The Steering Committee (SC) is the central governing body of the SPRINT consortium. It oversees strategic, scientific, and operational decisions to ensure the integrity, rigor, and coordinated execution of the SPRINT platform.

​​

The Steering Committee consists of the Coordinating Center (CC) and one PI from each participating SPRINT Network Member (NM) laboratory.

Each participating institution is represented by a single vote, even if multiple independent laboratories from the same institution are involved. It is expected that each institutional vote reflects internal consensus among the PI(s) and relevant study personnel.

​

Roles and Responsibilities

Steering Committee members are responsible for:

• Participating in governance and decision-making for the SPRINT platform

• Ensuring that all personnel at their institution understand and adhere to SPRINT Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs)

• Implementing decisions agreed upon by the Steering Committee

The PI of the Coordinating Center chairs all Steering Committee meetings, moderates discussions, and ensures that sufficient time is allotted before decisions are put to a vote.

​

Decision-Making

All SPRINT platform decisions are made by majority vote. Votes may be conducted during Steering Committee meetings or electronically (e.g., via email or shared collaboration platforms).

A quorum is not required for votes. Steering Committee members who are unable to attend a meeting may submit their vote and supporting rationale in advance to the Coordinating Center, which will present and cast the vote on their behalf. Members who neither attend nor submit a vote agree to accept the outcome of the decision.

​

Intervention Oversight and Conflict-of-Interest Management

To preserve scientific rigor and minimize bias, when an intervention is selected for testing within the SPRINT network, an Intervention Principal Investigator (Intervention PI) is appointed in an advisory capacity.

The Intervention PI may be:

• The investigator who discovered the intervention

• A representative of the organization developing the intervention

• A subject-matter expert with scientific expertise relevant to the intervention

The Intervention PI is not a member of the Steering Committee, does not participate in votes, and has no direct contact with SPRINT network sites. All communication between the Intervention PI and the Steering Committee is facilitated exclusively through the Coordinating Center.

If a SPRINT Network PI assumes the role of Intervention PI, they recuse themselves from all votes related to the specific trial and their laboratory does not contribute subjects to that trial. Similarly, if an Intervention PI is affiliated with the same institution as a Steering Committee member, both parties must refrain from independent discussions related to Steering Committee or intervention matters outside the formal governance structure.

Intervention PIs may review and provide comments on relevant SOPs but do not have voting authority.