About the Institutional Review Board
The Institutional Review Board (IRB) for San Francisco State University is charged with reviewing all research involving research volunteers to ensure that their rights are protected according to the federal regulations stated in 45 Code of Federal Regulations, Part 46 and 21 CFR Parts 50 and 56 (FDA policy).
The IRB at SFSU is composed of individuals from a number of units on campus, along with community members who are not affiliated with the university. IRB members are appointed by the Associate Vice President for Research and Sponsored Programs and the Dean of Graduate Studies with the concurrence of the Executive Committee of the Academic Senate.
Members are divided into two IRBs. Each IRB meets every other Wednesday during the fall and spring semesters. They also meet intermittently during the winter and summer sessions, as needed.
Both IRBs are constituted so that each board has the expertise to review most protocols. Protocols with a biomedical component are referred to IRB#1 which currently includes a physician, a nurse and a physiological psychologist. Protocols with a special education component are referred to IRB#2 which includes a member with special education expertise.
Most of the protocols that the IRB reviews fall into the social and behavioral sciences category. Both IRBs include a number of qualitative researchers, as well as non-scientists and those engaged in quantitative research. Community members are included to provide a non-SFSU perspective on university research. The IRBs cannot meet without at least one non-scientist present.
IRB members are re-allocated regularly to ensure that the proper mix of expertise is maintained according to NIH regulations.
IRB Committee Review
Only non-exempt protocols are reviewed by the IRBs. Determination of this review category is made by the committee staff and chair.
Please note that all protocols submitted to the committee go through a pre-review process and a revision cycle before being placed on a meeting agenda.
A complete packet, which includes a copy of all protocols to be reviewed, is delivered to members the week before every committee meeting, so they will have time to review them prior to the meeting. Protocols are pre-reviewed on a rolling basis, in the order in which they were received, and placed on an agenda when all revisions have been received and approved.
