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Records Authority Statement

The Bowdoin College Archives is established by the Governing Boards in recognition of the need to preserve official college records, files, and documents of permanent value. All administrative officers of the college, and members of the teaching faculty whose performance of administrative duties, e.g., committee responsibilities, or chairs of academic departments, put them in possession of files, records, or documents concerning their official duties, are expected to observe the following guidelines:

  1. The records of the official activities of the college officers and offices, including papers and correspondence, official printed material, minutes, committee files, financial, and associated records in any format, are the property of Bowdoin College and constitute archival material.
  2. Archival material in college offices may not be destroyed or placed in storage without the approval of (a) the officer supervising the department where the records accumulate, and (b) the College Archivist.
  3. The officer in charge of the department where the records accumulate, or the officer in charge of the records of official committees, in consultation with the College Archivist, and in compliance with state and federal laws, will be responsible for deciding how long inactive papers are to be retained in and under direct control of the office, prior to disposition (i.e., destruction or transfer to the archives).
  4. Material selected for preservation shall be sent to the College Archives in accordance with a records schedule developed by the College Archivist, in consultation with the officer in charge of the department where the records accumulate and, when necessary, the Archives Advisory Group. All records preserved in the Archives remain the records of the office of origin and may be withdrawn at any time by that office for its own use.
  5. The College Archivist shall consult with appropriate administrative officers and the Archives Advisory Group regarding any special conditions of access which may be placed on any category of records. It is understood that in the absence of specific restrictions, all materials transferred to the Archives will be open to researchers on a non-discriminatory basis.

The College Archives welcomes the offer of privately owned material bearing on the history of the college, provided that the Archives incurs no obligation to retain such material as an integrated collection or in any prescribed form.

Approved by the Executive Committee of the Governing Boards, June 10, 1994.