Liberty University Institutional Review Board
Conditional Approval: Alternative Procedures When a School District and/or
School Refuses to Grant Permission Prior to the Researcher Receiving LU IRB
Research Application Approval
In the event that a school district and/or school refuses to grant permission for a
researcher to conduct research in a specified district and/or school prior to the researcher
receiving LU IRB research application approval, and the researcher has completed all
requested IRB revisions to his or her research application, the IRB will conditionally
approve the research application and issue a conditional approval letter to the researcher
for the specified research study. The researcher may then present the conditional approval
letter to the appropriate school district and/or school officials from whom he or she is
seeking permission to conduct research.
Once the researcher has received letters of permission on official school letterhead with
appropriate signature(s) from the appropriate official(s), he or she must submit copies of
the letters to the IRB. Copies of permission letters may be submitted by email as scanned
pdfs to irb@liberty.edu, by fax to 434-522-0506, or by mail. The IRB will save and file
the letters with the researcher’s application and supporting documents and issue an
approval letter enabling the researcher to complete his or her research study.