All requests for exemptions will be reviewed along with the initial application submission.

Paul Newton, JD, CIP — IPA IRB Chair and Prisoner Representative
Director, Human Research Protection Program at Oregon Health & Science University

Paul Newton is an Oregon attorney with over 25 years of experience in law and litigation, investigation, trials and appeals, regulatory affairs, ethics and compliance, bioethics, institutional review board oversight (IRB), animal research care and protection (IACUC), intellectual property, and visas.  He first received his professional IRB certificate (CIP) in 2006.  He currently serves as the IRB Chair for IPA, and he is also the HRPP Director and IRB Chair at Oregon Health Sciences University in Portland, Oregon.

Prior to being involved in IRB work, Paul spent fifteen years as a criminal defense lawyer. Since beginning work in the IRB field in 1996, he has served on numerous IRB ethics committees—Oregon Health Division IRB, Oregon Health Sciences University IRB, Legacy Health IRB, Western IRB, Portland State University IRB, Yale IRB, Hummingbird IRB, and IPA IRB.  He has also served as a bioethics advisor to a large pharmaceutical company, served as a clinical ethics consultant for Legacy Health, served on a genetics privacy committee, and conducted countless training sessions for lawyers, investigators, ethicists, IRB members, college students, researchers, and international Fellows.

Michael F. Craft, MA
Evaluation Advisor, Latin America & Caribbean at UNICEF

Michael Craft specializes in social impact measurement and currently serves as the UNICEF Evaluation Adviser in Latin America and the Caribbean region. He brings over a decade of experience within the UN focusing on using evidence to inform policy and programming. His work has included leading UN Women evaluations on women's empowerment and assessing UN global political advocacy related conflict-affected settings. At UNDP, he conducted thematic evaluations and designed research systems. Michael holds a dual master’s degree in international affairs from Columbia University and Sciences Po (Paris).

Boyla Mainsah, PhD
Assistant Research Professor, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Duke University

Boyla Mainsah is currently a Research Scientist in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Duke University, where she conducts extensive research on signal processing and machine learning with brain-computer interfaces (BCI). Additionally, her MSc in biomedical engineering has influenced her research interests in cochlear implants, heart sound analysis, implanted heart pumps, and non-invasive acoustic diagnostics. Boyla is a peer reviewer for a number of engineering journals and is a review panelist for the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s summer research program.  

Kristianna Post, MSc
Program Manager at Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health

Kristianna Post (Kristi) is currently a program manager at the Global Initiative for Neuropsychiatric Genetics Education in Research (GINGER), where she supports both curriculum development and the execution of various trainings. Before joining GINGER, Kristi worked for many years at Innovations for Poverty Action, first facilitating the implementation of randomized controlled trials in Kenya and later supporting research staff from the United States. In the context of her later work at IPA, she managed IPA’s Research Review Committee (RRC), Global Staff Trainings (GSTs), and Institutional Review Board (IRB). As a member of IPA IRB, Kristi brings her in-depth knowledge of the practicalities, constraints, and opportunities of IPA’s research portfolio.

Funmilayo Ayeni, MBA
Nigeria Country Director at IPA

Funmilayo Ayeni is the Country Director for IPA Nigeria. Prior to joining IPA, Funmi conducted research and evaluations across several sectors including education, financial inclusion, mobile money, governance, and community empowerment. She has more than 15 years of research project management experience and more than 10 years of hands-on experience supervising large field teams working in last-mile communities across Africa and India. Funmi holds an MBA from Lagos Business School and a BSc in Physiology from the University of Ibadan.

Anisha Singh, MSc
PhD Candidate, Psychological and Behavioural Sciences at London School of Economics

Bio coming soon.

Tania Manríquez Roa, PhD
Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Institute of Biomedical Ethics at University of Zurich

Bio coming soon.

Sarah Kabay, PhD (Alternate Board Member)
Education Program Director at IPA

Sarah is the Director of IPA's Education sector program. She holds a PhD in International Development Education from New York University. Before beginning her doctoral program, she worked with IPA for five years in Uganda, where she managed the implementation and evaluation of a primary school savings program and worked in a variety of roles from 2008-2013. Her research focuses on early childhood and basic education. As an education researcher, she uses mixed methods and interdisciplinary research approaches and is particularly interested in the integration of qualitative research into randomized evaluations. Across different projects, she serves as an internal PI, provides technical support to IPA's Policy and Right-Fit Evidence teams, and directs Education Sector initiatives.

Lindsey Shaughnessy, MLIS (Alternate Board Member)
MLIS Candidate at University College Dublin

Lindsey Shaughnessy recently completed ('25) a Master of Library and Information Studies at University College Dublin. Prior to her graduate studies, Lindsey led IPA's Global Research and Data Support team (now Global Research and Data Science), which builds protocols, resources, software, and training programs related to research design, research methods, data collection, data quality assurance, data analysis, and data science. Lindsey joined IPA in 2010 as a Research Associate working on a rainfall insurance study in northern Ghana. Over her 13 years at IPA, she led a series of global initiatives, including digitizing primary data collection, building organizational information systems and data security protocols, training research staff, and overseeing IPA's Institutional Review Board. In addition to an MLIS, she holds a B.A. in Political Science, with a minor in Mandarin Chinese, from Carleton College.

David Torres León (Alternate Member)
Data Specialist, Global Research and Data Science at IPA

David is a Senior Data Specialist on IPA's Global Research and Data Science team, where he develops research and data science resources, leads trainings for staff and partners, and oversees the creation of tools to strengthen data quality and cleaning processes. He has professional experience supporting country offices with technical guidance across a range of research projects, as well as implementing field, phone, and WhatsApp-based data collection using platforms like Twilio. Previously, he contributed to evaluations in cash transfer programs, early childhood development, entrepreneurship, and migration. David holds a BA in Economics and a BA in Public and Government Affairs, as well as an MSc in Applied Economics, all from the University of Los Andes.

Daniela Carrillo (Alternate Member)
Data Associate, Global Research and Data Science at IPA

Daniela is a Data Associate for IPA's Global Research & Data Science team. In this role, she assists the Institutional Review Board (IRB) in completing submission reviews. She also supports the development of IPA's research and training resources on remote data collection and ethical research. Previously, she worked at IPA Colombia as a Research Analyst supporting research studies on the regularization of migrants and soft skills in youth education. Daniela holds a BA in Economics with a minor in Public Policy from Universidad del Rosario.

Alexandra Krstić (Alternate Member)
Senior Associate in Research Ethics and Technology, Global Research and Data Science at IPA

Alex is the Senior Associate in Research Ethics and Technology on IPA's Global Research & Data Science team. In this role, she serves as the lead for IPA's global portfolio related to research ethics, compliance with human subjects research protocols, and oversight of the IPA Institutional Review Board (IRB). Alex also contributes to projects involving data protection, information systems, and emerging technologies like artificial intelligence. Prior to her time at IPA, she has worked in a variety of roles in biomedical research, legal advocacy, and teaching. Alex holds a BA in Biology from Williams College and is completing a MA in Bioethics at New York University.

Please download the current IRB fee schedule here. (This fee schedule is effective until February 28, 2025.) 

Important Update: Effective March 1, 2025, IPA IRB will implement an updated fee schedule. For more info, please click here.

Please download this document here.

Please see our Frequently Asked Questions page here.

Is it human subjects research?

Is the research eligible for exemption?

May the IRB review be expedited?