SOUTH EASTERN SCHOOL DISTRICT

Transcription

1 No. 800 SECTION: OPERATIONS SOUTH EASTERN SCHOOL DISTRICT TITLE: RECORDS RETENTION AND MANAGEMENT ADOPTED: April 18, 2013 REVISED: 800. RECORDS RETENTION AND MANAGEMENT 1. Purpose It shall be the policy of the district to generate and retain only those papers, records and electronic data which shall be required for the effective operation of the district and to meet the obligations to our students, parents/guardians, employees, and state, local and federal governments. The purpose of this policy shall be to improve efficiency by reducing the time spent retrieving required information from a morass of duplicative and other unnecessary papers, records and electronic data. District personnel who generates, receives, or stores papers, records and electronic data at any location shall be responsible for implementing this policy. This policy shall be applicable to all papers, records and electronic data created, retained, and destroyed by the district. 2. Definitions Electronic Records - include numeric, graphic, and text information, which may be recorded, on any medium capable of being read by a computer and which satisfies the definition of a district record. Electronic records include, but shall not be limited to: magnetic media such as computer tapes, disks, optical disks, diskettes, various PDA devices including but not limited to Blackberries, iphones, etc., and other electronic storage devices and electronic filing systems containing district records. Voice and Text messages shall not be subject to the storage requirements of this policy and shall not be retained for any period of time. Permanent Records - shall be those records, which may not be destroyed. Permanent records may, however, be disposed of if they are replicated or preserved as required by the applicable schedules attached hereto, or provided that prior approval for their disposal has been obtained from the Superintendent and the qualified personnel assigned to each type of record. Non-Permanent Records - shall be those records which need to be retained for a specified period of time and which may be disposed of by the appropriate district personnel, with the prior approval of the Superintendent, upon expiration of the retention period in the applicable record retention schedule. Page 1 of 6

2 800. RECORDS RETENTION AND MANAGEMENT - Pg. 2 Records not subject to retention - shall be those records which need not be maintained permanently or for some specified period of time, and which may be used by district personnel as personally managed in-house working papers, reference materials, and drafts. 65 P.S. Sec Delegation of Responsibility Records - information, regardless of physical form or characteristics, that documents a transaction or activity of the district and that is created, received or retained pursuant to law or in connection with a transaction, business or activity of the district. The term includes a document, paper, letter, map, book, tape, photograph, film or sound recording, information stored or maintained electronically and a data-processed or image-processed document. The Superintendent or administrative designee shall be responsible for developing procedures for the implementation of this policy, and the Board shall be responsible for adopting a Records Retention and Disposition Schedule Plan. Document Retention Coordinator (DRC) In order to maintain a Records Retention and Disposition Schedule Plan that complies with federal and state laws and regulations and Board policy, the Board designates the Business Manager as the district s Document Retention Coordinator who shall serve as the chairperson of the Document Retention Committee. The Document Retention Coordinator shall be responsible to: 1. Ensure that training appropriate to the user s position and level of responsibility is provided. Such training may include: a. Operation, care and handling of the equipment and software. b. Requirements of the Records Retention and Disposition Schedule. c. Protocols for preserving and categorizing district records. d. Procedures and responsibilities of district staff in the event of a litigation hold. e. Identification of what is and what is not a record. f. Disposal of records. Page 2 of 6

3 800. RECORDS RETENTION AND MANAGEMENT - Pg Review the Records Retention and Disposition Schedule Plan periodically to ensure that record descriptions and retention periods are updated as necessary. 3. Identify, when the retention period expires, the specific records to be disposed of and ensure that all identified records are properly disposed of annually. Document Retention Committee (DRCom) A committee responsible for the development and recommendation of the district s Records Management Plan shall be established by the Board. The Records Management Committee shall give primary consideration to the most efficient and economical means of implementing the recommended Plan. Members of the Committee shall consist of the Superintendent or designee, the Document Retention Coordinator, Director of Human Resources, Director of Technology, and others as deemed necessary by the Committee. 4. Guidelines Effective records management requires continuous monitoring of changing regulations, technology and legal developments. The district recognizes that it may have to adapt and amend this policy and stated procedures to continually improve its effectiveness, applicability, and relevancy to district operations. The DRC shall review this policy and the administrative procedures annually with the DRCom and solicitor for compliance with applicable state and federal laws and regulations. The DRCom shall meet annually and forward, to all appropriate employees, information pertaining to this policy as needed for policy conformance. Exceptions This policy shall not apply to district vendors or any other affiliated parties not under the direct supervision and control of the Board. Litigation Hold Notwithstanding the disposition procedures, no record shall be destroyed if the district becomes aware that the record may be needed for pending litigation or of other reasons mandating the suspension of document destruction under this policy. A litigation hold shall be prompted by the receipt of a subpoena, commencement of litigation, reasonably anticipated litigation, investigations, or any other situation precipitating the preservation of documentary and electronic evidence. Page 3 of 6

4 800. RECORDS RETENTION AND MANAGEMENT - Pg. 4 To facilitate litigation holds, the district shall create a Litigation Hold Response Team. The response team shall fall under the supervision of the Superintendent and be advised by the district s Solicitor. District personnel, upon having the knowledge or belief of actual or impending litigation requiring the preservation of certain electronic/hardcopy records, shall immediately notify the Superintendent, in writing, to ensure the preservation of the subject electronic/hardcopy records, and to suspend any destruction activities. The response team shall consist of the Superintendent or administrative designee, Business Manager, Director of Technology, and other district personnel. The electronic/hardcopy records subject to a litigation hold shall be retained until all related legal proceedings have been concluded, or until such time as, in the written opinion of counsel for the district, the threat of litigation has been removed. , computer accounts, and hardware, if necessary, of separated employees that have been placed on a litigation hold shall be maintained by the Director of Technology until the hold shall be released. The Director of Technology shall be a member of the response team, unless s/he shall be involved in the pending litigation. Hardcopy records shall be maintained, by the appropriate personnel in a manner which protects the integrity of the information contained within. Minimum Retention Periods The record retention periods shall be considered minimum terms for the retention of the respective records after which such records may be disposed. While the records may be destroyed, in accordance with the conditions and procedures contained herein, the records may also be retained for longer than the established retention periods. Absence good cause to the contrary, district personnel should dispose of files in conformity with the minimum standards outlined in the administrative procedures. Methods Of Retention Wherever possible, the district shall maintain its records in their original format for retention. Where necessary, however, the district may, in its reasonable discretion, retain records in other than original formats, such as hardcopy, microfilm, Adobe document PDF, etc. Electronic Records The document retention procedures established by the district shall define the retention, destruction, and personnel responsible for specific electronic records, as defined in this policy. Page 4 of 6

5 800. RECORDS RETENTION AND MANAGEMENT - Pg. 5 District servers shall not be intended for long-term records retention. s shall be archived for a period of two (2) years in an archive file maintained by the Director of Technology. It shall be important to note that the message should be kept with the attachment(s). Any printed copy, if retained by the recipient, shall contain the following header information: 1. Who sent message. 2. Who message was sent to. 3. Date and time message was sent. 4. Subject of the message. It shall be the policy of this district to retain only those electronic records minimally necessary for student instruction and district business in accordance with retention procedures. As such, all district personnel shall be directed to create and retain only those electronic records necessary for student instruction and district business on the district s information network. Hardcopy Records Hardcopy records are typically records in paper format and may include student transcript documents, staff records, contract and bid information, etc. the document retention procedures established by the district shall define storage, retention, destruction, and the person responsible for hardcopy records. Methods Of Destruction The destruction of records is an acceptable and important stage in the information life cycle. Where sensitive personal information shall be contained in the record, the disposal method that shall be utilized for destruction shall be shredding or other appropriate means for non-electronic records. Where sensitive personal information shall be contained in electronic records, the district s technology personnel shall take all reasonably appropriate measures to ensure the destruction of such information in a secure fashion. Training Schedule A training schedule shall be established by the DRC to provide uniform understanding of this policy. The training shall also provide instruction as to the document type, length of storage, and method of destruction. Each district Page 5 of 6

6 800. RECORDS RETENTION AND MANAGEMENT - Pg. 6 department, described by the job title responsibility, shall provide the DRC with a list of staff to be trained on the procedures of this policy. Training shall be conducted yearly, to accommodate updates to this policy, and as required for new employees. References: School Code 24 P.S. Sec. 433, 518 Right-to-Know Law 65 P.S. Sec et seq. Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act 20 U.S.C. Sec. 1232g Federal Rules of Civil Procedure 16, 26, 34, 37, 45 Board Policy 004, 006, 105.2, 114, 138, 203, 203.1, 209, 212, 216, 216.1, 233, 314, 324, 326, 334, 601, 609, 610, 618, 619, 702, 706, 716, 801, 810, 810.1, 828, 830, 912 Page 6 of 6