This program determines who has the authority to make decisions regarding access, priorities, and data usage, and under what conditions those decisions can be made. This aspect is crucial for ensuring that data is managed and utilized effectively while also adhering to university policies, regulatory requirements, and privacy considerations.
Understanding the Roles
The Data Governance Council within a university plays a pivotal role in overseeing and promoting responsible data management practices. By making policy recommendations, establishing standards, advocating for resources, and monitoring implementation efforts, the council ensures that data assets are effectively managed to support the university's mission, uphold regulatory compliance, and protect data integrity and privacy.
Data Domains are high-level categories of Institutional Data as designated by the Data Governance Council. Their primary function is to allocate accountability and responsibility for the data within each category. To ensure effective management, each Data Domain is overseen by a designated Data Trustee, who holds the responsibility for safeguarding and managing the data within that domain.
Data Trustees are the university officials responsible for overseeing security, privacy, data definitions, data quality, and adherence to data management policies and standards within their designated functional areas. They play a crucial role in safeguarding data integrity, promoting data transparency, and supporting data-driven decision-making across the institution.
Data Stewards are individuals appointed by and responsible to Data Trustees. They play a crucial role in defining, implementing, and enforcing data management policies and procedures within their designated data domains. Institutional data stewards are entrusted with the responsibility to oversee all aspects of data acquisition, utilization, storage, and safeguarding throughout its entire lifecycle, from initial acquisition to final disposition.
Institutional data refers to any information, regardless of its format or medium, that is created, collected, stored, processed, maintained, transmitted, or used by an institution for conducting its business and operations. This excludes research-generated data and data owned or generated by external parties when utilized in research.