Dealing with disciplinary records
The vast volume of digital data that is generated by educational institutions raises some of the key questions that lie at the heart of records management: What needs to be kept? How long for? How must it be kept safe?
Until relatively recently, most student data has been collected and stored in physical form. When online data management and storage became the norm, the ease with which student information could be collected and accessed increased exponentially. Today, student data is often stored on cloud-based servers managed by third parties.
There are strict rules about which student records should be retained, how long they need to be kept, and to whom they should be made available. This requires institutions to design a smart student records management system for both paper and digital records. Once in place, these need to be consistently managed and updated.
Here are a few student records management tips:
Frequent clean-ups
Set aside time at least once a year to review your electronic and paper records against the retention schedule and dispose of any records that can be destroyed. List any record disposals, electronic and paper. This will make it easier when searching for records and answering Freedom of Information (FOI) requests.
Dispose of records properly
Ideally, use confidential waste bins/bags or shredders to dispose of paper records that are no longer needed.
For full confidence that this process has been carried out properly, it’s strongly recommended to outsource it – a practice in which Access Records Management specialises. We are equipped to take care of the full disposal process, including magnetic tapes, CDs and DVDs. While the pricing may vary for the different types of media, our shredding costs are remarkably inexpensive.
Don’t forget e-mails
Email is a highly effective form of business communication – partly because of its ability to document conversations and serve as a searchable repository of information. This means it’s important to safeguard the data and not just delete it willy-nilly.
However, for operational purposes, delete emails when they are no longer required – but only if they’re not the primary or only version of a record that needs to be retained in line with the retention schedule.
A good practice is to create folders for the various categories and, as e-mails fill your inbox, immediately drag them to the correct folder so they’ll be easier to find later.
Destroy duplicates and working papers that are obsolete
Identify and destroy duplicate records or information you can access elsewhere. These may include contracts and tenders, information you can find on the website or on another organisation’s website, and books or journals that you can access through the library. This will reduce clutter and save paper.
Outsource
Sometimes the sheer volume of student data and other official documentation that needs to be retained for future reference, can become totally overwhelming. If you fear these important files could be lost amongst other clutter, there’s a smart way to take care of the problem.
The answer? Outsourcing your records management to a specialist.
At Access Records Management, we specialise in storing, scanning or destroying all your records in a safe, efficient, and compliant manner. In this way we’ll save you the time and hassle involved in finding somewhere safe and sensible to store important records.
To find out how we could help you with your student records management requirements, contact our document storage specialists today.
Related Posts
