Research Integrity

About Research Integrity

The Research Integrity Certificate provides a foundation for identifying, understanding and addressing the complex ethical dimensions of conducting research. The Certificate identities specific categories which will provide an understanding of the critical elements of successful administration of a research integrity program. The program has been redesigned to cover the essential elements of research integrity management for research administrators. The redesign maintains the required workshop curriculum, which introduces the student to the knowledge required to understand research integrity administration.

The Research Integrity Certificate covers issues relevant to colleges and universities, research hospitals and institutes, government agencies, non-profit funders of research, and industry. Elements of the curriculum include protocol review, compliance review board review, research misconduct, foreign influence, research security, and researcher issues. These elements, along with other relevant topics, will be presented in a combination of one half-day workshop and seven sessions to complete the program. The session will include six required sessions and one elective session—no more than two sessions from any single category.

Certificate Course Requirements

Participants must complete one half-day workshop, six required sessions and one elective session. The required courses are listed below; the electives may vary from meeting-to-meeting.

Required Workshop

Half-day workshop.

Introduction to Research Integrity

This required workshop for the Research Integrity certificate will provide participants with an overview of the role of research administrators in establishing and preserving cultures of integrity in the research enterprises within their institutions. The connection between institutional compliance programs and ethical decision-making at both individual and organizational levels will be explored, and historical events that have created increased awareness of research ethics will be reviewed. The workshop will focus on participant interaction and case analysis to identify strategies that strengthen organizational cultures of compliance and conscience.

Required Sessions

Must take six total, no more than two per category. Session titles vary meeting-to-meeting.

Research Integrity General

Sessions will provide an introductory survey of the research integrity landscape, covering topics which any research administrator, whether in central administration or a department, should be acquainted with, including scientific integrity, the care and use of animals, the protection of human subjects' rights and welfare, disclosure, and management of conflicts of interest and export control.


Research Protections and Compliance Review Boards

Sessions will discuss processes that can address compliance areas governed by compliance review boards. In general, five committees should be established, including 1) Human Subject Research; 2) Animal Subject Research; 3) Conflict of Interest; 4) Biological Safety; 5) Embryonic Stem Cell Review Committee. The presenters will provide a general summary of each compliance area and offer suggestions for the management of each committee.

Foreign Influence

Sessions explore what foreign influence "is," tackle some of the myths and misconceptions that administrators and faculty may have, provide some tips on how to identify indicators that a researcher may be engaged in inappropriate behaviors, and offer some strategies to implement a comprehensive response that is consistent with values important to American institutions of higher education. The session is designed to engage research administrators from all shapes and sizes of institutions, across every functional area, and with all levels of expertise.

Research Misconduct

Research misconduct is defined as fabrication, falsification, or plagiarism in proposing, performing, or reviewing research or in reporting research results. Sessions will provide an overview of research misconduct's regulatory requirements and how to establish a federally compliant program.

Research Security

Research security includes several components to secure research assets. Sessions will provide an overview of confidentiality, integrity, and accessibility principles of information security and their application in the strategy of a research security program and how research administrators can contribute to the program's success.

Safety

Compliance with various laboratory requirements is essential for campus safety and meeting federal award terms and conditions. Learn what pre-and post-award actions can best support your university's research safety programs.

Export Control

The session provides a brief overview of the export control regulations and the 2019-2020 updates to the regulations. Attendees will learn how to detect and manage export control issues within your institution. In addition, attendees will learn about the best practices related to export control compliance, including contract negotiation and managing institutional risk.

Researcher Issues

Researchers are engaged in collaborative work that requires an ongoing understanding of the rules of engagement, including the process of peer review. There is a need to understand the nature of the collaboration to classify the alliance correctly. Then, an evaluation of risk as applicable agreements is established to safeguard the exchange of information. Sessions will cover the various researcher issues that research administrators need to understand, including data management, Ownership, sharing, authorship, publication, and peer review. the role research administrators play to support and promote compliant collaborations

Elective Sessions

Must take one.

May be selected from any of the above categories.