Students Earn ‘Protecting Human Research Participants’ Certificates

As part of Hoover STEM’s Research II programming, two of our seniors – Colby Long and Dayna Nguyen – are conducting research at the Science Center of Iowa. Earlier this week, they completed their preliminary training and were awarded with a ‘Protecting Human Research Participants’ certificate from the National Institutes of Health. Their research involves collecting data to better understand how visitors are using the institution and their reflections about the experience.

Project mentor and SCIowa’s Director of Learning Experiences, Patrick Rice, says “We required this [training] to ensure the research being collected…is done in a way that protects the participants.”

One of the goals of Research II programming is to provide students with tools and knowledge that will open doors for their next steps in life. Opportunities to earn certification like the one Colby and Dayna did will hopefully do just that!