Records Management

The Records Management Program advises Oregon State University departments and offices on filing, storage, retention, re-formatting, and disposal of university records. As of March 2023, the University Records Manager has been designated as the Records Officer for Oregon State University and is responsible for development of the General Records Retention Schedule and for educating university personnel in records management policy and procedures. The University Records Manager also assists university units in developing unit-specific retention schedules where appropriate.

Oregon State University's Records Retention Policy (adopted January 2, 2019) is University Standard 04-010. The General Records Retention Schedule (effective July 1, 2015; with revisions effective May 10, 2021) sets a minimum retention period for specific university records.

Following are presentations on various records management topics relevant to OSU:

• How Long Do I Need to Keep This Stuff? An Overview of OSU's Records Retention Policy (2015 Training Days) (PDF).
• What to Keep (and What to Toss): Identifying OSU Records with Long-Term Administrative or Historical Value (2016 Training Days) (PDF).
• Do I Really Need to Keep this Stuff? An Overview of Records Retention at Oregon State University (2018 Training Day) (PDF).

Unit-Specific Records Retention Schedules set a minimum retention period for records created or maintained by an OSU unit. The following unit schedules are currently available:

• International Scholar and Faculty Services (effective March 1, 2016) (PDF).
• Office of Equal Opportunity and Access (effective December 1, 2016) (PDF).
• Extension and Experiment Station Communications (effective December 1, 2019) (PDF).
• Admissions (effective January 1, 2018) (PDF).

The Records Management Program also provides storage and retrieval of non-permanent, in-active, and/or confidential records that have not met their minimum retention period in the University Records Centers. This service includes storage of materials in a secure location at no charge to OSU offices or departments as well as retrieval of needed materials from the records center by SCARC staff for delivery to your office. Participating departments are responsible for providing standard records storage boxes (12x10x15 inches), collaborating with the Records Manager on transportation of materials to the records center, and paying also for confidential destruction of materials once it is determined it is appropriate for them to be destroyed.

The Records Management Program was founded at OSU in 1966, making it one of the first programs of its kind. The professional faculty position of University Records Manager was put into place March 2023. This new position reports directly to the University Archivist.

For assistance with Records Management requests, please contact us at scarc@oregonstate.edu.