1. Policy Statement
1.1. Oregon State University (“university”) considers Faculty Personnel Records to be private, personal records with restricted access. This University Policy describes the university’s responsibilities and procedures pertaining to Faculty Personnel Records, including definition, restrictions, access, confidentiality, location and custody, permanence, duplication, and destruction.
2. Reason for Policy
2.1. Disclosure of Faculty Personnel Records, unless of the type listed in section 5.7.1, harms the public interest in maintaining individual rights to privacy in an adequate educational environment. Under state law, the university may adopt “standards and specific orders” that govern access to its Faculty Personnel Records so that individual rights to privacy may be preserved. This University Policy serves as the university’s standards and specific orders pursuant to this law and directs university employees in the creation, protection and maintenance of Faculty Personnel Records.
3. Scope & Audience
3.1. This University Policy applies to Faculty Personnel Records as defined in Section 4.2 of this policy. All university employees must follow this University Policy.
3.2. This University Policy does not apply to Faculty Personnel Records more than 25 years old.
4. Definitions
4.1. Evaluative file: A subset of Faculty Personnel Records that typically includes periodic written performance evaluation materials.
4.2. Faculty: For purposes of this University Policy, “faculty” are faculty employed by Oregon State University as defined in Art. Ill Sec. 1 of the Faculty Senate Bylaws.
4.3. Faculty personnel records: Records of any format kept by the university that contain information concerning a Faculty member. These records may be furnished by the Faculty member, or by others at the request of the university or the Faculty member, and include but are not limited to those regarding employment performance, discipline or other work-related behavioral records, Evaluative Files, professional activities, research activities, membership activity, promotions, leave, payroll, recognition, travel, benefits, personal contact information, Social Security number and other records of individual persons.
5. Responsibilities & Procedures
5.1. Certain Information Not Required to Be Given by Faculty Members
5.1.1. No Faculty member shall be required by the university to give, but may voluntarily provide, information as to race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, political affiliation or preferences, except such information that may be required by state or federal law or valid federal or state rules, regulations or orders. Where the Faculty member is asked for such self-designation for any purpose (including federal requests for information), the university’s request shall state the purpose of the inquiry and shall inform the individual of any right to decline to respond that may be applicable.
5.2. Evaluative Files
5.2.1. An Evaluative File may be kept by the unit in which the Faculty member is employed, by the Faculty member’s unit leader, or by University Human Resources.
5.2.2. The maximum number of Evaluative Files maintained by the university is limited to three, in the designated locations described in section 5.2.1. These locations must be available in a manner that provides the rebuttal opportunity described in section 5.2.3. There is no limit to the number of other types of Faculty Personnel Records maintained by the university.
5.2.3. Faculty members may enter into the three Evaluative Files their evidence rebutting, correcting, amplifying or explaining any document contained in the file, and other material that they believe might be of assistance in the evaluation process.
5.2.4. If a supervisor conducts an evaluation of a Faculty member by phone or through videoconferencing, the supervisor must create a written summary of the conversation with the names of the conversants identified, and place the written summary in each of the Faculty member’s Evaluative Files. If a supervisor or other university employee receives an evaluation by phone or through videoconferencing, the evaluative statements must be similarly documented by placement of the written summary in each of the Faculty member’s Evaluative Files.
5.2.5. The university must keep anonymous the classroom survey evaluations by students of an academic Faculty member’s classroom or laboratory performance. The university must place the record of tabulated reports in at least one of the Evaluative Files. Survey evaluations conducted as part of tenure and promotion processes are managed pursuant to the university’s Promotion and Tenure Guidelines.
5.3. Pre-Employment Material
5.3.1. Job applications, pre-employment letters, evaluations, and other pre-employment information (“pre-employment material”) related to prospective Faculty are not Faculty Personnel Records if the person was not considered for or hired into the position.
5.3.2. If a prospective Faculty member is hired as a university employee, or if a current Faculty member is being considered for another university position, the university must place their pre-employment material in the Evaluative Files.
5.3.3. Faculty members may review pre-employment material only after the university edits any that were submitted in confidence by excising the identifying information of the author or contributor. The excised portions must be kept in a file separate from the Evaluative File.
5.4. Access by the Faculty Member
5.4.1. Faculty members are allowed full access to their own Faculty Personnel Records with the following constraints:
a. Faculty Personnel Records will be made available for inspection or copying by the Faculty member at a reasonable time and place upon request to University Human Resources of the particular records requested.
b. The university may excise portions of the Faculty member’s Faculty Personnel Records to protect the privacy of other employees, volunteers, or students prior to inspection.
c. The Faculty member does not have access to Faculty Personnel Records submitted as part of a process for which the Faculty member signed a waiver of non-confidentiality, to the extent described in the waiver.
5.4.2. Faculty members no longer employed at the university may request a copy of any Faculty Personnel Records maintained by the University Human Resources, subject to Section 5.8 regarding retention and destruction.
5.5. Access for Research
5.5.1. Oregon State University may make Faculty member data available for research, provided that the custodian of the data removes any personally identifying information that would allow a researcher or others to identify individual faculty members in the data set. The university may limit research requests if fulfilling them would significantly disrupt normal university operations. If releasing the information for research could compromise the confidentiality of Faculty Personnel Records, each identifiable or potentially identifiable Faculty member’s written consent is required before the information can be released.
5.6. Access to Aggregate Data
5.6.1. A Faculty member who feels adversely affected by a personnel action or lack thereof may request from the appropriate records holder objective or quantitative information concerning personnel actions affecting categories of Faculty members, where such actions have demonstrable relevance to the requesting Faculty member. Such information may include, but is not limited to, assignment, load, and list of publications. Faculty Personnel Records to which the Faculty member is not otherwise entitled must not be disclosed.
5.6.2. The university may use Faculty Personnel Records to prepare statistical or demographic reports that do not identify individual Faculty members.
5.7. Limited Access by the Public
5.7.1. Only the following Faculty Personnel Records may be released to a member of the public upon a public records request without the Faculty member’s written consent:
a. Information published in any official university staff directory.
b. Contract end date.
c. Dates of employment.
d. Employing department.
e. Educational background as listed in the OSU Catalog.
f. Full-time equivalency (FTE) status.
g. Job title.
h. Publications (requests for lists of current publications should be directed to the Faculty member).
i. Rank.
j. Salary.
k. Supervisor's name.
5.7.2. All other Faculty Personnel Records not listed in 5.7.1 are designated as confidential and may not be released to any person or agency without the Faculty member’s written consent, except:
a. To university personnel who have a demonstrably legitimate need to review the records in order to fulfill their official responsibility with regard to the Faculty member or the Faculty Personnel Records.
b. Based on receipt of a valid subpoena or other court order or process, or valid request by a federal or state investigative agency. The recipient’s unit head must notify the Office of General Counsel immediately upon receiving a subpoena or other court or agency order or process and prior to releasing any Faculty Personnel Records. The Office of General Counsel will help to determine whether to comply or whether to engage in legal action to challenge the validity, scope, bases or other aspects of the subpoena or other court or agency order, request, or process. Claims and litigation proceedings may require records reviews by contractors or other authorized persons in support of university obligations.
c. If the Faculty Personnel Record is more than 25 years old.
5.7.3. The university may charge a reasonable fee for requests of records pursuant to University Policy 04-035 Public Records.
5.8. Retention and Security of Faculty Personnel Records
5.8.1. Retention and destruction of Faculty Personnel Records follow the university’s general retention schedule for employment records. The custodians of the Faculty Personnel Records must maintain them in a manner which restricts access and ensures their confidentiality and security.
5.9. Dispute Resolution
5.9.1. Any Faculty member that disputes the application of this University Policy may appeal in writing to the Vice Provost for Human Resources or their designee within 10 days of the alleged violation. If the Vice Provost for Human Resources or their designee does not respond to the appeal in writing within 10 days of receiving the appeal, the appeal is deemed denied.
6. Related Policies, Procedures, or Information
6.1. Oregon Revised Statutes (ORS) 352.226, Personnel records; standards; exemptions: https://www.oregonlegislature.gov/bills_laws/ors/ors352.html.
6.2. Division of Academic Affairs, Promotion and Tenure Guidelines: https://facultyaffairs.oregonstate.edu/faculty-handbook/promotion-and-tenure-guidelines.
6.3. Public records requests may be made through the university’s Public Records Officer pursuant to University Policy 04-035 Public Records. The Fee Book may be accessed through https://fees.oregonstate.edu.
6.4. Data security for research data that includes confidential information may be found in University Policy 06-210 Research Data Access and Ownership.
History
Oregon State University adopted University Policy 580-022-0060 Faculty Personnel Records and University Standard 576-003 Faculty Records from Oregon Administrative Rules 580-022-0060 Faculty Personnel Records and 576-003-0000 Faculty Records on July 1, 2014.
University Policy 580-022-0060 Faculty Personnel Records and University Standard 576-003 Faculty Records were consolidated, revised and renumbered as University Policy 01-220 Faculty Records on November 26, 2024.
Next scheduled review date: November 2029.
Contacts
University Human Resources
541-737-3103
https://hr.oregonstate.edu/
Employee and Labor Relations
541-737-3103
https://hr.oregonstate.edu/employees/employee-and-labor-relations