone outside of the project from connecting individual subjects with their responses.

Approval of a human subject research proposal is good for one (1) year.

If the project will continue beyond the approval period of one (1) year, investigators are required to resubmit documents for review prior to the expiration date of the initial approval. These documents should include a status report of the project to date including:

  • The number of subjects accrued
  • Summary of adverse events and any unanticipated problems involving risks to subjects or others and withdrawal of subjects from the research or complaints about the research since the last review
  • Summary of any relevant amendments or modifications to the research since the last review
  • Any changes in the procedure of collecting data from human subjects must be re-reviewed and approved by the IRB
  • Other relevant information, especially information about risks associated with the research
  • Copy of the current informed consent document and any newly proposed consent document

Notification of Adverse Events

In the initial approval letter, investigators are asked to promptly report any unanticipated problems or adverse effects of the research to the IRB. The IRB must be notified if adverse events occur and what actions the investigator has taken to respond.

Research Completion

Upon research completion, the researcher must provide NTC with a copy of the results and a copy of the final document (hard copy or electronic copy) within 90 days of the completion date.

Additional Information