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Re: Who Decides



The recent article in the Toledo Blade concerning the destruction of records
by the OHS was to say the least fascinating. Richard Cox is correct when he
states that "...every newspaper article like this only tells part of the
story..." very rarely does a newspaper fully report both sides of a story.
Now putting that aside let me explore/comment/question some of the issues as
I see them.

1. Private Organization
Why is a private organization responsible for the maintenance and care of
the state government's records? Ohio is not alone in having this
arrangement. (Unfortunately the supporting information is not readily at
hand). Is there a contractual arrangement between the state and the OHS? How
does the state monitor (if at all) the society's activities? How binding is
the retention schedule on the society?

2. State records retention schedule?
How detailed are Ohio's records retention schedules? If a record is
considered permanent does  the schedule state that it must be preserved in
its original state or that it can be transferred to another medium? Who
develops the retention schedules and what process is involved in reviewing
and approving the draft schedules? What process is in place that allows for
the modification of a schedule?

3. Records destruction
Richard Cox commented that "the public needs to understand that archivists
are destroyers as well as preservers.." and which I thoroughly agree with.
Not every blessed piece of paper, artifact, etc. needs to be saved. At home
I try to practice what I preach, periodically I review the information I
maintain at home and throw out what is not needed or necessary. I do have a
hard time convincing  "she who must be obeyed" that we need not save every
scrap that documents our children's existence unfortunately my message is
blowin in the wind.

In deciding to microfilm the records did the OHS determine that it would be
done to free up space or to preserve delicate, fragile documents? If I
remember correctly the answer is to free up space. That is a valid reason,
the records are still preserved but space is now available for more
material. However heavy use by researchers can cause damage to materials.
Microfilming will help preserve the materials by allowing researchers to
access the data without actually handling the original materials.  Which is
more important -- the data or the medium?

4. Public Relations
This I think is the biggest problem. The OHS should not have just thrown the
materials into a dumpster, rather they should have been shredded or at the
least make sure that the dumpster has a lock on it.

Oh well I've rambled long enough, cabin fever will do that to you. Must run
and prepare for the next storm

Peter A. Kurilecz CRM, CA
Woodside Summit Group, Inc
Richmond, Virginia
Tel: 804-744-1247 extension 23
Fax: 804-744-4947
mailto:peter.kurilecz@woodsidesummitgroup.com

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