The ARC staff are working largely remotely, with the exception of mandated facility inspections. Committee and PI meetings, RATS training, and ARC office hours are held via Zoom.
For questions about ARC business, contact the ARC staff at arc@research.ucla.edu or 310-206-6308.
The ARC administrative office works with the UCLA institutional animal care and use committee (IACUC), known locally as the Chancellor’s Animal Research Committee (ARC), to oversee the use of animals in research, teaching, and testing. To ensure the humane treatment and proper care of animals at UCLA, the office staff provides administrative support to the ARC for activities including the following:
- Animal protocol submission and review, including application pre-review, submission processing, communicating and explaining ARC queries, and issuing approvals
- Required animal user trainings
- Interpretation and application of policies and regulations
- Post-approval compliance checks of research activities
- Semi-annual facility inspections
- Semi-annual animal care and use program evaluations
- Inspection and evaluation reports
- Reports of noncompliance and/or mistreatment
The ARC administrative office serves three audiences: the public, by upholding the highest legal and ethical standards of animal care; the University, by ensuring institutional compliance with federal, state, and local regulations governing the use of animals; and the research community, by facilitating thorough and balanced reviews of protocols designed to better mankind and improve the understanding of science.
For more news, please check out ARC News.
UCLA is a proud signatory of the USARO Agreement . The USARO Agreement is a framework for openness based on a set of shared principles that reflect our scientific values and our public responsibilities in the U.S. These principles are summarized in the acronym C.A.P.E., which stands for:
- Communicate clearly about why, when, and how animals are critical in advancing medicine and science that benefit humans, animals, and the environment.
- Amplify our commitment to skilled, compassionate care, including veterinary care, for all animals in research.
- Promote the 3Rs (Replacement, Reduction, Refinement) as the foundation for both scientific rigor and ethical justification for animal use.
- Engage with public audiences, including the media and policymakers, to share accurate, accessible information about the involvement of animals in research.
Information about animals in research and teaching at UCLA is available on the Animals in Research and Teaching at UCLA page.