Data Policy Groups
Indiana University faculty and administration have established a number of units and working groups that consider major policy and governance issues that affect research data. Below is a list of policy and governance-related groups who work in this area. If you are aware of other groups, please let us know at iurdc@iu.edu.
This university-wide group oversees matters about, or connected with, research policies and practices throughout the Indiana University system. The committee advises the Vice President for Research and the University Faculty Council on research matters, collaborates on university-wide plans for strengthening the research infrastructure, and, where appropriate, develops university-wide policies and procedures that aim to improve the research environment at Indiana University.
The Policy Review Committee consults with the offices of faculty and academic affairs and other administrators about existing and proposed policies that affect the academic mission of the university and the working conditions of the faculty, and brings to the UFC for a vote those policies that fall within the faculty’s legislative authority.
The Technology Policy Committee oversees matters about, or connected with, information technology issues for all of Indiana University.
Formed initially to work on changing NIH data sharing rules, this group now has broad recommendations on facilitating research data sharing in the university.
The Policy Advisory Council (PAC) meets monthly to review and distribute new or revised policies, and to discuss improvements to the policy development process. PAC membership includes representatives from each of Indiana University’s campuses, as well as the offices of IU’s vice presidents.
The Policy Advisory Council (PAC) meets monthly to review and distribute new or revised policies, and to discuss improvements to the policy development process.
The Program on Data Management and Information Governance was founded in November of 2017 to foster a collaborative, multidisciplinary, multisector, multistakeholder environment in which scholars, policymakers, and industry professionals can work together to translate research findings into effective policy.
The program seeks to address issues associated with data management and information governance through the exploration and creation of multidisciplinary structures, policies, procedures, processes, and controls implemented to manage data and information.
While Indiana University encourages members of the university community to explore generative AI technology, experiment with it, and contemplate possible applications for it that will help to advance the institution’s teaching, research, and service missions, the University also recognizes the need to establish thoughtfully crafted policies and practices governing acceptable use of these tools.
The University Faculty Council of Indiana University, working in cooperation with the Office of the President, therefore resolves to establish a Generative AI Task Force charged with collecting whatever information is necessary to support rigorous consideration of AI guidance, usage, and policies.
In 2024, IU joined the Higher Education Leadership Initiative for Open Scholarship (HELIOS Open), a cohort of colleges and universities committed to collective action to advance open scholarship within and across their campuses. Leaders from US colleges and universities have joined this community of practice, working together to promote a more transparent, inclusive, and trustworthy research ecosystem. Ruth Lilly Dean of University Libraries Diane Dallis-Comentale is the IU representative to the HELIOS Open consortium.
The purpose of the University Data Management Council is to provide university-wide strategic planning, governance, and oversight for Indiana University’s institutional data. The UDMC consists of eleven permanent members, including Data Stewards, the Chief Privacy Officer, and the UIPO.
At Indiana University, the Board of Trustees owns all data at the highest level, except for information excluded by Intellectual Property policies. Each data domain is then appointed a Data Steward, who may also appoint Data Managers to govern the daily operations including access assignment, system administration, and decisions for release of institutional data. All research data is considered “institutional data.”
Staff of the IU Information Security Office and Data Managers are responsible for evaluating requests for employee access to information systems and databases across the university. They assess these requests by policies and guidelines outlined by the University Data Management Council (UDMC) and the Data Stewards. Data Managers may also assist with ensuring that training is provided to the users handling data in their domains.
System-wide program at IU of data privacy compliance, ranging from student, financial, and research data to health-based records for medical education, clinical trials, and patient care.