University Records Retention and Disposition

Scope

1. This policy applies to all records created, received, maintained, or otherwise used in the pursuit of Indiana University’s mission, regardless of the office of record, location, or format of the record.
2. This policy applies to all Indiana University organizational units (campuses, faculty governance organizations, departments, offices, affiliated agencies, etc.) and university employees including all academic appointees, student academic appointees, staff and temporary employees, student employees, and volunteers at Indiana University.

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Policy Statement

1. Indiana University is committed to managing the records that are necessary to preserve its historical legacy; to ensuring continuity of operations and effective administration; to the responsible and timely destruction of records; to meeting legal, regulatory, and fiscal responsibilities; and to optimizing its use of space and time.
2. Records subject to this policy are the property of the university and not of the officers, academic appointees, or employees who create them or to whom they are entrusted. Records are to be retained and disposed of in accordance with the Indiana University Records Retention Schedule.
3. The Bloomington Libraries University Archives is responsible for the administration of the Indiana University records management program, including the maintenance of the general and unit-specific records retention schedule. The Retention Schedule is comprised of a general schedule and unit-specific schedules and may be filtered to display a specific section. The University Records Retention and Disposition Committee provides oversight for the program and has the final decisional authority on the Retention Schedule, including unit-specific provisions.
4. Each university unit is responsible for implementing this policy and associated procedures within its business operations. Unit responsibilities include inventorying the type of records created, received, and maintained specific to the unit; consulting with the campus archivist to determine which university records have historical value; coordinating with the University Records Retention and Disposition Committee to create unit-specific retention schedules in accordance with the minimum statutory retention period; and applying the general and unit-specific Indiana University Records Retention Schedule, as applicable.  Applying the schedules includes arranging for proper storage of records and handling the disposal or archiving of records whose retention periods have expired.
5. Except as described in Paragraph F, requests to deviate from or modify the retention periods identified in the Retention Schedule must be made to and approved by the University Records Retention and Disposition Committee.
6. Records that are the subject of a subpoena; relevant to a pending or ongoing public records request; or relevant to pending or ongoing litigation, government investigation, or audit must be retained until such matters have been resolved, all eligible appellate processes are exhausted, and the retention period has expired. The decision to deviate from the Retention Schedule in these situations is made by The Office of the Vice President and General Counsel. When necessary, a notice regarding a required deviation from the schedule will be provided to the applicable unit by the Office of the Vice President and General Counsel.

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Reason for Policy

Effective records management ensures that records are retained and disposed of in compliance with legal, regulatory, fiscal, administrative, and contractual obligations and, with regard to appropriate records, archived to preserve the university’s history. This policy articulates the responsibility for records retention and disposition at Indiana University and provides guidance for compliance with the Indiana University Records Retention Schedule.

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Procedures

1. The University Records Retention and Disposition Committee develops and maintains procedures, standards, and guidance to assist Records Managers, Records Coordinators, Archivists, and university units in meeting their responsibilities for records management. Procedures for records management are updated, as needed, to comply with federal and state laws and regulations, university policy, and the university technology environment.
2. The University Records Retention and Disposition Committee will maintain the procedures, standards, and guidance on the Indiana University Records Management Website.
3. Questions regarding this policy, requests for new records retention schedules, requests to update record retention schedules, and requests to deviate from records retention schedules should be submitted to archives@iu.edu.

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Definitions

Record: Information in any form created, received, or maintained by Indiana University or its employees or agents pursuant to legal obligations or in pursuit of the university’s mission. Examples of a record may include email and other correspondence, meeting minutes, contracts, invoices and receipts, photographs, etc.

For further guidance on determining what is considered a record at Indiana University, visit the Indiana University Records Management Website.

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Sanctions

Indiana University will address reports of the mishandling of university records in accordance with applicable policies and procedures. Depending on the individual and circumstances involved, this could include the offices of IU Human Resources, chief academic officer for the campus, chief student affairs officer for the campus, Office of the VP and General Counsel, and/or appropriate law enforcement agencies.

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Additional Contacts

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History

The UA-18 Policy was changed to an Interim Policy and the Records Retention Schedule was changed to an Interim Schedule as of January 25th, 2022.

The policy and schedule were removed from its interim status, with no changes made, on the October 20, 2022.

In July 2024, references to the renamed IU Indianapolis campus were updated in this policy.

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