Dear Administrator or Faculty Member,

We are inviting you to participate in a research study to better understand how community colleges can help enhance students’ sexual and relationship health as well as to prevent sexual assault. This research is sponsored by the National Institute on Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Approximately 60 community college administrators and/or faculty members will participate in this study.

Please read this letter to be sure that you understand what is expected from you in this research study. If you have any questions that are not answered after reading this letter, you can reach out to us through the contact information at the end.

What is the purpose of this study?

The goals of this research study are to 1) identify programs and resources that community colleges provide to students to enhance their sexual and relationship health and prevent sexual assault, 2) better understand the challenges faced by community colleges in effectively implementing evidence-based sexual health programming, and 3) gather information to inform strategies to enhance and support the implementation of evidence-based sexual and relationship health programming with the aim of improving the adoption, fidelity, and scalability of programs.

What will my participation involve?

You will be asked to:

1. Review an abbreviated version of Media Aware, a web-based sexual and relationship health program for young adults that was developed by this research team. Program review is done online and is expected to take about 30 minutes. Some information on your use of the program will be collected. This will include times and dates of use, answers that you type in interactive portions of the program, the amount of the total program completed, the IP address from which you connected to the online portion, and the type of Internet browser used. We recommend reviewing the program while on a wireless network, as the research study will not be able to reimburse for any data charges that might accumulate through use of the program.
2. Complete a brief online questionnaire designed to gather feedback on the program content and design; ease of use; developmental appropriateness; inclusivity (e.g., gender, race, ethnicity, and sexual orientation); and potential for improving the health of community college students. In addition, questions will ask about sexual and relationship health promotion programming available on your campus (if any) and barriers to program implementation, adoption, and sustainability as well as suggestions to overcome the barriers. The questionnaire may take up to 15 minutes to complete.
3. Complete an interview through web-conferencing software with a researcher to further discuss these topics. This interview will be recorded and transcribed, and stored with any identifying information removed. The interview may take about 1 hour or 1 hour and 15 minutes to complete.

It is expected that participation in this study will not last longer than 2 hours total.

Will my answers be kept private?

Yes, the answers you provide in both the online questionnaire and interview with research staff and your data from reviewing the program will be kept private. All data will be kept secure at iRT on password-protected servers. Only iRT staff members who work on this study will be able access the data.

A transcription will be made from the recorded interview and any identifying information will be removed. Once the transcripts are verified, the recorded interview files will be destroyed.

Unique identifiers will be used in place of your name with the questionnaire, interview, and program use data. A link between your name and the unique identifier will be kept secure at the iRT office and destroyed after the study ends, rendering your data anonymous at that point.

The analyses will not focus on the data from any one campus. Rather, the analyses will aim to present a snapshot of community colleges across the United States. Results from this study will be presented in aggregate and will not reveal campus-level details that could reveal personally-identifiable information.

What are the risks of participation?

The possible risks associated with participating in this study are minimal. Data will not include names, so there is little chance that someone would find out your answers. We will keep a secure link between names and identifiers until the end of the research study. When the study is complete, the link will be destroyed and your data will be rendered anonymous.

This research study focuses on the sexual and relationship health of community college students. Some of the questions in the questionnaire and interview or the content of the program may make you feel uncomfortable. You may skip questions that you do not feel comfortable answering and can quit participation in this research study at any time.

What are the benefits of participation?

One benefit is that you will be contributing to the enhancement of sexual and relationship health programming for community college students, which may include reducing unintended pregnancy, STI transmission, relationship violence, and sexual assault.

Another benefit is that you may increase your knowledge, skills, and self-efficacy related to sexual and relationship health and by reviewing an abbreviated version of Media Aware.

What happens if I do not give consent to participate in the study?

Participation is voluntary, and there will be no penalty if you decide not to participate in this research study. In addition, all participants have the right to decline to answer any question and may choose to withdraw from the research study at any point without penalty or consequence.

Will I receive anything for participation in the study?

You will receive a $100.00 check for completing the study.

Who is conducting the study?

Dr. Tracy Scull, along with trained staff members, will conduct the study. They work at innovation Research & Training, and are involved in basic and applied research related to improving the health and well-being of youth, families, organizations, and communities.

If I have a question about the study, who do I ask?

If you have any additional questions or concerns at any point during this study, you may contact Dr. Tracy Scull, Senior Research Scientist, iRT, at (919) 493-7700, email: tscull@irtinc.us.

If you have any questions or concerns about your rights as a research participant or how you were treated, you should contact Barbara Davis Goldman, Ph.D., Chair of the iRT Institutional Review Board (IRB), which reviewed and approved this study, at barbaradavisgoldman@gmail.com or on her home phone at 919-644-8238.

Sincerely,

Christina Malik, Ph.D.
Co-Investigator
innovation Research &Training

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The Community College Personnel Study

Consent Form

The goal of this study is to obtain input and feedback from community college administrators and faculty members to better understand how community colleges can help enhance students’ sexual and relationship health as well as to prevent sexual assault.

In this study, you will be asked to:

• Review an abbreviated version of the web-based sexual and relationship health program, Media Aware;
• Complete a brief online questionnaire; and
• Complete an interview with a study team member through web-conferencing.

Participation is voluntary and you can stop participating at any time. All responses will be kept confidential. Please click here to download a copy of the consent form for your records.