The purpose of this page is to summarize the main compliance responsibilities that a principal investigator/project director (PI) has related to the RCR components of covered projects.
PRE-AWARD
Proposal Stage: eRouting
Upon submission of a covered proposal, the PI is responsible for acknowledging the RCR requirement and certifying adherance to the RCR Compliance Policy in the case that an award is received.
POST-AWARD
At Time of Award: The RCR Project Plan
At the time that a covered award is received, the PI is responsible for filling out and submitting the RCR Project Plan form, which will acknowledge the required RCR training and will indicate the preferred in-person RCR training approach (if applicable) for each group that is funded in the project budget.
Throughout the Award: Mentoring and Supervision
It is the responsibility of the PI to ensure that all applicable research team members are informed of the RCR training requirements, including whether re-training is necessary. Moreover, it is the PI’s responsibility to provide appropriate mentoring through discussions of RCR topics and through oversight of the research project.
Annually: RCR Deliverables
An annual certification of RCR training to OSP must be made through the OSP Contract Information System. This is accomplished in the following ways:
- Clicking the link in the OSP Deliverable notification email or on the Deliverables tab of the OSP Contract Information System, THEN
- Checking the box under the RCR Certification Deliverable, which certifies to OSP that “all students (undergraduate, graduate) and postdoctoral researchers funded by this project are in compliance with the Georgia Tech Responsible Conduct of Research Compliance Policy.”
Checking this box certifies that all trainees on the project who are required to have completed their RCR training by the annual certification date have done so. Trainees have 90 days after appointment to the project to complete the CITI RCR online course and one year to complete the in-person training. Note that newly appointed trainees for whom the training is not yet due are considered in compliance with the policy for the purpose of the current year’s certification; their training should be certified during the next annual certification cycle.
RCR Reports by PI, Cost Center or Award Number are available to help a PI and/or department adminstrator determine whether or not the applicable employees on a covered award have completed RCR training.
Documentation of In-Person Training
Documentation of in-person training that has been taken to satisfy the RCR Compliance Policy is the responsibility of the PI, unless the training has been completed through an OSP-approved RCR training event or through an approved RCR course. OSP-approved RCR workshops and events, RCR courses, and associated contact hours will be automatically documented in OSP's training system. RCR courses will also be documented in Banner.
In order for training completed outside of these approved events and courses to be recorded in OSP's training system and in the reports which track RCR training, the PI must submit the RCR Research Team Meeting form to the RCR Program. If not using the RCR Research Team Meeting form, the PI should document the date, attendance, agenda, and number of contact hours spent discussing RCR topics. This documentation must be included with project records.
