Charter

Data Governance Committee Charter
Bowdoin College

Introduction

Purpose/Goals

In recognition of the importance of data to improving operations and informing decision-making, the Data Governance Committee seeks to create a clear set of processes and procedures for accessing, using, and managing data. The committee broadly aims to:

• • Support a shared data culture on campus that values consistency, clarity, and quality.
  • Establish accountability and stewardship of the College’s data assets.
  • Govern access to data, balancing departments’ and individuals’ needs with applicable laws and regulations, privacy, and sensitivity for personal data, while also weighing reputational risk.
  • Resolve conflicts on data-related issues, including discrepant data definitions and complex access requests.
  • Develop policies that address questions around the production, definition, and use of data.

Responsibilities

The Data Governance Committee commits to ongoing responsibilities, as well as projects that will be completed within an established time frame.

Within the first two years of adopting this charter, the Committee will deliver the following:

• An inventory of the College’s data assets. Within each division, a data trustee, data steward(s), and data manager(s) will be appointed. Key data elements within the division will be classified as public, sensitive, or restricted, according to Bowdoin’s Data Classification Policy. The inventory will be made available to the campus community.
• Implementation of an approval process for data requests. As part of the implementation, departments will develop a matrix outlining access to commonly asked data elements from frequent requesting departments.

On an ongoing basis, the Committee will:

• Resolve data requests under its supervision and oversee the data request process.
• Create and document definitions of select terms used across the College.
• Ensure that each new data asset has a steward and trustee.
• Make data governance transparent to the wider Bowdoin community and raise awareness of the Committee’s work through various channels (e.g., website).
• Promote data quality, standards, and a sense of shared responsibility across the College through training, tools, and resources, among other means.

Membership and Operation

The Data Governance Committee will be comprised of Data Stewards. The Stewards may ask Data Managers to support the Committee’s work as needed and invite them to participate in relevant parts of Committee meetings.

Members of the Data Governance Committee:

One Data Steward from each of the following divisions:

• Academic Affairs
• Admissions and Student Aid
• Communications
• Development and Alumni Relations
• Finance and Administration
• President’s Office/Secretary of the College
• Student Affairs

Permanent members:

• Chief Information Officer or designee
• Information Technology Security Officer
• Legal Officer
• Registrar
• Vice President for Institutional Research, Analytics & Consulting (Chair)

Committee staff:

• Director of Business Intelligence & Data Warehousing

In consultation with the Committee’s Chair, the Data Trustees from each division will appoint the Data Stewards and the Data Stewards will appoint Data Managers for their division. There may be multiple Stewards within a single division, but only one will serve on the Committee at a time. The Stewards’ terms are three years, with the possibility for renewal.

The Committee will meet at least quarterly for 60 to 90 minutes. The Committee will create working groups for projects, as needed, which may require additional meeting time. The Committee will provide an annual report to the Bowdoin campus community.

[1] Non-Invasive Data Governance (2014)