ADOPTED: March 1999

*UM System Records Policy Number 23001 will take precedence over this BPPM Policy 10:020.

University Records shall not be destroyed or otherwise disposed of by any University officer or employee on his own initiative.

Contact Records and Information Management at email recordsmanagement@umsystem.edu or call (573) 882-5955 for additional information.

Retention & Disposal of University Records

Records Retention Authorization will be collectively approved by the Campus Archivists; UM director of Records Management; UM director of Internal Auditing, and the General Counsel. Retention – “Retention” refers to the saving of the actual record either in the department of the University Records Center. Disposal – “Disposal” refers to the disposal of the actual record wither by physical destruction or transfer to the campus Archives.

Recommendation to Committee

Records Management in coordination with departments, will inventory departmental records and will develop Records Retention Authorizations to meet the administrative, legal, fiscal, research and historical needs and requirements of the University and develop Records Retention Authorizations that will be submitted for approval.

Transfer of Records

All transferred records must be accompanied by the appropriate form.

Transfer to Records Center

All records transferred to the Records Center for storage must be accompanied by a Transmittal of Records to University Records Center (UM 34).

Transfer to Archives

After consultation with Records Management or Archives staff, records transferred to Archives must be accompanied by a Transfer of Records to Archives (UM 34A) available at the Records Center. Records scheduled for transfer to campus Archives are transferred in accordance with instructions from the Office of Campus Archivist (882-7567), 705 Lewis Hall.

Inactive Record Storage

All inactive records of value (records referred to on an average of once per month or less) from all campuses will be stored in the University Records Center (882-7652), 2910 LeMone Blvd., unless otherwise authorized by Records Management. Attics, basements, closets, stairwells, etc. are not considered acceptable storage places for University records. Departments utilizing such locations or using shelving to store boxes of inactive records should arrange for the transfer of these records to the Records Center, 2910 LeMone Blvd.

Type of Records to be Stored

Records stored in the Records Center are inactive records of value.

Storage Boxes

Records storage boxes, available from Printing Services, must be used in storing records in the Records Center. Records stored in other types of boxes will not be accepted by the Records Center.

Labels

Records Storage Labels (UM 121) available at the Records Center are used to label boxes of records being transferred to the Records Center.

Control of Stored Records

Control of records stored in the Records Center remains with the department of origin.

• Records Management personnel will not permit records stored at the Records Center to be released or referenced without express permission by the department concerned, with the exception of a request by Internal Auditing.

Access to Stored Records

If a department wants access to any of it records stored at the Records Center, it may request:

• The actual record by returned.
• Copies of the record be sent to the department.
• Specific information be extracted from the record and given to the department via mail or phone, when practical.

Disposal of Records

Disposal of Stored Records

As soon as practical, all records stored in the Records Center will be incorporated in a schedule of records disposal as approved.

• Records stored in the Records Center will not be transferred or destroyed without PRWR written notice to the department of origin.
• Written notice consists of an approved Certificate of Records Disposition.
• Destruction of all records stored in the Records Center is by any method which makes record reconstruction impossible.

Disposal of Confidential or Sensitive Records

All University records of a confidential or sensitive nature, which have been approved for disposal, may be disposed of by any method making record reconstruction impossible.

• Determination of what constitutes confidential or sensitive records is the responsibility of the department. Student academic records, health, payroll and personnel files are the more obvious confidential records.
• Departments not having access to the necessary equipment or facilities may transfer all records approved for disposal to the University Records Center (882-7652), 2910 LeMone Blvd.

Records Destruction Labels Required

All records being transferred to the Records Center for disposal must be boxed and labeled with a green records destruction labels (UM 176A) available at the Records Center.

Disposal of All Other Records

Records which are not of a confidential or sensitive nature may be disposed of by regularly established departmental practices for handling waste paper.