Institutional Review Board

Information for Researchers

All Oklahoma Baptist University students and employees who are proposing or advising a research project involving human subjects or vertebrate animals, and researchers outside of OBU who are proposing a human subject research project involving OBU students and/or employees, should first read the Oklahoma Baptist University Institutional Review Board (IRB) information for researchers and advisers which is located in Appendix M of the OBU Faculty Handbook. 

Please direct all form submissions and questions to IRB Chair Dr. Tony Yates, at tony.yates@okbu.edu.

The following summarizes important protocols for submission of a research project to the OBU IRB: 

Does My Project Require IRB Review and Approval?

  1. Question 1: Is this research on human subjects or vertebrate animals?
    1. If NO, then do not submit an IRB research proposal.
    2. If YES, then proceed to Question 2.
  2. Question 2: Does the research project involve vulnerable human populations and/or greater than minimal risk to human participants or does the research project involve vertebrate animals?
    1. If YES, then complete the National Institutes of Health (NIH) researcher training and appropriate research submission protocol.
    2. If NO, then proceed to Question 3.
  3. Question 3: Will this research be presented or published outside the classroom, including thesis publication?
    1. If YES, then complete NIH researcher training and appropriate research submission protocol for expedited IRB review.
    2. If NO, then this qualifies as a classroom research project. The classroom instructor who is advising the research project should complete and submit the Faculty Assurance Form for Classroom Projects to the IRB Chair.

Researcher Training

  1. When required, researchers must complete researcher training before submission of the research proposal to the IRB.
    1. For human subject research projects requiring researcher training, all research team members must complete the National Institutes of Health (NIH) tutorial: Protection of Human Research Participants located at: https://phrp.nihtraining.com/users/login.php
      Due to revision, online training for human subject researchers will be exempt until further notice.
      1. In lieu of the above requirement, human subject researchers may provide evidence of successful completion of a comparable human subjects’ protection tutorial taken within the previous two years.
    2. For vertebrate animal research projects, all research team members must read and abide by the U.S. Government Principles for the Utilization and Care of Vertebrate Animals Used in Testing, Research, and Training located at: https://grants.nih.gov/grants/olaw/tutorial/relevant.htm

Researcher and Adviser Submissions to IRB Summaries

Introduction:

  1. Faculty Handbook Appendix M. Section IX. Researcher Submissions to IRB describes research submission protocols to be followed. All required research documents will be submitted online to the IRB Chair.

OBU Student Researcher Submission Protocol:

  1. Review your research proposal with your faculty research adviser.
  2. Obtain faculty research adviser’s approval using the Faculty Adviser Approval of Student Research Form.
  3. Submit the following online to the IRB Chair:
    1. Human Subject Research Proposal or Vertebrate Animal Research Proposal
    2. Faculty Adviser Approval of Student Research Form
    3. Researcher training documentation:
      1. For human subject research:
        1. Certificate of successful completion of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) tutorial: Protection of Human Research Participants.
      2. For vertebrate animal research: 
        1. Researcher’s signature(s) on Vertebrate Animal Research Proposal indicating they have read and will abide by the U.S. Government Principles for the Utilization and Care of Vertebrate Animals Used in Testing, Research, and Training.
    4. Informed Consent documentation for human subject research.
    5. Any researcher-created instruments such as surveys, tests, etc.

OBU Faculty Adviser Classroom Research Proposal Submission Protocol:

  1. Submit the following online to the IRB Chair:
    1. A list of students and their respective research projects to be completed under the faculty adviser.
    2. Faculty Assurance Form for Classroom Research Projects.

OBU Employee Researcher Submission Protocol:

  1. Submit the following online to the IRB Chair:
    1. Human Subject Research Proposal or Vertebrate Animal Research Proposal
    2. Researcher training documentation:
      1. For human subject research:
        1. Certificate of successful completion of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) tutorial: Protection of Human Research Participants or evidence of completion of a comparable human subject protection tutorial within the previous two years.
      2. For vertebrate animal research:
        1. Researcher’s signature(s) on Vertebrate Animal Research Proposal indicating they have read and will abide by the U.S. Government Principles for the Utilization and Care of Vertebrate Animals Used in Testing, Research, and Training.
      3. Informed Consent documentation for human subject research.
      4. Any researcher-created instruments such as surveys, tests, etc.

External Researchers’ Submission Protocol:

  1. Submit the following online to the IRB Chair:
    1. Human Subject Research Proposal
    2. Certificate of successful completion of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) tutorial: Protection of Human Research Participants or evidence of completion of a comparable human subject protection tutorial within the previous two years.
    3. Informed Consent documentation for human subject research.
    4. Any researcher-created instruments such as surveys, tests, etc.