I really think your first step would be to see what kinds of reports or
publications the IR office produces, especially those on a regular basis.
Then at that point, you determine what should be permanently preserved in
the archives. Our IR folks used to produce a "fact book" but this was
fairly cumulative; we kept two copies--one as a record of that year's
fact book, and one for researchers (these comb-plastic bound items really
don't stand up to wear and tear). IR statistics give you a glimpse of the
campus at any given point in its history (enrollment, men vs. women,
diversity, age, etc.) and are important.
On the other hand, there will be IR reports that are not important enough to
save. Our enrollment services division produces weekly reports showing the
number of inquiries received about admissions, number of applications
received, number accepted...as a workload report, but frankly for long-term
archives research they are meaningless. We've had boxes of these sent to
us, especially since they distribute them to the Deans, etc. who also hoard,
excuse me, file, every one.
You will want to keep "special" IR reports also, compiled in response to
some campus issue, such as a speculative report done here many years ago
during the planning idea of merging with a local community college.
Dean
Dean DeBolt
University Librarian, Special Collections
John C. Pace Library, University of West Florida
11000 University Parkway
Pensacola, FL 32514-5750
850-474-2213
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