Skip to Main Content
Archives & Special Collections (ASC)

Records Management: Training & Resources

Information on how and for how long University of Louisville records should be retained.

Want to Learn More?

The University Archives and Records Center offers free, customized training and consultation. Email recmgmt@louisville.edu if you are interested in having someone visit your unit.

The Lingo of Records Management

Characteristic Value
Archival:  Materials that are permanent or have ongoing value.
Born Digital:  Information originally created in an electronic format.
Custodian:  The individual or organization having possession of and responsibility for the care and control of records.
Disposition:  Records’ final destruction, deletion, or transfer to an archive.
Electronic Record:  Data and information that has been captured and fixed through electronic means, and that requires the use of specialized equipment and systems to render it intelligible by a person. Also called a machine readable record.
Information Governance:  The process of establishing policies and procedures across an organization to manage information as a cohesive resource.  Information governance is often geared toward meeting legal, regulatory, risk, and business needs.
Media:  The physical materials the carries information (e.g. paper, compact disk, magnetic tape).
Public Records:  Data and information, regardless of physical form or characteristics, which are prepared, owned, used, in the possession of or retained by a public agency.
Record Copy:  The single copy of a record—often the original—that is designated as the official copy for use and preservation.
Records Management:  The systematic, orderly, and efficient control of records throughout their creation, use, and disposition.
Reference Value:  The usefulness of records based on their informational content.
Retention Schedule:  A document that identifies and describes an organization’s records and provides instructions for the final disposition of those records.  Also called a disposal schedule, records schedule, or records retention schedule.
Series:  A group of similar records that are related as the result of being created, received, or used for the same function.

Video Tutorials

Leaders in Records Management