Eastern University Institutional Review Board

The Eastern University Institutional Review Board (IRB) is a committee comprised of faculty who review all proposed research involving human subjects that is conducted at Eastern University to ensure the safety and welfare of research subjects. The IRB reviews research proposals and can approve, require modifications (in order to secure IRB approval), or disapprove of the study.

Primary Purpose

The primary purpose of the IRB is to promote ethical research and to ensure that research participants are treated justly. In accordance with these goals, Eastern’s IRB assesses research projects to ensure they are operating for the common good by minimizing harm and maximizing benefits, by being respectful of individuals’ rights, and fairly distributing benefits and costs to stakeholders.

This body serves as a “check” to guard against research that might cause unintentional harm to the people involved or violate their rights in an unanticipated way. A secondary function of an IRB is to meet a mandate required in order to obtain most federally funded grants. The IRB at Eastern meets federal requirements for all research involving human subjects and involving federal funding by adopting a policy that complies with the “Federal Policy for the Protection of Human Subjects”. This regulation requires Eastern to establish an “Institutional Review Board (IRB)” and enables Eastern faculty to undertake research funded with federal funds

Statement of Eastern University’s Internal Review Board

Any study originating at Eastern University involving the observation of or interaction with human subjects, and which results in data or generalizable knowledge that will or potentially might in the future be disseminated for public use, must be reviewed and approved by the Institutional Review Board (IRB) for the protection of human subjects. Consult the IRB Manual to ascertain if your project needs to be reviewed by the IRB. Then secure and complete the appropriate IRB application form .  Completed forms may be submitted electronically or via mail. Relevant instructions are attached o each IRB application form. 

Contact Information

Postal address

Institutional Review Board
Eastern University
McInnis Mailbox 859
1300 Eagle Rd.,
St. Davids, PA 19087

Electronic mail

General Information: irb@eastern.edu
Webmaster: khernand@eastern.edu