Very good write up, I concur completely!!

 

My other duties are time sensitive and require a great deal of attention; therefore, the “records” subject is always at the bottom of my job list until a crisis arises.  Some of our agency specific schedules are either moot or can be replaced by the State General Schedules.  Unfortunately, updating the agency specific schedules takes time on the part of numerous staff (the specific units within each division) and me.  One schedule update took an entire year due to all the units in that division.

 

Again, I agree with Ms. Hazelgrove’s statements:

The best advice I can give about this is to create a binder with all schedules that you will use (state and agency-specific) as well as the manual, forms, etc.  Go through this regularly and you will be surprised how familiar you become with your schedules. 

I even made a table of contents, and separated each schedule with tabs.  I scanned each schedule and send to staff as questions arise.

 

I agree, the Library of Virginia staff are great assets.  Everyone is prompt in assisting, giving direction, or answering questions.

 

Nancy Malczewski

Public Information Officer

Department of Medical Assistance Services (DMAS)

600 East Broad Street, Suite 1300

Richmond, Virginia  23219

Phone:  804-371-6391

Fax: 804-371-4981

E-mail:  [log in to unmask]

 

 

You are receiving this e-mail as a subscriber to the Virginia Records Officer Listserv (VA-ROL). # #

I have a feeling many agencies are in the same boat as I was.  The records officer retired and duties were transferred to another staff whose workload was too much to provide the attention this duty requires.  So when I got it, it was pretty messy.  It took a while, and with the Library’s assistance, I was able to make sense of what I had and what needed to be done.  Our agency, as does everyone else, uses the general schedules and agency-specific schedules.  While working with our agency-specific schedules, we found many areas that needed attention and are continuing our updates to make it much easier and cleaner for staff to use.

 

Lucky for me, I have had two wonderful Library analysts, and without them, I could not have accomplished the task set before me.  Familiarizing yourself with the agency-specific AND general schedules is very important and a must before you attempt to tackle your agency’s records.  The more I work with them, the easier the task of retention/destruction has become.

 

One particular area I struggle with is making sure staff is using the most up to date schedules and reminding them of the difference between calendar and fiscal year and the impact of combining the two.  For instance, if they use December 31 as the “end” date range when the series specifies fiscal year, the records have to be held longer.  To combat that, I do not approve and sign the RM3 – I return it to them requiring them to change the end date to June 30.  This has worked very well.

 

The best advice I can give about this is to create a binder with all schedules that you will use (state and agency-specific) as well as the manual, forms, etc.  Go through this regularly and you will be surprised how familiar you become with your schedules.  When in doubt, use your Library analyst – they are a wealth of information.

 

Thanks for allowing me to participate and let me know if you have any questions.

Martha

 

Martha G. Hazelgrove

Administrative Assistant

to the Deputy of Administration and Finance

Department of Juvenile Justice

600 East Main Street

20th Floor

Richmond, Virginia  23219

Phone 804-588-3945

Fax 804-371-6497

 

 

 

You are receiving this e-mail as a subscriber to the Virginia Records Officer Listserv (VA-ROL). # #

 

 

Hi Records Officers,

 

The Library of Virginia has plans to celebrate Records Management Month in April and we’re working on a session devoted to what it means to be a records officer.  In order to make the content useful for attendees, we are in need of some assistance!

 

Veteran records officers:  What have you learned along the way that would’ve been nice to have known when you started as a records officer?  Are there aspects of the job that you still struggle with?

 

New records officers:  What do you need help with?  What questions do you have that aren’t answered on our web site?

 

We’d value any and all input you have regarding the duties of the designated records officer.

 

Hope to hear from you!

 

Jessie

 

 

Jessie R. Graham

Records Analyst

The Library of Virginia

(804) 692-3802

[log in to unmask]

 

 

 

 

 

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