Supporting Research Compliance

RIACT handles research compliance risks and concerns on behalf of OVPR. Monitoring potential compliance and safety risks helps RIACT collaborate with leadership to mitigate them before they become non-compliance situations. RIACT manages both the monitoring of research risks and the investigation of research compliance issues that have already occurred.
 

Reporting Research Compliance Risks

A research compliance risk is a current research compliance and/or safety risk that anyone within the University community wants to report to OVPR. When reporting, you will have the opportunity to request help with the mitigation of a research risk. RIACT will manage the monitoring and escalation process.

To report a research risk, use the Research Risk Intake Form. 

Reporting risks through this form is not anonymous. If there is a formal complaint/concern that a person wants addressed anonymously, it should be submitted through UReport. 

Mitigating Research Compliance Risks

Research risks that are reported are given a risk score. This risk score is based on the likelihood of an event occurring and its impact on the environment, humans, animals, and/or the University. RIACT monitors the risks and works with research compliance and safety groups to mitigate those risks before they become non-compliance issues.
 

Reporting Research Compliance Concerns

A research compliance concern is a current research compliance and/or safety issue which has already occurred that anyone within the University community wants to report to OVPR. The University’s policy on For-Cause Investigations Related to Research Compliance Concerns encourages anyone having knowledge of potential violations of applicable regulations, policies, procedures, or other requirements to speak out.

UReport is the UMN method for reporting violations of rules, regulations, and policies. The report can be made anonymously. It is strongly encouraged that concerns are reported through this system. Research compliance concerns may also be reported directly to RIACT or the appropriate regulatory committee as described in the administrative procedure on Preparing and Submitting a Report of a Research Compliance Concern.

Allegations of scientific misconduct, as opposed to regulatory or procedural violations, will be handled in accordance with the University’s policy on Research Misconduct and will be directed to the University Research Integrity Officer (RIO). For more information about research misconduct, visit Reporting Research Misconduct. In all situations, the privacy of complainants and witnesses will be protected to the extent possible. University personnel are prohibited from retaliating against anyone raising a concern in good faith.
 

Reporting Guide

Type of Research Compliance Concern	How to Report Concern
Research compliance risks that have the potential to cause financial, legal, reputational, human, animal, and/or environmental harm should be escalated to the VPR. The Research Risk Intake Form is not anonymous.	Research Risk Intake Form
Potential research misconduct	Review the University Handling Reports of Research Misconduct Procedure for reporting research misconduct
Events that have already occurred that violate research compliance policies or state/federal regulations. May be reported anonymously.	UReport