Compliance for Human Subjects Research
Get basics about FRED human subjects research.
The mission of the Fredonia Human Subjects Review Committee is to ensure that the rights, welfare, privacy, and dignity of human subjects are adequately protected in research conducted by our faculty, staff, and students.
CITI (Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative) is your go-to for training. It is an external site used by many institutions to standardize training about ethical research practices.
- Go to the CITI Course at www.citiprogram.org to complete Fredonia's required Human Subjects Training.
- At the CITI site, hit the "Register" link.
- Create an account and a profile.
- Connect your account with our campus, answering the questions posed by the system.
- CITI will connect you to the required two courses for our campus: Basic and Social-Behavioral-Educational. If you do not see these courses on your CITI dashboard, please alert our campus' CITI administrator, Dr. Kathleen Gradel.
The Fredonia Institutional Review Board (IRB) - called the Human Subjects Review Committee - is charged with reviewing proposed research involving human subjects, to ensure the protection of those subjects and compliance with federal regulations.
Fredonia maintains that every member of the University community has the responsibility to ensure that research is conducted ethically and with rigorous compliance with standards and practices. Together, we will ensure public trust, safeguard the welfare of human subjects, and promote scientific discovery.
Use these guidelines to better understand your responsibilities:
1. Check to see that your CITI certificate is current; it must be renewed every 2 years. (See section above for CITI requirements.) Please complete training before doing your application. Ensure that you add copies of your two CITI Certificates with your application. You may attach to your email when you apply, or add a link to them if shared in Google Drive.
2. To better understand the process, review:
- FAQs About the Human Subjects Review Committee Process
- Tips for Students Preparing a Human Subjects Review Application
3. Complete the Human Subjects Review Application Form. As of Fall 2020, we are requiring the embedded Google doc format. This link will take you to a Google page asking you to make your own copy of the form. After you have your copy - and have completed it - share with human.subjects@fredonia.edu to view.
4. Submit your Form digitally (not in hard copy) to human.subjects@fredonia.edu approximately a month before you plan to begin your research. This will give you sufficient time to submit, do any needed fixes, and complete the review. Although shorter review times may occur, you will be able to plan for this only if you have had prior discussions with the campus' Human Subjects Administrator. You will no longer need to submit a hard copy, but - as a result - you will need to remember to submit all of the required (digital) pieces of your application.
5. If you plan to pay participants, read our guidance on Payment of Human Subjects, then use the Form to submit with your main application. Access Word or PDF versions of the form.
In 1974, Congress passed the National Research Act creating the National Commission for the Protection of Human Subjects of Biomedical and Behavioral Research. The National Commission wrote the Ethical Principles and Guidelines for the Protection of Human Subjects of Research (commonly called the Belmont Report). Investigators assume the ultimate ethical responsibility for their work with human subjects.
Use the following resources to expand your understanding about research with human subjects.
Do you have questions? Reach Dr. Kathleen Gradel, Human Subjects Administrator, @ human.subjects@fredonia.edu or gradel@fredonia.edu, using a subject line indicating your interest in Human Subjects.