Records Management and Archives
Policy Statement
Records that are created or received by Marywood University trustees, officers, and faculty, or staff members in the course of University business are the property of the University and are subject to its overall control. The Office of Records Management and Archives serves to provide support and direction for the University's records management program, including maintenance of the Records Management and Archives Handbook. The Director of Records Management and Archives provides guidelines for the retention and disposition of records, including the transfer of records to the University Archives. These guidelines, in the form of records retention and disposition schedules, are based on a determination of the following:
- legal retention requirements as defined in relevant federal and state statutes and regulations;
- recommendatins of pertinent professional organizations as identified by the office that creates or receives the record, in consultation with the Director of Records Management and Archives;
- administrative and operational requirements as defined by the creating office in consultation with the Director of Records Management and Archives;
- historical and enduring value of records as defined by the Director of Records Management and Archives.
Definitions
Records are books, documents, maps, drawings, photographs, letters, papers, and any other thing on which information is recorded or stored by graphic, electronic or mechanical means, exclusive of an individual's personal records, e.g., a faculty member's roll books or personal research notes.
Procedures
- The Director of Records Management and Archives drafts records retention schedules for University records, defining the length of time that specified types of records are to be retained in their active and semi-active phases, as well as their final disposition once they become inactive. Schedules are then formally approved and authorized for implementation with the signature of an appropriate authority.
- After records have been retained in a department for the requisite time, they are either disposed of in the creating department or sent to the University Archives. The decision to dispose of University records or send them to the Archives is based on the established retention and disposition schedules or, in the absence of relevant guidelines, in consultation with the Director of Records Management and Archives.
- A summarized list of University records that have been disposed of in a department must be sent to the Director of Records Management and Archives.
- A department wishing to transfer records in bulk to the University Archives must first contact the Director of Records Management and Archives to discuss, e.g., whether the records have enduring value to the University, proper packaging, and a convenient time for transfer.
Related Policies
Related Committees
History
12/01/00 - Approved by the President as recommended by the Policy Committee of the University
11/04/05 - Revision approved by the President of the University as recommended by the Policy Committee of the University