Main Content Section
Conducting Research
Purpose and Overview: This office policy establishes the framework for research conducted at Mississippi Delta Community College (MDCC). Review and approval are required for all research, even if that research has already been approved by another institution’s review board. Note, too, that research involving MDCC and another one or more community colleges in the Mississippi Association of Community Colleges system must first be approved by the Council on Institutional Research & Effectiveness (CIRE) at the Mississippi Community College Board (MCCB); please refer to the MCCB website for further information: https://www.mccb.edu/external-research
Policy Guidelines: All research involving MDCC’s human subjects and/or data will be held to the highest ethical standards. Therefore, research proposals must be reviewed and approved by the Institutional Effectiveness Committee (IEC), whose duties include working to safeguard the rights and welfare of individual research participants and the College. Except in cases where archival data is used, all research participants must be fully informed as to the purpose of the research, its risks and benefits, and what participation will entail. Participants must give written consent and be free to withdraw at any time. Neither the College nor any of its participants are to be identified when findings are presented or published. The researcher shall follow all directives of MDCC personnel while on its campuses or at sponsored events. The researcher shall inform the Office of Institutional Effectiveness when the research is complete and shall provide that office with a copy of the study’s results.
Approval Process: For research conducted by MDCC personnel, proposals must include a written approval by the supervising vice president and, if applicable, MCCB (see Purpose section above). For research conducted by external personnel, proposals must include a written approval by the sponsoring institution and, if applicable, MCCB (see Purpose section above). The principal investigator will complete the research request application below, uploading a copy of the aforementioned approval(s). The Office of Institutional Effectiveness will convene the IEC to review the proposal, and it may circulate the proposal to other MDCC stakeholders for comment. Within four weeks of the research request’s date, the Office of Institutional Effectiveness will issue a letter of determination to the researcher. MDCC reserves the right to terminate any and all research at the discretion of the Office of Institutional Effectiveness.
Application to Conduct Research
APPLICATION DOES NOT EQUAL APPROVAL. RESEARCH MAY BEGIN ONLY WITH AN APPROVAL LETTER.