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FALL 2021
Owls are back on campus!

FAU has resumed normal operations for the fall semester and the Research Integrity (RI) staff is back on campus in both Boca and Jupiter locations. Research Integrity staff will continue to be available via email, Teams or Zoom.
 
Researchers are encouraged to continue remote research activities and limit in-person procedures where possible, especially when conducting activities with high-risk participant groups. 

IRB Updates
New Institutional Review Board (IRB) applications with in-person activities will no longer require the "Research Re-Engagement Resource 1- Request for In-Person Research to resume / start during COVID-19" form but must follow FAU safety guidelines and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention requirements.

What do researchers need to submit?
  1. The Research Re-Engagement Resource 2- COVID-19 Screening Tool, and
  2. Research Re-Engagement Resource 3 - Consent Form Addendum_COVID-19 Safety
  3. Revised research protocol with the addition of safety precautions (a clean copy and a tracked changes copy)
 
If you have IRB approval for in-person research activities that have been on hold and you wish to return to in-person research activities, please submit the re-engagement documents following the current FAU Safety Plan and the FAU coronavirus page.
 
Visit Research Integrity Re-Engagement FAQ's for more details.
 
Several forms have been updated in IRBNet, please be sure to login to IRBNet to access the most current documents for each of your submissions.
Cortni Romaine Joins Team RI!

We are thrilled to welcome Cortni Romaine as the new associate director for the Human Research Protections Program. Romaine will oversee all areas of the program including the IRB, hospital partnerships, pursuing Association for the Accreditation of Human Research Protection Programs accreditation and most importantly, building collaborative relationships with the FAU and partnering community.
 
Romaine’s background includes a variety of research capacities, including research educator, compliance professional, IRB member, and research integrity specialist with the Walter Reed Army Institute for Research in Maryland. She is currently completing her doctorate in translational health science at the George Washington University in Washington D.C.
 
Romaine values the importance of education and the need for action. “People don’t know what they don’t know. It is up to those of us who have the knowledge to educate others to succeed,” Romaine said. Romaine’s focus on building support, fostering collegial relationships and previous career experience and education will make her an incredible asset to the Research Integrity team, the DOR and FAU as a whole. Welcome Cortni, soon to be Dr. Romaine! 
As you may be aware, the new cloud-based method for submitting Significant Financial Interest Disclosures known as the Financial Conflict of Interest (FCOI) Module on Novelution, has been live since Aug. 2 and available for submissions. Users are encouraged to use this soft launch to become familiar with the system before it becomes required for submissions beginning on Sep. 1, 2021. 
 
The virtual system will allow users to create a profile and add in all their external financial activities once, which will then automatically link to any proposal submitted to Sponsored Programs using the same Novelution system. At award time, users will receive a message to complete a Project-Specific which asks how the work you’re doing outside of FAU relates to the research work you're doing inside FAU.
 
One more training date is available presented by David Stricker from Novelution to provide guidance on the use of the new system, Sept. 1 at 3 p.m. via Zoom. Register here.
 
For more information on the FCOI Novelution Module and what it means for you click here to read a brief overview of the features and implementation.

If you have been unable to attend a training or have further questions contact Judith Martinez at martinezj2012@fau.edu for assistance.
FAU welcomed AAALAC site visitors from June 15 to 18 to FAU’s campuses for a 3-year review of FAU’s animal care and use program. The review included meetings with administrators, comparative medicine personnel and researchers, as well as site visits to all areas housing animals for research purposes. The site visitors were very impressed with many aspects of the animal care and use program, including the high level of engagement of researchers in the care and welfare of their research animals, the veterinary care team who are integral to the health and welfare of the animals, and the success of FAU's researchers and animal care and use program.
 
The AAALAC site visitors recommend FAU’s animal care and use program receive continued full AAALAC accreditation for the next 3-years to the AAALAC council on accreditation. 
 
An enormous thank you goes out to all of those who participated in the 3-year AAALAC accreditation review process – from those that spent many long hours and late nights on the written program description, to comparative medicine personnel who spent countless hours polishing their facilities and practices, to the administrators who took the time out of their busy schedules to meet with the site visitors, to the IACUC members for their time spent with the site visitors and lastly, but very importantly, to the researchers who welcomed the AAALAC site visitors and presented their research and study/housing areas.
The Graduate College, in collaboration with Max Planck and Research Integrity, are in the process of establishing another round of live, virtual RCR workshops in late Sept./Oct. of the Fall 2021 Semester. Two sessions will be offered for each of the four workshop topics and opportunities to register will be communicated soon. RCR “live” instruction must be undertaken at least once during each career stage, and at a frequency of no less than once every four years. See the NIH RCR requirements and the NSF RCR requirements for additional information on how to apply and satisfy RCR training requirements in relation to your federal awards.
FAU is moving the IBC registration process to the BioRAFT online platform: fau.edu/ehs/bioraft and all new projects or renewals should be submitted through BioRAFT. Laboratories should already have been added to BioRAFT by the Office of Environmental Health and Safety but, to register with the IBC, your lab will need to be marked as handling biological materials. Please contact the IBC coordinator: adonovan@fau.edu to enable your account for IBC oversight. Existing registrations will be valid until their stated expiration dates. As of Oct. 1, all new and renewed IBC registrations will be done in BioRAFT.
Check Out the Beacon Online
The archived editions of The Beacon can be found online here. 
Please share with colleagues or use as references to our tips and hints!
If you have any questions, please contact us at researchintegrity@fau.edu or Elisa Gaucher.