Board at A&M-Texarkana seeking new member to serve on committee

The Institutional Review Board at Texas A&M UniversityTexarkana is seeking a member of the community to serve on its committee for a three-year term beginning Jan. 2

Each institution with an Institutional Review Board is required to have a member who is unaffiliated with the university as a part of its committee. The member’s role is to be the voice of the community in regard to all proposals to conduct human subject research, to ask relevant questions which represent the perspective of research subjects and serve as an unbiased participant in the voting process.

The committee is also required to have one nonscientific voting member. As is the case with many Institutional Review Boards, the unaffiliated and nonscientific members are one person who fulfills both criteria.

Member responsibilities include:

Attending all committee meetings (approximately one per month from September through May of each academic year)

Reviewing all Institutional Review Board application materials (including proposals, informed consent documents, questionnaires, recruitment plans, etc.) in preparation for each meeting

Ask questions and voice issues concerning protocols publicly to the committee or privately to the committee chair

Maintain communication with the committee chair regarding protocols, meeting agendas, procedural questions, etc.

Maintain confidentiality for all discussions, reviews, meeting minutes and proprietary information they encounter

Community members will represent the interests of the larger community A&M-Texarkana serves; therefore, applicants must reside in the Texarkana area and not be affiliated with the university. Students, employees, their spouses or retirees cannot serve.

An understanding of Institutional Review Board procedures is not required, and the university is especially interested in applicants with expertise in nonscientific areas, including law, religion, education, ethics or related areas.

To apply, submit an email containing a résumé or curriculum vitae and a cover letter detailing interest and any relevant knowledge or expertise to Dr. Abbie Strunc at astrunc@tamut.edu and Dr. Sandy Labby at slabby@ tamut.edu.

For more information, contact Strunc at astrunc@tamut.edu or Dr. Nancy Jordan, interim dean of graduate studies and research at njordan@tamut.edu.