October 1, 2018
University Research Compliance Office to host Big XII Research Compliance Conference
The Kansas State University Research Compliance Office will host the first-ever Big XII Research Compliance Conference Oct. 2-3 at the K-State Student Union in Manhattan.
The conference will open with a welcome from Peter Dorhout, vice president for research, and a keynote address from Gary L. Borkowski, senior director for AAALAC International, which is a private, nonprofit organization that promotes the humane treatment of animals in science through a voluntary assessment and accreditation program. Breakout sessions will follow on pressing issues such as export controls and shipping, implementation of updates to Institutional Review Board rules, managing lab inspections, Institutional Biosafety Committee governance of CRISPR and other molecular gene-editing technologies, and more.
Cheryl Doerr, K-State associate vice president of research compliance, said the conference will help all participating institutions keep policies and systems up to date.
"Research compliance changes all the time as scientific procedures and other circumstances change," Doerr said. "We are asked to do more relative to research compliance than in previous decades, so gathering to discuss how to help researchers accomplish their goals while responding to mandates is important."
Heath Ritter, research compliance manager for the University Research Compliance Office, has worked to plan the conference and is pleased with the number of registrations.
"Other institutions have responded positively to the opportunity to gather and share ideas. We expect more than 30 attendees," Ritter said.
Conference attendance is by invitation only and will conclude with tours of K-State facilities for those who are interested.