DATA ADMINISTRATION

University of Kentucky Institutional Data

Frequently Asked Questions

Who is Data Administration?

Data Administration is the department within the university responsible for applying guidelines in the management of data.

Why was the department of Data Administration established?

The University recognizes data as an institutional asset and resource, vital to the operational, tactical and strategic processes within the organization. Data in this context is a term used to describe information which will be entered into or is contained in computer files, and which can be processed by the computer. Data must be managed as any other asset, and the institution has a responsibility to improve the efficiency of processes associated with the collection, storage, maintenance, manipulation, analysis, reproduction and presentation of data, as well as ensuring adequate data access while maintaining necessary levels of security and privacy.

What data are covered under this management?

Data Administration manages enterprise data or data categorized as “administrative”. Administrative data is data used to support or is relevant to the administrative, operational, patient care or planning functions within the institution. These functions include, but are not limited to, student admissions, registration, student billing and financial aid processing, financial records and facilities management, housing and dining services, employment and benefits processing, payroll, purchasing and the patient care business of the Medical Center.

How does Data Administration apply guidelines to manage the data?

• By coordinating/facilitating efforts to negotiate and build university-wide consensus on data issues,

• By developing an inventory of administrative data assets,

• By defining the institutional data architecture or logical data model and ensuring its integration with physical data models,

• By conducting routine evaluations of data quality, research problems, identifying alternative solutions to address problems along with their costs and benefits, and managing projects to improve data quality,

• By facilitating the expansion of data access, sharing and availability through streamlining of processes to acquire access, and ensuring documentation on such processes and the overall data inventory and architecture are easily accessible to users,

• By receiving appeals from users who are denied access, and forwarding these to the Committee of Data Custodians and Committee of Data Stewards for evaluation,

• By ensuring data security, privacy and appropriate use through evaluation of processes, and coordination of quarterly reviews of administrative computing user access,

• By actively soliciting user input on data reporting and analysis needs for the Data Warehouse,

• By designing a Data Warehouse to improve operational, tactical and strategic decisions,

• By working with Institutional Effectiveness Coordinators to enhance data analysis on administrative data to extract new information to enhance institutional efficiency and effectiveness,

• By integrating data planning as part of the institution’s planning process,

• By evaluating new administrative systems or major modifications, prior to their purchase and/or development, determine if these systems and changes comply with the institutional data architecture and standards,

• By providing the Committee of Data Stewards with a report containing a description of the requested system modification and/or purchase, the functional and service issues the new system or change will address, information on the scope of the compliance problems including any process, policy and technical ramifications, a list of possible alternatives to address any non-compliance issues, and the recurring and non-recurring costs and benefits associated with each,

• By evaluating the availability of data required to monitor the institution’s progress in attaining strategic goals,

• By developing and forwarding process, procedure and project recommendations on all of the above to the Committee of Data Stewards for evaluation and recommendations to the Vice President for Administration,

• By developing and forwarding policy recommendations on the above to the Committee of Data Stewards for evaluation and referral to the Vice President for Administration.

Who are the Data Stewards and what is their purpose?

Read more about the purpose of the Data Stewards and view a list of current members at the following: http://www.uky.edu/IS/DataAdmin/DOCS/committe/stewards.htm

Who are the Data Custodians and what is their purpose?

Read more about the purpose of the Data Custodians and view a list of current members at the following: http://www.uky.edu/IS/DataAdmin/DOCS/committe/custodians.htm

How do I submit requests for changes to institutional systems and/or the Data Warehouse?

Review the Project Request Process and complete a Project Request Form or Change Request Form in accordance with the guidelines provided.

What is a Warehouse?

Go to the following link to read more about the Data Warehouse at the University of Kentucky:

http://www.uky.edu/IS/DataAdmin/DOCS/ware/ware.htm

What is Metadata?

Go to the following link to read more about Metadata at the University of Kentucky:

http://www.uky.edu/IS/DataAdmin/DOCS/metadata/metadata.htm