Sept. 8, 2006

The Department of History, Arts and Libraries (HAL) today announced that its Records Management Services, part of the Michigan Historical Center, has collaborated with the Michigan School Business Officials and the Michigan Department of Education to revise the General Retention Schedule for Public Schools (GS #2), also known as Education Bulletin #522.  The new schedule, which replaces an older one that had been in use since 1997, was approved on Sept. 5 by the State Administrative Board.

"The foundation of a sound records management program is an up-to-date retention and disposal schedule that meets the needs of an individual agency," said Debbie Gearhart, director of HAL's Records Management Services.  "Retention and disposal schedules are legal documents that identify how long the records must be kept and when they may be destroyed.  We're really helping local, county and state government follow 'best practices' for safeguarding and managing their important information resources."

"The record retention schedule for schools has not been updated since 1997," said David Martell, associate executive director of Michigan School Business Officials (MSBO). "Our members felt it was definitely time for an update, with so many changes in school records and the related technology used to maintain them."

"The update is the culmination of more than a year's work, including a 10-month review process by representatives of school districts and state departments, attorneys and CPAs. We appreciate all the time and energy that everyone put into this lengthy and sometimes tedious process," Martell said.

"As we further commit ourselves to providing a quality education for all students in Michigan, it is important to develop an up-to-date process to collect and retain school data," said State Superintendent of Public Instruction Mike Flanagan.  "School business officials and the Department of History, Arts and Libraries took it upon themselves to develop this new system that brings greater efficiencies into running our local school districts.  They've done a great job."

The development of general and agency-specific retention schedules is the responsibility of the Records Management Services within HAL.  This service is provided by professional records analysts, free of charge, to state and local government agencies.  Other services provided by the Records Management Services include the administration of master contracts for media storage, microfilming, document imaging services, file system design, training about records management issues and record storage (state agencies only).  Any questions regarding General Schedule #2 or any services offered by Records Management Services can be directed to Caryn Wojcik at (517) 335-8222 or wojcikc@michigan.gov.

General Schedule #2 for public schools is available online via the Records Management Services' Web site at http://www.michigan.gov/recordsmanagement/.  In addition to records retention and disposal schedules, this Web site contains many other valuable resources about records management, e-mail retention, digital imaging, disaster prevention and recovery, etc. 

The Records Management Services is offering free Basic Records Management workshops for local government officials.  These workshops will be held on Sept. 18 and Oct. 4 at the Michigan Library and Historical Center, located at 702 W. Kalamazoo St. in Lansing.  Local government officials can register for these workshops online at http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.asp?u=800942348283.  In addition, a Basic Records Management workshop/webinar for public school officials will be held on Oct. 19 (attendees will receive SBCEUs).  Public school officials can contact the Michigan Institute for Educational Management at (517) 327-2589 to register for this workshop.

The Department of History, Arts and Libraries is dedicated to enriching quality of life and strengthening the economy by providing access to information, preserving and promoting Michigan's heritage and fostering cultural creativity.  The department includes the Library of Michigan, the Mackinac Island State Park Commission, the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs, the Michigan Film Office and the Michigan Historical Center.

Read more press releases from the Department of History, Arts and Libraries (HAL).