1 GRADUATE COUNCIL MEETING 18 January 2012 102 Kern ...

Minutes of the Meeting December 14, 2011
The Graduate Council -6-
named as the person at Penn State responsible for oversight for the process. A draft of the new policy and
process has been sent to the Provost, the Vice President for Research, and other senior administrators for review
and approval; implementation is scheduled to be completed by August 24, 2012.
Following Ms. Thurley’s presentation, the floor was opened for questions and discussion.
Dr. Foley was asked to address why NIH/PHS is driving this change. He responded that Penn State does
not have a choice but to implement these changes if it continues to accept funding from these agencies. He
remarked that institutions will have to justify the federal dollars awarded and to be as transparent as possible.
A question was raised as to what might trigger a conflict of interest. Ms. Thurley reported that all
disclosures go through the individual’s department head for review first. Then, the disclosure is automatically
transitioned to the COI Office for review. If the COI Office identifies a potential or perceived conflict, the
Conflict of Interest Committee is asked to review the disclosure (the investigator is invited to meet with the
Committee) in order for the Committee to make a COI determination. The Committee will then determine if
there is potential for the conflict to bias the research and specify means to manage the conflict. The Committee
also will monitor the investigator to determine whether others are involved, e.g., students who are supported by
the funding. She added that the Conflict of Interest Committee has authority to exclude the investigator with the
identified conflict from the research if it determines that a conflict does exist and it cannot be managed
appropriately; however, this happens in a very small percentage of cases and the COI Office and Committee
make every attempt to manage all identified COI.
Dr. Foley added that a call from a federal investigator also will trigger an internal review to determine
whether the investigator has disclosed financial or business interests. He also noted that there will be new “right
to know” legislation coming out of Harrisburg next year.
UNFINISHED BUSINESS
None.
NEW BUSINESS
None.
COMMENTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THE GOOD OF THE GRADUATE COMMUNITY
There being no further comments, the meeting adjourned at 4:50 p.m.