Records Management within the UW Colleges and UW-Extension

1
Records Management within the UW Colleges and
UW-Extension

• Laura A. Dunek, J.D., Office of General Counsel
• David Null, Director, University Archives
• WisLine, April 7, 2009

2
Wisconsins Records Statutes Wis. Stats.
16.61 and 19.32

• What is a public record?
• Why is it important to properly manage public
  records?

3
Wisconsins Records Management Statute Wis.
Stats. 16.61

• Public records include all materials, regardless
  of physical form or characteristics, made or
  received by any state agency in connection with
  the transaction of public business.

4
Declaration of Policy Wis. Stats. 19.31

• All persons are entitled to the greatest possible
  
• information regarding the affairs of government.
• This statute shall be construed in every instance
  with a presumption of complete public access.
• The denial of public access generally is contrary
  to
• public interest, and only in an exceptional case
  may access be denied.

5
Wisconsins Public Records Statute Wis.
Stats. 19.32

• Record means any material regardless of
  physical form or characteristics, which has been
  created or is being kept by an authority and upon
  which written, drawn, printed, spoken, visual or
  electromagnetic information is recorded or
  preserved.

6
Public Records Exceptions

• Duplicates
• Personal property
• Personal notes
• Preliminary computations
• Drafts
• Destroy non-records as soon as you no longer need
  them.

7
Administrative Rule 12

• If agencies maintain public records in digital
  format only, then they must meet provisions of
  Admin Rule 12
• Agencies must maintain accessibility,
  retrievability, authenticity of records
  throughout their retention life
• Does not require State or Local government
  agencies to maintain records electronically

8
Amendments to the Federal Rules of Civil
Procedure

• Effective Date December 1, 2006
• The mighty phrase
• electronically stored information

9
electronically stored information

• Rule 34(a) is expansive and includes any type of
  information that is stored electronically.
• Rule 34(a) Discovery of electronically stored
  information stands on equal footing with
  discovery of paper documents.

10
University of Wisconsin System Records
Management Program

• Board of Regents Policy Provides a legal
  framework for managing the records created and
  received by the University of Wisconsin.
• UW Records Officer Council Provides leadership
  in training employees, and achieving successful
  records management practices at UW Institutions. 
  
• Resources Available at http//www.uwsa.edu/gc-off
  /records/

11
Goals of Records Management

• Develop and implement sound record keeping
  practices
• Identify, appraise, locate, manage university
  information resources
• Maintain consistent record keeping practices
• Satisfy statutory requirements
• Generate fewer records, but better records

12
Life Cycle of a Record

• Creation (or receipt)
• Distribution and use (active)
• Maintenance and Storage (inactive)
• Retention / Disposition
• Preservation (or destruction)

13
Archives (or other permanent preservation)
Distribution and Use
Maintenance (scheduling, storage)
Creation (or receipt)
Destruction (recycling, shredding, confidential
destruction)
14
RDAs (records retention/disposition
authorizations) or records schedules

• Official forms used to secure disposition of all
  public records (approved by State Public Records
  Board)
• Some are State wide (e.g. classified personnel
  records)
• Some are UW System wide (e.g. unclassified
  personnel records)
• Some are campus or unit specific (e.g. UW-Madison
  departmental academic administrative records)

15
Storage and Disposition

• Inactive Records Storage State Records Center
  (or other vendors)
• Preservation University Archives (official
  repository for UW-Madison, UW System
  Administration, UW Colleges and UW-Extension)
• Destruction method specified in RDA

16
Employee Responsibilities

• Know your records what you have
  original/official responsibility for and what you
  do not
• Comply with University and State records policies
• If you have records retention schedules,
  implement them systematically. If not, work with
  appropriate staff to get them developed and
  approved.
• Maintain records so they can be accessed

17
Employee Responsibilities

• Be in touch with department IT staff, data
  administrator, technology specialist, etc.
• Be aware of the need for extra attention to
  electronic records--storage, access, security,
  etc.

18
Impact of Technology

• E-mail
• Imaging systems
• Internet / intranet
• Data base technology
• Portable devices laptops, PDAs, Blackberries,
  phones
• Othersmore to come

19
Electronic records

• Records retention is based upon appraisal and
  analysis of the information content of the record
  NOT format
• Electronic records management requires a
  partnership among staff and information
  management professionals
• ARMS Bulletin 5
• UW-Madison Electronic Records and Information
  Policy Principles

20
Electronic Records Preservation

• Necessity of a migration plan -technology shifts
  every 3-5 years
• Need for quality control
• System upgrades / conversions--excellent
  opportunity to address records keeping issues
• Need institution or system-wide strategy

21
Records Management Resources
The Records Management Series

• Public Records Fundamentals
• Business Communication

22
Another Resource Tool to Use

• Ethics in the Workplace