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Submitting Boxes: Do's + Don'ts
Are you trying to fill up a box of paper records to submit to the Records Center but aren’t sure how? Do you have a box filled up but aren’t sure if you did it right? Take a look at the Do’s and Don’ts below to find the answers to your questions!
Do:
- Submit temporary boxes with mixed retentions. It is okay to mix records of various temporary retentions (records with a 3 year retention with records with a 7 year retention). All of the records will then be retained for the longest retention period in the box. It is good to not mix retentions, where possible, but in many cases, there are not enough records of each retention to fill a box.
- Enter a detailed description in the Box Contents field of the eRTS. Enter enough description to enable your department to locate submitted records 20 years down the road.
- Digitize paper records when it makes sense. Once records have been digitized, it is okay to shred the paper records. Paper records should not be digitized if the only reason is to save space. Storing the records in the University Records Center will take up fewer resources than a scanning project. However, if a backup copy of vital paper records or remote access is needed, it is appropriate to digitize and then shred, but only after the digital images are placed in a backed up, secure location, such as Box.
Don't:
- Mix historical with non-historical permanent records or highly confidential records. Historical records will eventually find their way to the University Archives where they will become eligible for research after their designated restriction period. In order to comply with the University Archives Policy it is important that non-historical records or records containing highly-confidential information not be mixed with historical records to ensure they are not transferred to the University Archives. Click here for a list of historical records.
- Mix permanent records with temporary records. When temporary records (a record with a retention period of less than permanent) are mixed with permanenet records, these records will be retained permanently taking up valuable space in the University Records Center. When possible do not submit permanent (historical or non-historical) records until there are enough records to fill a box.
Retention Tip
Risk Management Liability Waivers: Retained Permanently. If not already retained in online waiver system, waivers should be transferred to Risk Management
If you have questions about this retention please contact Haley Dunkley @ 2.6260 or email her at haley_dunkley@byu.edu.
Just a reminder that this retention applies to both paper and electronic records!
eRTS/Records Center Moment
When submitting an Electronic Records Transfer Sheet (eRTS) on urim.byu.edu for a paper box, you don’t have to use the “Function” or “Record Category” dropdowns if you already know the retention. Don’t know the retention? ask Haley, she can help you!