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Institutional Biosafety Committee

The Institutional Biosafety Committee is responsible for ensuring that all recombinant DNA research carried out or sponsored by the College is conducted in compliance with NIH guidelines.

These guidelines include such responsibilities as: assessing containment levels for biohazardous agents, organisms, plants and animals; establishment of institutional procedures and practices; training personnel; and review and approval of all experiments involving the deliberate transfer of recombinant DNA, or DNA or RNA derived from recombinant DNA, into any human research participants. The governing document for this committee comes from the NIH and is available under the NIH Guidelines.

All faculty at Haverford working with DNA must complete a registration form even if they think their work might be exempt. This will help ensure that all faculty will be prepared to answer questions should they be asked about their compliance in the case of an NIH audit.

In order to be federally compliant, the College must file an annual report that includes the roster of current committee members and their CVs. The required composition of the IBC is outlined in the NIH guidelines. The IBC is expected to meet as needed for review of non-exempt work. Faculty preparing grant applications may need a review of their IBC registrations before submitting grants and the IBC should be able to meet in a timely fashion for such requests.

Copies of the minutes and records (including registrations) for all IBC meetings must be kept at the institution level. These records must be available for anyone from the public who wishes to see them, and for audit purposes.

Before the start of the Fall and Spring semesters and the summer session, reminders will be sent to faculty to register their rDNA and sDNA work (please use the Registration Document for Recombinant DNA Research Form) for both their research and their teaching labs. For work that is determined to be non-exempt, faculty must also renew their approved IBC registrations every 3 years. The deadlines for registration are: One week after Labor Day, one week after Martin Luther King Jr. Day, and the last Monday in April. Please be sure to work ahead on choosing the appropriate deadline if your approval is required prior to the start of your project.

The IBC also supports laboratory safety training, ensuring that training on safe use of recombinant DNA takes place.

Haverford Recombinant DNA Training

Laboratory Safety Committee

The Laboratory Safety Committee is responsible for ensuring the safety and well-being of all members of the community engaged in laboratory work, covering both the research laboratories and the teaching laboratories. This committee is responsible for ensuring that all faculty, staff, and students are trained on an ongoing basis on the appropriate use and disposal of chemicals, on the hazards associated with electrical and electronic devices, on emergency procedures, and on general safe practices in carrying out experimental work. The Committee has responsibility for managing the training programs, offers a one hour formal course, for all students engaging in research work, and advises on the individual training plans for the various teaching laboratories, principally in Biology, Chemistry, Fine Arts, Psychology, and Physics. The Committee encourages faculty to perform a self audit of their laboratories on a regular basis (see form below). In the case of an accident, or any other unusual laboratory event, the Committee requires that those involved in such an event report it using the form below.

This Committee also is an integral partner with the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee and the Institutional Review Board in managing the facilities. The Committee is guided by the following College policies: