Big Changes Coming to ACUC Process This Month

Big Changes Coming to ACUC Process This Month

In August 2018, the Office of Research announced the university-wide implementation of the Huron Research Suite. Branded as the Research Administration Management Portal (RAMP), this multiyear, multiphase project will provide FSU researchers and administrators with comprehensive tools to support the administration of research within one integrated system. 

RAMP will ultimately provide electronic proposal development and system-to-system submission (where available by sponsor), sponsored project lifecycle management, research compliance, and research reporting needs in a unified environment. It will also provide tools for the development and management of IRB and ACUC protocols and for the management of subcontracts, contract negotiations, and export controls. The ACUC module will be the first module implemented.  Four remaining modules will be implemented over the next two years to include IRB, Agreements, Grants and Export Control. 

The Office of Research is now happy to announce the launch of the ACUC module within RAMP.  This module is scheduled to go live on January 31, 2019 and will result in an electronic process for the development, submission and review of ACUC protocols. 

As we approach the deployment of the ACUC module, Laboratory Animal Resources will be offering protocol development workshops to assist researchers with the transition to RAMP. These workshops will walk participants through completing the online protocol form, offer best practices for responding to protocol prompts and reviewer comments, and provide ample opportunity for questions and answers. The workshops are scheduled for January 17, 24, 31 and February 7, 14, 21, 28 at 1:30 p.m. To register, email Lbrown5@fsu.edu (each class is limited to the first 8 respondents).  Additional workshops will be scheduled for alternative dates/times and this information will be published soon.

The deployment of the ACUC module will adhere to the following implementation schedule, as approved by the FSU ACUC.

·        Beginning January 31, 2019, RAMP will be available for new protocol submissions and triennial rewrites.

·        The ACUC will accept new protocol submissions and triennial rewrites using current forms until 11:59 P.M. on February 28, 2019, to allow investigators who may have begun protocol drafts using current forms an opportunity to complete drafts and submit.

·       Amendments to existing protocols will be submitted using the current forms until a triennial rewrite is entered in RAMP.

Town Hall meetings will be offered next month to provide more information on the new system and transition to it. Details regarding the dates and locations of these meetings will be announced soon. For additional information about RAMP, please visit the project website at https://ramp.research.fsu.edu.

If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact one of us.

Kerry Peluso, Assistant Vice President for Research Administration and Finance

kpeluso@fsu.edu
(850) 644-8664

Angie Rowe, Project Manager, Office of Research

arrowe@fsu.edu
(850) 644-8659