Council Charter

Purpose and Goals

The Data Stewardship Council (Council or DSC), chartered by the President and Officers in 2008, is an element in the University’s overall data governance structure.

It serves to develop and implement consistent and effective data policies and procedures across the University with the goals of (1) maximizing the benefit of data assets; (2) providing organizational insight and actionable analysis; and, (3) supporting leadership decision making and the University’s strategic priorities.

The Council addresses issues concerning data management including usage, sharing, integration, access, security, privacy, quality, and compliance.

Core areas of focus

The mission of the Data Stewardship Council is to ensure that use of the University’s data assets is properly leveraged and managed.  To support that mission, the following describes key objectives and roles of the Council:

• Share best practices of data governance and stewardship to assist in the responsibilities of business process owners, division and department administrators, and data users.
• Manage data sharing among University units with the Data Usage Request process.
• Assess data issues or disputes related to policy, definition, structure, or use of particular data and communicate the results to the campus community as required.
• Develop data policies and standards and serve as a forum and a mechanism to disseminate those policies and standards in a consistent manner across the University.
• Advise data managers from the business units to develop and implement specific processes, procedures, and standards consistent with best practices.
• Provide guidance on proper procedures to protect data security and privacy.

With these areas of focus as a general framework, the Council will determine the need for other data-related operational procedures as required.

Composition

Council members represent a cross-functional set of Data Stewards with responsibility for key business processes and systems. Membership will be reviewed and adjusted regularly to ensure diverse input from all areas of the University.  Annually, the Council will elect a Chair and Vice Chair to serve one-year terms. The Chair and Vice Chair will be responsible for managing progress on the year’s agenda items.

Expectations for Council members

• Council members serve for one-year renewable terms
• Because continuity and engagement are important, members are expected to attend at least 75 percent of all meetings either in person or by phone
• Members should not send delegates in their place
• Council membership is likely to include some additional time commitment outside of scheduled meetings

Meetings of the Council

The Council will hold monthly meetings.  Meeting frequency for workgroups will be as needed. At the beginning of each fiscal year, the Council will convene and identify priorities and items in need of ongoing attention.

Charter Review and Amendments

The Council shall annually review and evaluate this Charter and make amendments as necessary.