As part of Records & Information Management Month, the K-State Libraries and the Division of IT collaborate to illuminate crucial aspects of records and information management. This week’s focus is on email records.
Every K-State employee is individually responsible for handling and maintaining records (including University email and other electronic records) under university policy and requirements. Emails are records that may contain evidence of official University actions, decisions, approvals, or transactions. Email is subject to statutes of the State of Kansas, KSA 45-401 through 45-414, which applies to preserving and destroying records.
Email Records Frequently Asked FAQs provide guidance for creating, managing, archiving, and deleting emails. Retention periods are listed on the Records Retention Schedule.
Emails to Retain
Emails that contain the following types of information have specific retention periods:
- Policy and procedure directives
- Substantive decisions regarding matters of university business
- Legal, discipline, or audit issues
- Approvals for purchases, HR decisions, and other actions to be taken
- Financial records, including invoices and receipts
- Final reports or recommendations
- Student advising files
- Documentation of departmental/office actions, decisions, operations, and responsibilities
Emails to Delete
The following emails can be deleted:
- Acknowledgments
- Announcements
- Preliminary drafts
- Routine replies/requests for information
- Emails sent as reference or for informational distribution
- Emails used to set up or accept meetings
To learn more about email retention, view the following:
Upcoming RIM Events:
- RM101 — April 19: 2-3:30 p.m., via Zoom.
- RM101 — April 23: 11:30-1 p.m., Hale Library 581 and via Zoom.
- Shred Day — April 24, 9–11:30 a.m.
To attend the RM 101 events in person or via Zoom, you must register for the sessions in HRIS under KSU Training Enrollment.
For more information, visit the Records Management website. If you have questions about records and information management, contact Danielle Hall (dnhall@ksu.edu), University Records Manager.
