UIC Records Management Task Force
Background
Managing the active, inactive, and permanent records of the university is one of the most significant administrative challenges facing UIC today. Increasingly, vital university records like correspondence, reports, and curriculum materials are created in electronic format and saved on the desktop computers or in the email accounts of individual staff members. Others, such as many HR and student records, are part of large university-wide electronic systems like Banner. At the same time, changes in state legislation and civil law have increased the burden on the university to produce records in a timely manner. Public interest in the transparent administration of state institutions has also contributed to increased demand for university records.
At UIC, many university offices are involved with the management of university records, including the University Archives, University Legal Counsel, the campus computing offices, as well as the custodians of these records. However, the university lacks a co-ordinated approach to records management resulting in piecemeal compliance and widely varying records retention practices. The resulting costs and risks assumed by the university are many, including:
- Increased storage costs and legal liability when university records are not destroyed at the end of their retention period;
- High cost of retrieval of university documents in the case of Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) or civil discovery requests;
- Violation of Illinois public records laws and risk of large fines in the case of civil discovery requests if records have been inadvertently destroyed
Task Force Charge
The purpose of the Records Management Task Force is to:
- Draft a campus policy on the management of university analog and electronic records to ensure compliance with public records laws including the Illinois State Records Act and the Freedom of Information Act and to ensure preservation of records of enduring value;
- Develop a draft policy on addressing e-mail in the records management context;
- Develop a plan for the timely creation of record retention schedules in collaboration with UIUC;
- Recommend a process for educating unit records managers and administrators on records management policy and practice;
- Make recommendations on the structure and staffing of a Records Management program at UIC;
- Serve as a liaison to the Records and Information Management initiatives at the University Administration level; and
- Provide a link to campus task forces focused on Business Continuity and Information Technology.
The Task Force will be chaired by the University Librarian and will prepare a report to be submitted to the Provost and Chancellor. A draft report will be completed by mid-May 2010 with the final report due at the end of June.
Membership
Final Report
If you would like to submit comments on the final report, please use the form below.