Proposal Summary for Conducting Research in
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools
Overview
All persons interested in conducting research in Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools (CMS) must have prior approval.
Research includes, but is not limited to: conducting surveys, interviews, focus groups and classroom observations
involving CMS students and/or staff. Researchers will be provided a copy of the district’s policy on educational research
which should be reviewed prior to application. Please select the most current version of the Education Research
document.
CMS Review Process
All researchers must complete Sections A, B, and C of the application below. Other research-related materials should be
submitted at the time of application (e.g., questionnaires, consent form(s), principal letter, etc.).
Electronic submission of proposals is required.
An approval decision will be made within 30 working days of our receiving the proposal, given the following conditions:
1. Proposals are in their final form having been reviewed and accepted by all regulatory committees, institutions or
advisors. A certified copy of an institutional review board’s approval must be submitted.
2. All supporting materials have been received.
3. Studies that have institutional support as follows.
a. Professional: Research is sponsored by universities, governmental agencies, or by similar nonprofit
organizations engaged in scholarly research.
b. Graduate Student: Research is a dissertation or master thesis.
CMS places priority on those studies which address the goals outlined in the Strategic Plan 2018. These goals include
effective teaching and leadership, performance management, increasing the graduation rate, teaching and learning through
technology, environmental stewardship, and parent and community connections.
Depending upon scope and content, proposals may be subject to review by a research review panel consisting of CMS
teachers, content experts, researchers and/or administrators. The panel’s recommendations are given to the Chief
Accountability Officer who makes the final decision to accept or reject a proposal.
Please note that CMS charges a nominal fee for data for external studies to cover staff resources needed to fulfill the
request. If applicable, fees will be discussed at the time of application.
Electronic submission of proposals is required.
Submit application and all supporting documents to:
Susie Freije
susanw.freije@cms.k12.nc.us
revision date: May 2014
Please direct questions to:
Lindsay Messinger
lindsay1.messinger@cms.k12.nc.us
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Proposal Summary for Conducting Research in
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools
SECTION A: APPLICATION INFORMATION
Project Title:
Researcher’s Full Name(s):
Title/Position:
University/Institution/Organization:
Mailing Address
Email Address*:
Daytime Phone:
Date Submitted†:
Is this the final version of the proposal?
Yes
No
I have reviewed and understand the CMS policy on educational
research.
Yes
No
Projected Start Date:
Projected Completion Date:
The research is related to a:
Professional Project
Doctoral Study
Masters Study
Have you included a copy of your Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval form with your
application?
Yes
No
ALL applicants MUST provide documentation from their institution’s review board for the
protection of human subjects before CMS will consider approval.
Graduate Students Only: Please fill out the information below
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools reserves the right to contact university faculty associated with a proposed research project.
Advisor contact information is required for graduate student projects.
Advisor’s Name:
Title/Position:
Email Address:
Daytime Phone:
Mailing Address:
Have all advisory/regulatory committee members formally approved this research?
Yes
SECTION B: STUDY SPECIFICATIONS
*
†
We will send your response to this address.
Please note that you will receive correspondence no later than 30 business days from the date of submission.
revision date: May 2014
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No
Proposal Summary for Conducting Research in
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools
Study supports the following CMS Strategic Plan Goal(s)
Check all that apply
Goal 1 Maximize academic achievement in a personalized 21st century learning environment for every child to
graduate career and college ready.
Goal 2 Recruit, develop and retain a premier workforce.
Goal 3 Cultivate partnerships with families, businesses, faith-based groups and community organizations to provide a
sustainable system of support and care for each child.
Goal 4 Promote a system-wide culture of safety, high engagement, cultural competency and customer service.
Goal 5 Optimize district performance and accountability by strengthening data use, processes and systems.
Goal 6 Inspire and nurture learning, creativity, innovation and entrepreneurship through the expansion of strategic
school design
Study includes participants at a:
Check all that apply.
Pre-K School
Elementary School
Middle School
High School
Alternative School
Administrative Office
Language Arts
Mathematics
Science
Social Studies
Art
Physical Education
Other (please explain)
Area(s) of study:
Check all that apply.
Foreign Language
Technology
Poverty
Type of study:
revision date: May 2014
Quantitative
Career/Vocational
Education
Talented & Gifted
Exceptional
Children
Disabilities
Qualitative
After-School
ELL/ESL/LEP
Study Abroad
with
Mixed-Methods
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Proposal Summary for Conducting Research in
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools
Are you a CMS employee?‡
Yes
No
Has any CMS staff member already agreed to support you r
research upon approval of this study?
Yes
No
If yes, please list name, title or position and office of CMS
staff member who has agreed to support this study
Name
Title/Position
Office
If yes, please provide documentation of the CMS staff member agreement of support
Please note:
Researchers who are CMS employees may not conduct qualitative or mixed methods research where the researcher is
employed. This guideline is supported by IRB guidelines that protect participants from being coerced:
“Likewise, teachers or supervisors who conduct research could (wittingly or unwittingly) coerce student- or employeesubjects into participating. Thus any potential conflicts of interest must be identified and resolved before IRB approval is
granted.”
Does study employ:
Check all that apply.
Non-school personnel surveys
Yes
No
School administrator surveys
Yes
No
Teacher surveys
Yes
No
Student surveys
Yes
No
Parent surveys
Yes
No
Non-school personnel interviews
Yes
No
School administrator interviews
Yes
No
Teacher interviews
Yes
No
Student interviews
Yes
No
Parent interviews
Yes
No
Teacher assessment
Yes
No
Student assessment
Yes
No
Classroom observations
Yes
No
Videotaping or audio recording of CMS staff
Yes
No
Videotaping or audio recording of CMS students
Yes
No
revision date: May 2014
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Proposal Summary for Conducting Research in
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools
Does study access, require, and/or record:
Identifiable student-level information
*
Check all that apply.
Yes
No
Yes
No
Identifiable staff-level information
Yes
No
De-identified staff-level information
Yes
No
Aggregated student-level information
Yes
No
Aggregated staff-level information
Yes
No
School-level information
Yes
No
De-identified student-level information
**
Other (please explain)
*Identifiable student-level information includes student name, address, birth date, grades, test scores, and IEP information,
EC or LEP status. Please refer to CMS Educational Research Policy for more information.
**Information that has been de-identified by CMS Accountability personnel.
Study locations -- Please list all proposed study locations:
Please describe your site selection criteria:
Note for large populations:
Researchers whose study design includes reaching out to large samples of research participants, defined here as:

10+ schools

15+ school administrators

50+ teachers
will need to submit an official letter of support from the Executive Director of the relevant department.
If your study involves human subjects please complete the following; if not, please skip to Section C.
revision date: May 2014
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Proposal Summary for Conducting Research in
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools
Participant Information
Number of student participants
Number of teacher participants
Number of school administrator participants
Number of other participants (please specify)
Please describe the subject selection criteria:
Describe how subjects will be recruited. Please include information on who will recruit, and the method and location
of recruitment. Please include a copy of the recruitment materials (e.g. flyer, letter, etc) being used.
What is the expected time commitment for each type participant (e.g. principals, parents, teachers, students)?
Will monetary remuneration or other incentive be offered in exchange for participation in the research?
In all research situations involving students, you must obtain legally effective informed consent (including parental
permission and assent from minors, when applicable.) There are required elements of informed consent that must
be included in the informed consent process and documents. The required and optional elements can be found in the
federal regulations at
http://www.hhs.gov/ohrp/humansubjects/guidance/45cfr46.htm#46.116.
Parent/guardian consent forms should be written in language appropriate to the person granting consent. Similarly,
student assent forms should be written using developmentally-appropriate language.
If applicable, please attach a principal letter (a letter that would be sent to the principal of any potential
participating schools) to describe the study. The purpose of the principal letter is to provide detailed information about
the research design/methodology, recruitment processes, participant burden, confidentiality/anonymity, risks/benefits and
uses of the data. The principal letter is not a consent form. If data will be collected from principals, a separate consent form
must be provided for that purpose. Researchers may contact principals prior to approval only to ascertain their interest in
having their school participate in the research study but they may not request principals’ formal consent until they have
approval from the CMS Office of Accountability. If the study is approved, the Office of Accountability will provide
researchers with a Letter of Approval to Conduct Research. Only then can principal consent be sought.
revision date: May 2014
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Proposal Summary for Conducting Research in
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools
SECTION C: PROPOSAL SUMMARY
Instructions: Please answer each question below WITHIN THIS DOCUMENT.
Relevant documents (e.g., consent forms, questionnaires, IRB approvals, etc.) should be sent electronically with this
application.
1.
Provide a brief (1,200 words maximum, 10 pt. font) literature review that summarizes the background and
rationale for your study. This review should include appropriate peer-reviewed sources (attach separately).
Please define acronyms or language specific to your field of study.
2.
Briefly state the overall purpose of the study.
3.
What are the specific research questions and hypotheses for the study? (Bullet form please)

4.
Provide a Methods section. This must include:
 Procedures: Please describe what will be done, how, and by whom, in appropriate detail for a reviewer to
understand.
 Proposed Analyses: Please include your data analysis plan
 Include copies of all surveys and/or instruments that you plan to use in your study.
5.
What is your timeline for collecting data?
6.
Describe the materials, resources, information or other needs from the school system (such as demographic
information, test scores, proficiency rates, etc.)
All CMS quantitative data that are not available publically must be requested through the Office of
Accountability; data cannot be provided by school employees. Please note that there may be a fee for data requests.
7.
Identify any ethical issues you feel may be of concern to CMS or participants, and explain how you have
addressed them.
8.
What is your plan to share and disseminate results (i.e. state with whom and how you will share your results)?
9.
Proposal Summary
Suggestion: Write in a language that can be understood by those not in your field. Also, the reader needs to understand
the what, why, and how of your study in one brief paragraph.
revision date: May 2014
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Proposal Summary for Conducting Research in
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools
10. Data/Record Storage and Security
Data/record security is critical. You should ensure that all hard copy and electronic data are securely stored to prevent
unauthorized access, disclosure, or loss. Hard copy records should be stored in a manner that limits access to only
authorized individuals. For example, filing cabinets should be locked and placed in secured/locked rooms.
Electronic data should be saved on a device that has the appropriate security safeguards such as unique identification of
authorized users, password protection, encryption, automated operating system patch (bug fix) management, anti-virus
controls, firewall configuration, and scheduled and automatic backups to protect against data loss or theft.
Researchers possess a strong sense of ownership for their data and consequently often manage their own computers.
Laptops, Personal Digital Assistants, removable hard drives, “jump” or “thumb” drives, CDs, DVDs and other portable
devices and removable media are very convenient to ensure your data are always at your fingertips. External hard
drives are a cost-effective and convenient way to back up your data. However, all of these devices require encryption
solutions if used to store Restricted or Sensitive data (i.e., identifiable information).
10a. Describe data storage plans:
10b. What will you do with the data once the study has been completed?
10c. Describe the method of destruction.
Please note any use for any purpose not described here will require an additional research application and
review.
10d. Will the data being stored in electronic format be encrypted?
10e. If data will not be encrypted, please explain the rationale and the proposed method of data security.
11. Confidentiality
11a. Will you maintain the participants’’ contact information after the data have been collected? If yes, specify
the purpose(s) for this.
11b. Will you share individual-level data with other researchers or practitioners beyond the designated key
research personnel?
If yes, please note, researchers are only permitted to share individual-level data that has been de-identified with
the ability to re-identify with written permission from CMS.
11c. Who will have access to the shared data?
11d. For what purposes will research data be shared?
revision date: May 2014
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