Services for Offices, Departments, Colleges, and other Campus Units

Records Management

The University of Wyoming and its records are governed by Wyoming Public Records Statutes (see statutes below) and are therefore subject to public records laws.  This is one reason why it’s important to ensure good record keeping and implement good records management practices.

Records management is a systematic plan for creating, organizing, using, disposing, and preserving records. It ensures that information is available quickly and efficiently. It encompasses all records regardless of media format. Deciding which records have permanent value, and should be retained, and which records have temporary value, and should be eventually destroyed, is the primary goal in a records management program.

UW's Records Management Manual (pdf) is available to help you get organized and learn more about records management.

The University Archivist can assist in:

• Creating a records retention schedule to determine how long these records need to be kept in the office.
• Transferring records to the AHC, which provides storage only for permanent records, not those with short term value.
• Retrieval of files, which can be briefly returned for administrative use.
• Improving filing systems and procedures.
• Researching the federal and state statutes that affect the creation, maintenance, and destruction of your records.

Forms:

• Records Request Form - this form is used when requesting records that are needed back in the office temporarily or permanently
• Records Transfer Authorization Form - this form is used when transferring scheduled records to the archives.

Wyoming Public Records Statutes:

1. Wyoming Statute 9-2-401 (a) (v) defines "public record" to include the original and all copies of any paper, correspondence, form, etc., or other document, regardless of physical form or characteristics, which have been made or received in transacting public businesses by the state, a political sub-division, or an agency of the state.
2. Wyoming Statute 9-2-409: "Each department or agency of the state government shall designate a records officer who shall supervise the departmental records program and who shall represent the office in all departmental matters before the records committee. The records officer and the director shall prepare transfer schedules for the transfer of public records to the records centers or to the archives."
3. Wyoming Statute 9-2-410: "All public records are property of the state. They shall be delivered by outgoing officials and employees to their successors and shall be preserved, stored, transferred, destroyed or disposed of, and otherwise managed, only in accordance with Wyoming Statue 9-2-405 through 9-2-413."