708 - Care, Maintenance and Disposal of School District Records

School district records are housed in the central administration office of the school district. It is the responsibility of the superintendent and board secretary to oversee the maintenance and accuracy of the records. The following records are kept and preserved according to the schedule below:

Secretary's financial records	Permanently
Treasurer's financial records	Permanently
Open meeting minutes of the Board of Directors	Permanently
Annual audit reports	Permanently
Annual budget	Permanently
Permanent record of individual pupil	Permanently
School election results	Permanently
Real property records (e.g., deeds, abstracts)	Permanently
Records of payment of judgments against the school district	20 years
Bonds and bond coupons	11 years after maturity, cancellation, transfer, redemption, and/or replacement
Written contracts	10 years
Cancelled warrants, check stubs, bank Statements, bills, invoices, and related record	5 years
Recordings and minutes of closed meetings	1 year
Program grants	As determined by the grant
Nonpayroll personnel records	10 years after leaving district
Employment applications	2 years
Payroll records	3 years
School meal programs accounts/records	3 years after submission of the final claim for reimbursement

In the event that any federal or state agency requires a record be retained for a period of time longer than that listed above for audit purposes or otherwise, the record shall be retained beyond the listed period as long as is required for the resolution of the issue by the federal or state agency.

Employees' records are housed in the central administration office of the school district. The employees' records are maintained by the superintendent, the building administrator, the employee's immediate supervisor, and the board secretary.

An inventory of the furniture, equipment, and other non-consumable items other than real property of the school district is conducted annually under the supervision of the superintendent. This report is filed with the board secretary.

The permanent and cumulative records of students currently enrolled in the school district are housed in the central administration office of the attendance center where the student attends. Permanent records shall be housed in a fire resistant safe or vault or electronically with a secure backup file. The building administrator is responsible for keeping these records current. Permanent records of students who have graduated or are no longer enrolled in the school district are housed electronically and will be retained permanently. These records will be maintained by the superintendent. Special education records shall be maintained in accordance with law.

The superintendent may digitize or otherwise electronically retain school district records and may destroy paper copies of the records. An electronic record which accurately reflects the information set forth in the paper record after it was first generated in its final form as an electronic record, and which remains accessible for later reference meets the same legal requirements for retention as the original paper record.

 

 

Legal Reference:  7 C.F.R. § 210.23(c).
                                   Iowa Code §§ 22.3; 22.7; 91A.6; 279.8; 291.6; 554D.114; 554D.119; 614.1(13).
                                   281 I.A.C. 12.3(4); 41.624.
                                   City of Sioux City v. Greater Sioux City Press Club, 421 N.W.2d 895 (Iowa 1988).

Cross Reference:  206.3 Secretary
                                   215 Board of Directors' Records
                                   401.5 Employee Records
                                   506 Student Records
                                   901 Public Examination of School District Records

Approved: November 1996
Reviewed: January 2018, July 2021
Revised: January 1999