University Archives Procedures

I. Collection Policy

1. The primary collecting scope of the University Archives is the official records of the University. Another significant emphasis is given to collecting records created by the University’s faculty and staff when those papers bear directly on the University or contain other historical value which might reasonably benefit undergraduate teaching or research, and student organizations. Non-University related family papers, ephemera, and other materials will not be collected.
2. The University Archives will not actively compete with city or county historical agencies for non-University material, unless the documents have great historical value to the University.
3. The University Archives will not, generally, collect drafts, galleys, or proofs of published works by faculty, staff, or alumni. Copies of published works will be collected for the Archives and for the Library’s general collection in order to insure wide accessibility.
4. The University Archives will not generally collect (and will not purchase) non-University manuscript items, but may accept donations of such material which might legitimately and fruitfully be used to further undergraduate education at the University.
5. Transfer or donation of records and papers to the Archives will follow these procedures:
1. The physical transfer of official University records to the Archives grants the authority for the Archivist to appraise, arrange, describe, and make them available for research use. The transfer should be documented by a written receipt or agreement specifying the conditions of transfer with regard to legal title, copyright, restrictions of access, and authority to weed.
2. For special collections and unofficial records or individual papers, donation or transfer should be documented by a written receipt or donor agreement specifying the conditions of transfer with regard to legal title, copyright, restrictions of access, and authority to weed.
3. An accession register will be maintained, recording the date, title, office or donor, bulk, condition, and access restrictions for every record group or collection of papers transferred or donated to the Archives. Miscellaneous and individual items will generally not be so registered, but every effort will be made to record (unobtrusively, in pencil) the donor’s name and date on the item as it is received.

II. Access Policy

1. The University Archives will make an reasonable effort to make its holdings accessible to the University community and to other researchers (including scholars, genealogists, journalists, and students from other schools). However, as an administrative and academic support unit of the University, the Archives’ primary constituents are the members of the University community, and their needs will receive first priority. To this end the Archives, within the limitations of staff and other responsibilities, will:
• provide reference service during established office hours;
• answer inquiries for specific information of materials;
• assist researchers by retrieving materials and assisting in their interpretation when necessary;
• provide copies of material within the parameters of U. S. copyright law.
2. The University Archivist will encourage the use of the Archives by all interested persons by:
• serving as an information resource on the history and development of the University, its policies, programs, organization, and people;
• publicizing Archival resources through presentations, brochures, analytical exhibits and visual displays, and historical articles;
• working with interested faculty to promote graduate/undergraduate research or other uses of the collection.
3. In order to protect the physical integrity of the Archives holdings, and to gather information about the breadth and depth of research use, researchers will be required to register with the University Archivist and will be permitted to examine materials only in the Archives under the supervision of designated staff. The registration will include a formal commitment to abide by standard archival policies, and will request information about the researcher’s institutional affiliation and research purpose.
4. D. Some material in the Archives may be closed to research for a fixed term. These records include those covered by the U. S. Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act as Amended (1982) and by other federal and state statutes; by the University policy governing student records; by decision of the office of origin or donor. Further, U. S. copyright law imposes certain restrictions on the duplication and use of some materials. The University Archivist reserves the right to deny access to otherwise unrestricted material due to the fragile and/or valuable nature of the documents.
5. In the rare instance when the University Archivist denies access to material to a researcher on the Archivist’s own initiative, the researcher will have the right to appeal to the University Librarian. In cases where the donor or office of origin has imposed restrictions, the researcher will be informed of the terms.

III. Definitions

1. An “official record” of the University is any item, in any format or medium, created or collected by a member of the University staff in pursuance of his/her duties and responsibilities as a member of that staff. For purposes of this definition, a University faculty member is considered part of the staff when he/she is performing duties for the University ancillary to undergraduate instruction and personal scholarly research (e.g., chairing a University committee or subcommittee, administering a University grant, participating in a University summer program, chairing an academic department). Official University records are the property of the University, and except where explicit exceptions are made, the University is the copyright holder for those documents created by a University staff member in the course of his/her duties.
2. An “inactive record” is one that has ceased to have continual administrative use; a “non-permanent record” is one that does not have permanent evidential or information value and which should be destroyed after a specified period of time.

Revised: November 2003