It is the policy of the Board of Education to inform members of the public about the administration and operation of the public schools in accordance with the Freedom of Information Law of the State of New York.
The Superintendent of Schools shall develop regulations ensuring compliance with the Freedom of Information Law and setting forth the procedures to be followed to obtain access to district records, and submit such regulations to the Board for approval. Such regulations shall address ensuring applicable confidentiality and security of district information. Pursuant to law the Superintendent shall designate, with Board approval, a Records Access and Records Management Officer.
Retention and Destruction of Records
The Board hereby adopts the Records Retention and Disposition Schedule ED-1 issued pursuant to Article 57-A of the Arts and Cultural Affairs Law, which contains the legal minimum retention periods for district records. In accordance with Article 57-A, the district will dispose of only those records described in the schedule after they have met the minimum retention periods set forth in the schedule. The district will dispose of only those records that do not have sufficient administrative, fiscal, legal or historical value to merit retention beyond the established legal minimum periods.
The manner of destruction will be determined by the format of the record (i.e., paper, digital, etc.). In addition, destruction will be appropriately documented.
Litigation-Hold
The Superintendent will establish procedures in the event that the school district is served with legal papers. The Superintendent will communicate with applicable parties, including the school attorney and the Records Management Officer, to ensure that, when appropriate, a litigation-hold is properly implemented. The litigation-hold is intended to prevent the destruction or disposal of records that may need to be produced as part of discovery. It is the intention of the Board of Education to comply with applicable rules and regulations regarding the production of necessary documents, data, files, etc. The Board directs the Superintendent to institute such procedures to implement this policy.
The Superintendent or his/her designee, with assistance from the Records Management Officer, shall be responsible for developing and disseminating department-specific retention schedules and guidance to staff, as necessary, to ensure adherence to this policy.
Cross-ref:
5500 Student Records
6600 Fiscal Accounting and Reporting
Ref:
Public Officers Law §84 et seq. (Freedom of Information Law) Education Law §2116
Arts and Cultural Affairs Law §57.11
Arts and Cultural Affairs Law Article 57-A (Local Government Records Law)
8 NYCRR Part 185 (Appendix I) – Records Retention and Disposition Schedule ED-1
Policy Adopted: December 9, 1974
Amended: September 27, 1976
Amended: May 22, 1978
Amended: October 10, 1972
Amended: February 24, 1997
Amended: April 24, 2000
Amended: January 25, 2010
Amended: September 23, 2010
Amended: August 18, 2016