Institutional Review Board

Our Institutional Review Board (IRB) was established to protect the rights of human subjects who volunteer to participate in research. The IRB exists as a safeguard to promote the ethical and responsible treatment of participants in research.

MCLA requires that all research involving human participants must be reviewed and approved by the IRB before any research may be started. Guiding the review process is the application of federal and state laws and regulations outlined in the Code of Federal Regulations Title 45 Part 46 (45 CFR 46), and the ethical principles of the Belmont Report as the criteria for the review of all research studies.

All student researchers, administrators, and faculty must complete the appropriate training module within the CITI Program.

  • Go to the CITI homepage at https://about.citiprogram.org/en/homepage/
  • Click on the 'Register' button
  • Type in 'Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts' in the box under 'Select Your Organization Affiliation'
  • Select 'Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts' from the drop-down menu
  • Click boxes: 'Agree' and 'Affirm'
  • Proceed to Register
  • Take the appropriate course training per your professor/adviser

IRB Review Dates

Full Review - 4 weeks
Exempt and Expedited Review - 2 weeks

URC 2020 Review Dates

Students who plan to do human research that will be presented at the URC next April, please note the below deadlines

Application Deadline - March 6, 2020

IRB Members

Professor, Biology
Ann Billetz, Chair

Professor, Psychology
Thomas Byrne

Assistant Director of Institutional Effectiveness and Research
Jason Canales

Associate Professor, Education
Dale Fink

Assistant Professor, Sociology
Anna Jaysane-Darr

Retired Physician - Community Member
Mary King

Assistant Professor, English/Communication
Hannah Noel

Professor, Business Administration
Nancy Ovitsky