Wilmington College is exempted by the USDA from having an institutional animal care and use committee (IACUC*). Wilmington College is committed to the ethical and humane treatment of animals used in research and teaching. It is committed to conducting quality animal research in an ethical and responsible manner to further scientific discoveries that will improve the well-being of our society and in training professionals to live by these values in their careers as agriculturists and scientists upon graduation. From the deep commitment to integrity and respect for others, including animals, comes the establishment of an oversight committee.
The Institutional Animal Research and Care Committee (IARCC) has several responsibilities.
- The committee reviews all research activities under the auspices of Wilmington College that involve the use of live, vertebrate animals or cephalopods, regardless of the funding source.
- The committee reviews animal care protocols (SOPs) voluntarily submitted by areas or individual researchers.
- The Academic Dean/Dean of Faculty may ask the committee for their counsel on ethical issues surrounding a welfare complaint when responding to a complaint.
- The committee assists in developing appropriate forms and keeping all voluntarily submitted animal care protocols and SOPs on file.
The committee reports directly to the Academic Dean/Dean of the Faculty, who is responsible for all academic uses of animals at Wilmington College.
All research in which animals are used must be reviewed by the committee. No committee member may participate in the review process of a project in which s/he has a conflict of interest, except to provide information to the committee. Because student research must be completed within limited time spans the committee should respond to proposals in a timely manner.
There are two methods of protocol review:
- Designated Member Review – To utilize Designated Member Review, each IARCC member is provided with an abstract of the research proposal and has the opportunity to request a Full Committee Review. If no member requests a Full Committee Review the committee chair designates a member of the committee to review the proposal. The designated reviewer may approve or request modifications in the proposal or may request a Full Committee Review. A Designated Member may not disapprove a proposal. This is the usual method of review and should be an expedited review.
- Full Committee Review – A convened meeting of a quorum of the IARCC can approve, request modifications of, or disapprove a proposed protocol by a simple majority vote.
There are three possible outcomes to the review of a research proposal:
- Approval – A protocol that has been approved by the IARCC requires no further action by the investigator before the research may commence.
- Conditional Approval - The IARCC may request revisions to a proposal. The investigator will receive written details describing what additional information is required and the revised protocol will be reviewed at the next convened IARCC meeting.
- Negative Decision – A protocol that has been disapproved by the IARCC may not be initiated. The investigator will receive written details describing the reasons for denial of approval and will be given an opportunity to respond.
* Currently we have no NIH or NSF grants requiring oversight.
Approved April 2017