Effective for awards subject to the February 2013 Research Terms and Conditions (and those issued subsequently), the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) has mandated that program directors, faculty, undergraduate students, graduate students, postdoctoral researchers and any staff participating in the research project receive appropriate training and oversight in the responsible and ethical conduct of research (RCR) (see page 5 of PDF linked below).
U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA)
The University of New Hampshire (UNH) has adopted the following plan to fulfill the NIFA training requirement. The requirements of this plan are applicable to all awards subject to the USDA NIFA February 2013 Terms and Conditions or subsequent Terms and Conditions that contain the RCR training requirement except: 1) Formula Funded Programs; 2) the 1890 Facilities Program; and 3) the Small Business Innovation Research Program; as well as 4) awards to individuals.
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RCR Training Program
Undergraduate Students
Program 1a: Completion of a web-based RCR course, followed by
Program 1b: Participation in a ½-day seminar. Seminars are offered three times a year (early in the Fall semester, early in the Spring semester, and early May). See the RCR Training at UNH webpage for information on an upcoming seminar.
Program 1a: Completion of a web-based RCR course, followed by
Program 1b: Participation in a ½-day seminar. Seminars are offered three times a year (early in the Fall semester, early in the Spring semester, and early May). See the RCR Training at UNH webpage for information on an upcoming seminar.
Program 2: Completion of GRAD 930: Ethics in Research and Scholarship (any student who has taken GRAD 930 is grandfathered).
Program 1a: Completion of a web-based RCR course, followed by
Program 1b: Participation in a ½-day seminar. Seminars are offered three times a year (early in the Fall semester, early in the Spring semester, and early May). See the RCR Training at UNH webpage for information on an upcoming seminar.
Program 2: Completion of GRAD 930: Ethics in Research and Scholarship (any student who has taken GRAD 930 is grandfathered).
Program 3: Completion of the UNH doctoral RCR training. This training is a UNH Graduate School requirement for all new doctoral students.
Program 1a: Completion of a web-based RCR course, followed by
Program 1b: Participation in a ½-day seminar. Seminars are offered three times a year (early in the Fall semester, early in the Spring semester, and early May). See the RCR Training at UNH webpage for information on an upcoming seminar.
Program 2: Completion of GRAD 930: Ethics in Research and Scholarship (any person who has taken GRAD 930 is grandfathered).
Program 1a: Completion of a web-based RCR course.
Program 2: Completion of GRAD 930: Ethics in Research and Scholarship (any person who has taken GRAD 930 is grandfathered).
RCR Training Timeframe
- Ordinarily, training will be initiated within six weeks of an individual’s first day of employment on a grant, and will be completed within the first six months of employment on that grant or prior to the end of an individual’s employment on that grant, whichever comes first. Exceptions to this timeframe requirement may be approved on a case-by-case basis by the Chair of the Responsible Conduct of Research and Scholarly Activity (RCR) Committee.
- Postdoctoral researchers, and graduate and undergraduate students enrolled at UNH and hired on a temporary basis to conduct research on an eligible USDA NIFA grant and whose employment on the grant ends before one of the triannual trainings must complete the web-based RCR course by the end of their employment on the grant.
- Postdoctoral researchers, and graduate and undergraduate students not enrolled at UNH who are hired at UNH on a temporary basis to conduct research on an eligible USDA NIFA grant and whose employment on the grant ends before one of the triannual trainings may complete their home institution's RCR training prior to arriving at UNH, and provide documentation to their UNH PI/PD.
Individuals must register for the next offering of GRAD 930 available after their first day of employment on a grant, and complete the course with a passing grade (course is pass/fail).
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Individuals must comply with the UNH Graduate School requirements.
General
- Individuals transferring to UNH from another institution and supported by USDA NIFA funds must complete UNH’s RCR training within the required timeframe, even if they have completed similar training at another institution. UNH may accept documentation of completion of another institution's CITI Program RCR course that (1) has been completed within the past 12 months and (2) contains comparable content.
- Individuals need to only complete UNH’s RCR training once, even if they work on multiple USDA NIFA-funded projects at UNH.
- The requirement flows down to subrecipients. All subrecipients will be required to provide written assurance that they are in compliance with the USDA NIFA RCR training requirement.
Program Directors' Responsibilities
Program directors are responsible for:
- Identifying individuals who are participating in the research project and ensuring that they comply with the USDA NIFA RCR training requirement; and,
- Providing appropriate oversight in the ethical and responsible conduct of research for all personnel participating in the research project.
Questions
For questions about this requirement or the trainings, please contact Julie Simpson, (603) 862-2003, in Research Integrity Services.
General
Each institution applying for USDA NIFA funds must assure that the aforementioned individuals receive training and maintain documentation of such training. Documentation of training is subject to review upon request by USDA NIFA.
