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Research Requests

Conducting Research at Fulton County Schools

Thank you for your interest in conducting research with Fulton County Schools (FCS). Dissertation candidates, FCS staff, university faculty, research firms, government agencies, and nonprofit organizations should complete a research application to conduct research studies, surveys,and evaluations, and to request to obtain data to support research activities. Research Requests include any requests from individuals and organizations to conduct surveys, research studies, or evaluations, as well as requests to obtain data to support research activities.

We review proposals for compliance with federal regulations concerned with student records, privacy, and participation in research studies, as well to ensure that the research studies and surveys do not interfere with instruction or require excessive student or staff time. At this time, we will only consider research that is aligned with the District's Strategic Plan, has the potential to directly benefit our students, and incorporates timely feedback of results to the District leadership. FCS places priority on those studies that align with district-approved programs, curriculum, and resources. A list of district-supported programs, curriculum, and resources includes, but is not limited to, the Program Inventory, Solutions Architecture and Application Governance (SAG), Curriculum Hubdistrict-approved software, and district-approved supplemental resources

If you are an FCS employee who is a doctoral student that needs to conduct non-dissertation research as a class requisite for your university, please contact the department at programevaluation@fultonschools.org

Listed below is important information and required forms for conducting research within Fulton County Schools.  Proposals will not be approved without completed documentation.

DPE Staff

Director of Program Evaluation
Amanda Swerdlow

Program Evaluation Analyst
Kiara Poole

 

Research Approval Timeline

Researchers are encouraged to submit their applications as early as possible to ensure that the application is complete. FCS cannot ensure that research will always be considered. Please see the review calendar below. FCS employees who need guidance about conflicting deadlines are encouraged to contact our office at programevaluation@fultonschools.org

Intended Start of Research Submission Deadline Proposal Decision Date
Fall 24-25 School Year:
on or after 
September 23, 2024
July 8, 2024 September 20, 2024
Spring 24-25 School Year:
on or after
January 20, 2025
November 11, 2024 January 17, 2025
Summer 2025:
June-August 2025
April 14, 2025 June 2, 2025

Research Application

Application Materials

Post-approval Forms:

Data Requests

Requests for public records may be made directly through Open Records Request through the Fulton County Schools homepage. Requests for any other data may be made to the Data Utilization Department at datautilization@fultonschools.org. These include requests for existing data that will not be used to support research activities. Request for data to support research can be made through the research request application process described above.

Student Research: Guide to Creating School-Level IRB

This guidance aims to provide Fulton County students an opportunity to pursue research involving human participants in a high school setting with the potential of publishing the study. This document outlines the steps to form an Institutional Review Board at the high school level and how a high school can create its IRB process to approve student projects. It is up to the school to determine who manages this process.