As a University employee, who owns the information you create?
This might seem obvious, but there are a few things you need to know.
- As an employee of the University, any information you create or receive during your employment that has anything to do with University business belongs to the Regents. Whether it is information stored on your computer, paper files, voice messages, portable media, home laptop, etc. — it is Regential property and needs to be created and managed according to policy.
- Any personal information you may accumulate during your employment is yours. To respect this, whenever you move to another department or leave the University, you should collect or transfer your personal information.
- Once you have done so, the University will access the remaining information in order to keep departmental responsibilities moving forward.
Is there a policy on who owns the information you create?
All university administrative records are owned by The Regents of the University of California regardless of their physical location, even when they are in the possession of individuals. The following policy statement was issued by Vice President Bolton on October 31, 1969, and remains in effect: With respect to (administrative records of) all of its officers and employees, including members of the faculty, whose regular or occasional performance of administrative duties puts them in possession of files, records, or documents pertaining to such duties, such files, records, or documents, including but not limited to correspondence, reports, writings, and other papers, records, maps, tapes, photographic files and prints, magnetic and punched cards, discs and drums, are the property of The Regents of the University of California, and, as such, may not be permanently removed from the University nor destroyed except in accordance with disposition schedules established by the Records Management Committee.
UC RMP-1 Ownership Statement
Other helpful information: UCSC Acceptable Information Use Policy
What is the UC Records Management Committee?
The University Records Management Committee (RMC) is charged by University policy, RMP-1, “University Records Management Program,” with coordinating records management across the University to ensure that administrative records are appropriately managed and preserved and can be retrieved as needed. The RMC is responsible for guiding University records management and privacy policy, developing and maintaining the universitywide records retention schedule, and developing guidelines and procedures supporting best practices and regulatory requirements.
The committee is composed of the records management coordinator from each campus, the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Agriculture and Natural Resources, and the Office of the President, as well as four ex-officio members representing the General Counsel of The Regents, the UC Archivists Council, the University Auditor in the Office of the President, and the Chief Financial Officer in the Office of the President. The Associate Vice President for Information Technology Services is responsible for overseeing records management and information practices policy and is chair of the committee.
Who is the University Archivist?
The University Archives accepts records documenting UCSC activities, functions, decisions, and/or policies and programs (both adopted and rejected), in every format, once they are no longer needed for current use.
Compare your records to the records schedules in the University of California Records Disposition Schedules Manual. You may also consult the University of California’s Business and Finance Bulletin RMP-2, Records retention and disposition: principles, processes, and guidelines. Some instructions include the phrases “then to Archives” or “Subject to archival review.” That means you must bring them to the attention of the University Archivist once they are no longer regularly used. However, there are some records not listed in the Disposition Schedules as “to Archives” that may, nevertheless, belong in the Archives. If you are obligated to keep the material permanently in order to conduct business, if you must maintain it to meet fiscal or legal obligations, or if it has research value, contact the University Archivist (ktknox@ucsc.edu) to assist you in determining what to do with your records.
How do I request copies of campus records pertaining to me?
First, locate the department holding your records then follow the instructions for requesting copies. Some of the common requests are for:
Ordering UCSC transcripts from the Office of the Registrar.
Ordering medical records from the Student Health Center.
Ordering personnel records from Staff Human Resources.
Other records pertaining to you may be requested through Information Practices.