Records Management and Retention

Records Management Policy

Roger Williams University adopted a Records Management Policy and Records Retention Schedule in 2015.  Theretention schedule details specific disposition instructions (under “Period of Time Retained”) for each record indicating how long records must be kept in your office. Some records have a disposition of “permanent;” and some permanent records should be transferred to the University Archives after their retention period has ended. Please contact the archivist for more information or for a copy of the Records Retention Schedule.

Following is a list of common types of records that should be retained permanently by the creating offices or departments and transferred to University Archives, as specified in the Records Retention Schedule:

  • Executive Correspondence
  • Accreditation Reports and Self-studies
  • Annual Reports
  • Organizational Charts
  • Policies and Procedures Documents and Handbooks
  • Department and Program Records, including agendas, minutes, reports, and correspondence
  • Committee and Task Force Records, including agendas, minutes, reports, and correspondence
  • Public Relations and Marketing Records, including press releases and promotional materials
  • University Publications, including catalogs, student newspapers, and yearbooks
  • Lectures and Performances Records
  • Special Events Records, including Commencement
  • Faculty Research, including sabbatical reports
  • Student Research and Theses
  • Audio-visual Materials, including photographs, slides, videos, and sound recordings

The above is not an exhaustive list. Please contact the archivist for information about regarding other types of records, or for a copy of the Records Retention Schedule.

All records transfers must be approved by the archivist and all approved transfers must include a Records Transfer Form. Records should be transferred to the University Archives in the original order in which they have been arranged in use.Original groupings of documents and folder titles are necessary for proper arrangement and description of archival materials, so please do not remove records from the folders in which they were placed in your filing cabinets. Unless otherwise specified, up to two copies of any item will be maintained in the Archives, one for use by patrons and one for preservation purposes. 

Questions?