Records Retention Requirements: 

Records for all Programs and Activities Serving Minors (Programs/Activities) must be retained in accordance with Board of Regents and UGA policies. It is the Program/Activity Administrator’s responsibility, in coordination with department leadership, to understand the requirements and to ensure records are properly retained.  

• Certain records pertaining to Minors should be retained for a period of three (3) years after the Minor reaches the age of eighteen (18). 
• Records pertaining to Program/Activity Staff should be retained for five (5) years.   

Minimum Retention Requirements: 

While Programs/Activities might have many different records, the following must be retained for all Programs/Activities: 

(A) For Program/Activity Staff: 

• Proof of Successful Background Investigation (this typically takes the form of the approval to hire e-mail from your unit’s HR office) 
• Proof of Required Training Completion (Mandated Reporter and Non-Discrimination and Anti-Harassment/Sexual Misconduct)
• Signed Staff Code of Conduct 

(B) For Minors attending a Program/Activity: 

• All Agreement, Consent, Waiver, and Media Release Forms signed by parents/guardians 
• Signed Participant Code of Conduct 

Note that, depending on your Program/Activity, the above list may not be inclusive of all requirements.  For example, Program/Activity records may also include:  applications; enrollment records; progress reports and assessments; immunization records; activity records; and lists of attendees. Refer to the USG Records Retention Schedules as you make record retention plans. 

Departmental Responsibility: 

Department leadership are highly encouraged to work with Program/Activity Administrators to ensure required records are retained in accordance with USG and UGA records retention policies. It is recommended that centralized record keeping at a Departmental level occurs in lieu of records being maintained solely by the Program Administrator. Additionally more than one staff member should have knowledge of and access to all minors program records. This will mitigate the potential loss of records if the Program/Activity Administrator departs the unit. 

If Departments need assistance with centralized electronic record keeping, EITS can assist with the Content 7 document storage system. 

Contact the Director of Compliance at programsforminors@uga.edu or 706-542-7255 with any questions on record retention requirements for Minors Programs/Activities.