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American Archivists
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Guidelines for College and University Archives
III. Records Management
A. Introduction
Many college and university archival programs include records management.
This section outlines basic considerations and components of records management
programs either within or organizationally separate from archival programs.
See also the suggested readings in Appendix II.
B. Records Management Objectives
- Protect institutional information resources throughout their life cycle.
This includes complying with state and federal laws and regulations, identifying
vital records, and implementing strategies for preserving information and
records of long-term value.
- Improve the flow of information in the organization.
- Establish a records management component in institutional information resource
policy and planning.
- Provide for adequate data collection and information access and retrieval;
including institutional positions on privacy and confidentiality.
C. A Policy Statement:
- defines what "record" means within the context of the institution's mission
and administrative rules, state and federal laws;
- specifies ownership of institutional records;
- designates records management responsibilities and roles in areas such
as systems development and maintenance, information architecture design,
and standards development;
- defines records management roles and responsibilities at all levels of
the institution;
- indicates how to develop, approve and implement retention and disposition
policies and who will do them;
- explains how to provide internal and external access to institutional records
and information; this policy should address state and federal laws that may
be appropriate, especially privacy and open records laws, as well as institutional
administrative rules;
- specifies policies and practices that will make wise use of information
technology to ensure the right tools for the right applications.
D. Organizational Relationships
The administrative relationships must facilitate a systems approach to records
management; i.e., analyze and appraise all components of an information systems
as a unit. This approach requires coordinated and cooperative organizational
relationships to bring together and address the needs of the records creator,
information technology staff, records management, archives and others. Organizational
relationships should:
- provide authority for program staff to operate on an institution-wide
basis including authority for the archivist/records manager to negotiate
directly with campus offices regarding all facets of the records management
program;
- ensure access to appropriate campus offices and staff;
- include a working relationship with campus legal and audit staffs;
- foster effective working relationships with information technology staffs
and others involved in information policy and planning and systems design;
- provide a structure for cooperation and communication between the institution's
archival and records management program personnel, in cases where the records
management program is organizationally separate from the Archives.
E. An Advisory Body Can:
- provide guidance to the records manager;
- promote greater institutional support for records management program activities;
- act as the policy approval and advocacy body in the review and approval
of institutional records retention and disposition schedules and standards.
Appropriate members of this body include: the institution's archivist
and records manager; along with representatives from legal services, internal
audit, each of the major organizational units, and the institution's information
technology unit.
F. Components of a Records Management Program May Include:
- policy and procedure development;
- records inventory, appraisal, retention, and disposition;
- inactive files management and control (records center);
- helping develop or dealing with digital information systems, data collection
(forms management), management of active files, correspondence, reprographics,
micrographics, reports, mail, and vital records; and establishing training
and outreach programs.
Fundamental areas of a basic records management program include:
1. Policy and procedure development.
Policies should provide authority and define parameters of the
program, define relationships with other institution units (See C. above),
and denote levels of responsibility and services provided. The records manager/archivist
should produce a records management manual to specify the institution's records
program policies and procedures.
2. A records retention and disposition program.
a) Inventory and appraise records to gather basic information about the
organization's records to facilitate records appraisal, to establish retention
and disposition schedules, to achieve economies in the storage and disposition
of inactive records, and to identify the institution's vital records.
b) Develop schedules to define retention and disposition responsibilities.
During the schedules' development, they must incorporate legal, audit,
administrative and historical values of the institution's records and information.
The archivist should consult the institution's legal counsel and internal
auditor while reviewing or approving these schedules. This review can be
the responsibility of the advisory group described in D. above.
c) Records managers/archivists can use a variety of methods to implement
retention and disposition policies.
—Make them available to those in the working offices; i.e.,
office administrative staffs.
—Publicize them using the most accessible communication vehicle; e.g., administrative
manuals, Web pages or other online communication technologies.
—Share retention and disposition policies with information technology staffs
and with those responsible for the institution's information resource planning.
—Implementation should also include provision for periodic audits and reviews
to insure that the retention policies are up to date and that campus offices
are implementing them appropriately.
3. Data collection/forms management.
- Systems analysis and design should improve information flow, ensure that
data collection supports the business applications of the organization,
streamline data collection instruments and systems, enhance the use of
collected data, ensure that state and federal rules and regulations regarding
data collection are satisfied, and select appropriate tools for data collection.
- Forms and inventory control should maintain control of official institutional
forms and document revisions to them, eliminate duplicate forms, ensure
that all forms representing the institution have been officially approved,
and control printing supplies and costs.
- Increasingly, institutions will purchase e-forms (electronic forms) software
packages to support institutional processes. These packages, while useful,
greatly encourage the proliferation of unofficial forms. The records manager
should be involved in the development of specifications for software, so
that the objectives in place for paper forms will also be applied to the
electronic systems. This involvement will also help appropriately define
official records and deal with retention and disposition issues during
the design process.
4. Active records management.
- Develop filing systems and file naming standards. The records manager/archivist
should be prepared to provide advice on types of filing systems appropriate
for particular types of processes and records. Some institutions may request
the development of file naming standards to support electronic filing systems.
- Deal with electronic information management systems. Adequate protection
of institutional information resources and appropriate management of them
throughout their life cycle can only be accomplished effectively by the
early involvement of records professionals in the systems development phase.
Records manager/archivists should be knowledgeable/keep abreast of technological
developments in this area on their campuses and maintain ongoing involvement
in information systems' growth and development.
- Supervise filing supplies and storage equipment. The records manager/archivist
should have the authority to recommend types of file equipment purchases
that will support uniformity of filing practices and to request justification
for the purchase of highly specialized filing systems.
- Assist with micrographics/imaging. Many colleges and universities maintain
micrographics operations; imaging and workflow systems are becoming more
prevalent. They can be effective tools to reduce bulk and to preserve information
stored on fragile media. If not a part of the institutional archives or
records management program, a working relationship must be established
and maintained with such operations or systems.
5. Inactive records management.
- Records center management ensures the protection, access and retrieval
of institutional records until their retention value has been met. It includes
accession and inventory control, security and access provisions, and environmental
controls.
- The records manager should work with the data manager and information
technology staff to ensure the retention of electronic data in accordance
with retention and disposition policies and that data remain accessible
and retrievable throughout their life cycle.
- Records disposition ensures the destruction of records in accordance
with approved retention policies, appropriate handling of confidential
materials, the end of all activity on the records, and the transfer of
records designated for permanent preservation to the institution's archives.
6. Training and outreach program.
To be effective, the records manager/archivist will have to rely on others
in the institution to assist in carrying out the objectives of the records
management program. The training and outreach program should:
- regularly provide workshops and other training which outline basic
program policies and procedures and office responsibilities;
- establish a system of records liaisons/coordinators within the major
units of the institution to serve as basic contacts for the records management
program;
- use other tools which may be helpful, e.g., articles in campus newsletters,
brochures on various records management topics, and electronic communication
technologies to inform and educate the campus community about the records
program.
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