Institutional Review Board (IRB)

The Institutional Review Board (IRB) at Red Rocks Community College exists to protect the welfare of human subjects used in research. It is a federally-mandated, made up of College faculty and staff, and exists to ensure that research practices are in keeping with federal guidelines as well as in conformity with best ethical practices. The RRCC IRB also exists to promote scholarly work and research and to assist researchers in carrying out their obligations to respect and protect participants. The RRCC IRB is registered with the Federal Office for Human Research Protections (OHRP) and derives its institutional authority from the Colorado Community College System (CCCS). Note that studies involving animals as part of a community college curriculum are not reviewed by the RRCC IRB and should be referred to the CCCS Animal Care and Use Committe.

The RRCC IRB reviews human subjects research proposals to ensure that the rights and welfare of human subjects used in research studies by any RRCC personnel are protected; that risks have been considered and minimized; that the potential for benefit has been identified and maximized; that all human subjects only volunteer to participate in research after being provided with legally effective informed consent; that any research is conducted in an ethical manner and in compliance with established standards. Those individuals seeking to conduct such research may not solicit subject participation or begin data collection until they have obtained clearance by the Red Rocks Community College Institutional Review Board.

The RRCC also exists to protect the students, faculty, and staff of the College as potential human subjects in research studies conducted from within and from outside the College.  Any member of the Red Rocks Community College planning to conduct research using human participants must have that research reviewed and approved by the Red Rocks Community College Institutional Review Board. Any research project involving RRCC faculty, staff, or students as participants must be reviewed by the RRCC IRB.  Projects involving RRCC faculty, staff, or students that have received approval by an IRB at another institution should still undergo a review from the RRCC IRB before the project begins. IRB requests from individuals who are graduate students and not affiliated with Red Rocks Community College should first go through the Institutional Review Board at the graduate student’s home institution. 

To get approval from the RRCC IRB for a research project involving human subjects, read the Red Rocks Community College IRB Handbook. The Handbook discusses the three types of application protocols used in RRCC IRB review. Using the information from the Handbook, review your research proposal, determine the appropriate application protocol, and complete the application and send it, along with relevant supporting materials to Derek Grubb Derek.Grubb@rrcc.edu.

We also strongly encourage you to complete the training program on protecting human subjects that is offered by the National Institute of Health. (Link to https://phrp.nihtraining.com/users/login.php). The NIH estimates three hours to complete this training. NIH certifies those who complete the training.