Be prepared to provide the proposed research questions and/or area of interest to study in the district. BVSD staff will ask general questions about the proposed project to determine if it has the potential to yield district participation benefits. 

Office of Student Assessment & Program Evaluation

research@bvsd.org

720-561-5147

The district will only consider a proposal that is likely to yield products that are genuinely useful to the district or its schools. Ideal proposals will demonstrate alignment to the district’s vision, mission, values and goals.  Although BVSD values research, the district will not consider research projects that may only contribute to general educational research findings or completed for the sole purpose of fulfilling coursework requirements.  If the researcher is invited to complete the initial application, they will be asked to describe how the research would benefit BVSD.

No.  It is common that research projects go through the district review process at the same time as it goes through the IRB review process.  Some IRBs require a district approval prior to granting IRB approval. If there is not an IRB approval yet and BVSD supports the proposed project, the district will conditionally approve the project with the requirement that the Office of Student Assessment & Program Evaluation receive a copy of the IRB approval letter prior to the collection of any data.

The other advantage to contacting the district of interest as soon as possible is to identify changes that the district may require before receiving the IRB approval.  This avoids putting researchers in a position of needing to resubmit their proposal to their IRB.   

The BVSD Research Review Committee reviews proposals in cycles.  To ensure that the proposed study can start on the intended start date, the application should be submitted by the submission date that aligns with the approximate notification date that is closest to the proposed start date.

No.  Under no circumstances may a researcher contact any district staff, students, or parents without an approval letter from the BVSD Research Committee.

After contacting the Office of Student Assessment and Program Evaluation,  any interested researcher who was invited to complete the initial application AND passed the screening will then be invited to submit a full proposal which will include the completion of the Request To Do Educational Research form.   By signing this form, researchers acknowledge that they will comply with BVSD research requirements.  

There are four major reasons why BVSD may turn down a proposal: 

1) The topic does not align with BVSD’s goals and priorities.

2) The methodology requires an intense burden upon district/school resources. 

3) The research is not deemed rigorous enough to ensure the privacy of research participants; or will not result in findings that are defensible and valuable.

4) A district sponsor for the proposed project could not be found. Every approved research project will have an assigned district sponsor. A sponsor is a district staff member who will serve as a point person should a researcher have questions and will ensure that the research project proceeds as defined in the approved proposal.

Depending on several factors such as what the intention of the results are, whether the employee's supervisor/principal requests an approval, or what level of access to data is needed to answer the research questions will determine whether a proposal needs to be submitted to the Office of Student Assessment and Program Evaluation.  Interested researchers may email research@bvsd.org or call 720-561-5147 if there are any questions.  This decision tree can help determine if a proposal is necessary.

No.  An approval from the Student Assessment and Program Evaluation Department means that the proposed research aligns with our mission and goals, and is methodologically sound.  As with all research, individual schools, offices, staff, students, and parents/guardians all have the right to decline participation in the study.  In addition, if the approval is contingent upon various items, all contingencies must be fulfilled prior to the start of the approved study.

Most research proposal approvals have one or more contingencies.  Principal and IRB approvals are the most common contingencies included in our research approvals.  If the study is subject to an IRB review, the IRB may need our (BVSD) approval prior to issuing their approval, or the IRB office may take longer than expected.  In either case, our office will need a copy of the IRB approval prior to any data collection activities. Principals must approve all research projects that occur within their schools, regardless if teachers agree to participate.  Researchers will also have to abide by district volunteer guidelines if they intend to capture data within our schools.  Depending on the level of student contact, researchers may be required to complete an online background screening.  The cost for the screening process is $17.00 plus applicable state fees.

Every approval is valid for only one year following the date of the approval letter.  

For multi-year research projects or projects which need to be extended, researchers will be required to submit an annual update to our office.  The update should include a summary of the past year’s research activities and, if applicable, a summary of any changes that may be needed that were not in the original proposal.  Depending on the level of changes, another review of your project may be necessary prior to beginning the next year of study activities.