Transferring Files to the Archives

If you have not sent records to the Archives before, or if you have any questions at all, please contact Peter Lysy at lysy.1@nd.edu or call 1-4030.

This page deals with transferring records from Notre Dame offices. If you have some Notre Dame related items that you would like to donate to the University Archives, please email lysy.1@nd.edu or call (574) 631-4030. If you have something having to do with Catholic history or culture (unrelated to Notre Dame) that you would like to donate to the University Archives, please email archives@nd.edu or call (574) 631-6448.

Requesting Empty Boxes

1. Efficiency and ease of operations require the Archives to use a standard sized box. This box measures 12" x 15" x 10" (1 cubic foot), and comes in two grades: a sturdy brown Paige box for records that will be retained permanently and a lighter weight white box for records that will eventually be destroyed. Offices are encouraged to purchase these boxes from the Archives, which provides them at cost. (Please see "Charges for Services" below.)
   
   
2. To order boxes email lysy.1@nd.edu and include the following information:
   
   
   • a description of the records you are sending to us
   • how many boxes you will need
   • whether the files are to be retained permanently or destroyed after a certain number of years
   • the account number you want the boxes charged to
   
   Sometimes we can get boxes to you the same day, and often by the next day. If staff is short, it may take several days. Please let us know if you are in a hurry.
   
   
3. If you send records in boxes that are not of comparable size and quality to the ones the Archives uses, we will have to replace your boxes with ours and charge you for them; please check with us before using your own cartons. Notre Dame Maintenance boxes are not acceptable. We realize that for some materials our standard box is not the appropriate container, and we will certainly make allowances for unusual situations, but speak with us first.
   
   

Sending Files to the Archives

*There are strict regulations regarding the handling of credit card information. The University Archives requires departments to adhere strictly to certain procedures when transferring such information to the Archives or Record Center. [more]

1. Please take care to pack the boxes so as to preserve the order of the files. If a group of folders were alphabetical in your file cabinet, they should come to the Archives in alphabetical order. Never remove papers from your folders without putting them into new folders with the same labels. Never send us stacks of loose papers without explicitly discussing the special circumstances of such a transfer first. Fill each box full but don't stuff it too tightly. It is okay if the last box is only partially full. Each box should be labeled with the following information:
   
   
   • The name of the office sending the records
   • The name of the series of records in the box (student files, class lists, etc. For records that have an approved retention schedule, use the exact title that appears on the schedule.)
   • The date span or letters of the alphabet covered by the files in the box
   • The number of the box within the shipment (box 1 of 5, 2 of 5, etc.)
   • For files that are not permanent, the date on which the box can be destroyed
   
   
2. Print out or write labels for each Paige box on a sheet of paper, fold it in half, and place it in the plastic pouch on the side of the box. White boxes can be labeled by writing directly on the short end of the box or on paper attached to the short end. Please do not write on the brown Paige boxes!
   
   
3. Many offices produce packing lists of the records they are sending. These lists remind the office of what files have gone to the Archives and can be helpful when the office needs to retrieve a file. Often the packing list records the title of each folder sent to us. In other cases, especially for files that will be destroyed in a few years, it merely records the title of each logical group of records and the date span or letters of the alphabet associated with it. If you do make a packing list, please send a copy of it to Peter Lysy as an email attachment.
   
   
4. The Archives will usually pick up a dozen or fewer boxes. Email Matt Wilken at wilken.2@nd.edu when you are ready to schedule a pick up. We walk and use carts for pick ups, so if your office is remote or if there are other problems, we may not be able to make the pick up. For larger transfers of boxes, or if we can't make the pick up, please submit a Facilities Requisition at inside.nd.edu for General Services to collect the boxes and deliver them to either the Archives or the Records Center. When you email Matt, he will advise you if we can pick up the boxes or if General Services will have to do it, and in the latter case whether the boxes should be delivered to the Archives or to the Records Center.
   
   
5. After we have received your boxes and had a chance to examine them, we will send you a Records Transmittal Receipt describing the records you sent, indicating under what name and accession number they have been described, and stating if and when they are to be destroyed. If you made a packing list, you may want to correlate the accession number on the Records Transmittal Receipt with your packing list to facilitate retrieval of materials in the future. If anything seems odd about how we are dealing with the records you sent, please contact us immediately so we can discuss matters further.
   
   

Retrieving Files from the Archives

1. When you send files to the Archives, we usually assume that you will not need to consult them much any more -- no more often than just a few times a year. But when you do need to request a specific file from the records you have sent here, please contact Matt at wilken.2@nd.edu and tell him as much as you can about the file (name, type of file, date sent to the Archives or accession number, etc.). Matt will pull the file and either deliver it to you (if you need the entire file) or search out the specific piece of information or the specific document you need and send it to you by campus mail or fax. If you have a broader question that can't be answered by a specific file, or you don't know where to look for the information you are after, please call Peter or Matt at x1-4030 and discuss what you need with them.
   
   
2. When you want to return files to the Archives, please email Matt (wilken.2@nd.edu) and tell him what you have to be picked up. Please don't return files to us by campus mail.
   
   

Charges for Services

1. The Archives charges offices for all boxes that we provide them. The current charge is $3.25 for a brown Paige box (for records to be held permanently) and $1.50 for a white box (for records scheduled for eventual destruction). These prices reflect our actual costs rounded up to the nearest quarter.
   
   
2. Non-permanent records that are sent to the Archives will be assessed a shredding fee of $4.25 per box. This fee closely approximates the actual current cost of shredding one box of records. This charge will be assessed shortly after the Archives has received the boxes. Records that are sent to the Archives as permanent records but are judged by the Archives (with the approval of the originating office) to be non-permanent records will also be assessed the shredding fee.

In Conclusion

The University Archives is here to help you manage your records and preserve and retrieve old information about your office. Please feel free to write or call at any time if you have any needs, questions, or comments. Thank you!