Institutional review boards, or IRBs, (also known as independent ethics committees, or human ethics committees) are committees mandated by federal regulation that review and monitor plans for research and evaluations involving human subjects. It is important to keep in mind that these committees not only protect evaluation participants from unethical methods or inappropriate questions, but also protect you and your program in the event that someone does not like part of the evaluation (Washington State University, 2004).  Colleges, universities, and federal agencies, as well as some state and local agencies have IRBs with the authority to review, approve, require revisions in, or disapprove plans for all research and evaluations involving human subjects conducted by personnel or students.  For more information about IRBs, refer to Evaluation Consent and the Institutional Review Board Process.

Washington State University Cooperative Extension. (2004). Participant Consent.  Retrieved September 2007 http://ext.wsu.edu/lifeskills/participant.htm.