RESEARCH

Institutions receiving awards from the National Science Foundation (NSF) are required to provide training in the responsible conduct of research (RCR), survival skills, and research ethics under the America Creating Opportunities to Meaningfully Promote Excellence in Technology, Education, and Science (COMPETES) Act that was signed by President Bush on August 9, 2007. Section 7009 of the Act specifically states that "each institution that applies for financial assistance from the Foundation for science and engineering research and education describe in its grant proposal a plan to provide appropriate training and oversight in the responsible and ethical conduct of research to undergraduate students, graduate students, and postdoctoral researchers participating in the proposed research project." The Act also addresses the need to provide clear plans for mentoring Post-doctoral fellows and addressing conflicts of interest.

As a result of this and other indicators that funding agencies are insisting upon greater faculty involvement in responsible conduct of research training, Case Western Reserve University is undertaking an initiative to assist faculty in organizing RCR programs within their departments and centers.

Case faculty members are invited to attend the seminar, "Responsible Conduct in Research (RCR): What you need to know to train your staff, fellows and students." The seminar will be held Friday, October 19, 12 noon - 2:30 pm.

Registration is required as lunch will be provided. Register online at: http://ora.ra.cwru.edu/research/orc/education/onlinecalendar.cfm.

The Center for the Advancement of Research Methods and Analysis (CARMA) Consortium Webcast Program was established by Virginia Commonwealth University's School of Business to provide university faculty and graduate students with advanced training in research methods and data analysis. Case Western Reserve University has subscribed to the CARMA service and will be facilitating the live webcasts.

The fall webcasts include:

• "Goodness of Fit and structural Equation Models" on September 28, 12 noon - 1:30 pm
• "Relative Importance of Predictors with Regression Models" on October 26, 12 noon - 1:30 pm
• "Nonlinear Dynamic Models" and "Advanced Panel Methods for Strategy Research" on November 16, 12 noon - 3:00 pm

Thursday, September 20, 2007
9:00 am - 10:30 am
Wolstein Research Building Auditorium, Room 1413

Isabel Sanchez, Director of the Case Behavioral/Social Sciences Institutional Review Board will present this seminar. Investigators often question whether it is necessary to interact with the IRB when their research involves private information or specimens but they feel they do not actually involve human subjects. Another type of research can involve human subjects, but the research may be determined to be exempt from the requirements of HHS regulations at 45 CFR part 46.

The goal of this seminar is to assist researchers by describing study design tips they can use to develop their protocols so that they either "do not meet the regulatory definition of research involving human subjects" or meet criteria to be "exempt from continuing review by the IRB". This seminar is mainly for non-biomedical faculty/student researchers who perform business, social science or behavioral research. 4 CREC.

Registration is online at: http://ora.ra.cwru.edu/research/orc/education/onlinecalendar.cfm.