Assurances/Certifications

Ethical Conduct: CITI - Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative - The CITI Program is a subscription service paid by Hope College to provide ethics education and certification to all members of the research community. The National Science Foundation (NSF) now requires every proposal to provide a plan for how we educate our students in the ethical conduct of research. You can read about this new requirement in the Office of Research Integrity newsletter. Hope's coordinator is Megan Mullins, Director of the Frost Research Center.

Human Subjects - If you will be administering assessment surveys to participants including student researchers, NSF requires every proposal to receive an approval or an exemption through our institutional Human Subjects Review Board (HSRB/IRB) prior to submission. 45 CFR Part 690: Federal Policy for the Protection of Human Subjects.

To learn whether your project can receive expedited review by the HSRB, read the NSF Expedited Review of Social and Behavioral Research Activities Guideline.

If you do not receive a HSRB response before submitting the proposal, enter "Pending" on the Cover Sheet where IRB approval date is requested.

National Institutes of Health (NIH) has a slightly different set of human subject categories to which your project will fall under. Hope College's HSRB will determine which category applies in their official letter.

Animal Use - College policy and federal law require a review of projects for humane treatment and judicious and safe use of vertebrate animals. At Hope College, the review is conducted by the Hope College Animal Care and Use Committee (HCACUC).

Intellectual Property - Hope College's invention and patent policy

Office of Research Integrity - Department of Health and Human Services -The Office of Research Integrity (ORI) promotes integrity in biomedical and behavioral research supported by the U.S. Public Health Service (PHS) at about 4,000 institutions worldwide. ORI monitors institutional investigations of research misconduct and facilitates the responsible conduct of research (RCR) through educational, preventive, and regulatory activities.

Suspension and Debarment - Federal regulations require this form to be completed if the awarded grant from a federally funded program will be purchasing equipment, other goods or services from a single company in excess of $100,000. The form should be completed by the company prior to the purchase. A copy of the completed form should be mailed to Hope College Business Services, ATTN:  Kevin Kraay,  P.O. BOX 9028, Holland, MI  49422-9028.

Laborers and Mechanics on Projects - Any grant proposal involving in excess of $2,000 for the construction, alteration, or repair (including painting and decorating) of public buildings or public works must provide information which validates that all laborers and mechanics on projects funded directly by or assisted in whole or in part by and through funding appropriated by the Act are paid wages at rates not less than those prevailing on projets of a character similar in the locality as determined by subchapter IV of Chapter 31 of title 40, United States Code (David-Bacon Act).