Records Retention & Disposal Policy

Effective Date: July 2026

Anchored Pathways to Higher Education retains organizational and program records only for as long as reasonably necessary to support program operations, continuity of service, legal compliance, nonprofit administration, reporting, financial accountability, consent documentation, and organizational protection. A written retention policy is a nonprofit best practice and helps ensure records are handled consistently and disposed of securely when no longer needed.

Purpose

This policy is intended to:

Support consistent handling of records.
Reduce unnecessary storage of personal or organizational information.
Protect privacy and confidentiality.
Preserve records needed for legal, financial, governance, tax, audit, reporting, or operational reasons.
Guide secure disposal of records once retention periods end.

Scope

This policy applies to paper and electronic records maintained by Anchored Pathways, including records created or stored through website tools, cloud-based systems, donor platforms, email systems, forms, spreadsheets, shared drives, and other organizational tools.

General Retention Principles

Anchored Pathways will retain records based on the type of document, the purpose for which it was collected, legal or financial obligations, organizational need, and risk management considerations. Some records should be retained permanently, while others should be deleted or destroyed after a defined period.

Sample Retention Schedule

The following schedule is a practical starting point and should be reviewed periodically:

Articles of incorporation, bylaws, IRS determination letter, board minutes, major governance records: permanent.
Annual tax filings, major financial statements, audits, and key compliance records: permanent or long-term retention consistent with accounting and legal needs.
Donation records, donor acknowledgments, grant applications, grant records, and routine financial support records: generally 7 years, unless a longer period is needed.
Website inquiries and general contact forms: 1 year after last contact, unless the record becomes part of a service file or operational need.
Student/family intake forms and advising records: 3 years after the last service interaction, unless a longer period is needed for reporting, safety, continuity, or legal reasons.
Signed consent forms, media releases, and participation acknowledgments: retain at least as long as the related student record, event record, or media item is retained.
Photos and videos: review annually and retain only while they serve an active organizational, historical, reporting, storytelling, or consent-supported purpose.
Volunteer or personnel-related records: retain according to the nature of the record and applicable legal or administrative needs.

Secure Storage

Records should be stored in reasonably secure environments, whether physical or digital. Access should be limited to authorized individuals with a legitimate organizational need to view or use the record. Student privacy guidance recommends limiting access and avoiding storage on unsecured personal devices or broadly shared locations.

Secure Disposal

When records are no longer needed and are not subject to a legal hold, audit request, investigation, or other preservation obligation, Anchored Pathways should securely dispose of them. Paper records should be shredded or otherwise destroyed securely, and electronic records should be deleted or destroyed in a manner reasonably designed to prevent unauthorized recovery.

Suspension of Destruction

If Anchored Pathways becomes aware of litigation, an investigation, an audit, a subpoena, or another reason records must be preserved, routine destruction of relevant records should stop until the issue is resolved. Litigation-hold language is a standard component of nonprofit retention policies.

Policy Review

Anchored Pathways may update this policy from time to time as the organization grows, changes tools, expands services, or adopts new recordkeeping practices.