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What Belongs in the Minutes?
Michigan State University, Academic Governance, 2026
Read the originalRead on October 17, 2026
- What it is
- A university governance office's policy statement on what minutes should contain. It quotes Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised and its shorter companion, Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised In Brief, on recording actions rather than speeches and debate.
- How much weight it carries
- A secondary source that quotes the rulebook. The quotations are the rulebook's wording as the office gives it, so check the current edition of Robert's Rules for the exact text. Organizations may set their own minutes rules in their bylaws.
Facts taken from this source
- Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised says minutes should contain mainly a record of what was done at the meeting, not what was said by the members.
“The minutes should contain mainly a record of what was done at the meeting, not what was said by the members.” (Quotation of Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised, in the section on the content of minutes)
- The companion guide Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised In Brief, as quoted by Michigan State University, says the most frequent mistakes in minutes are trying to summarize the reports offered and the arguments made in debate.
“The most frequent mistakes are trying to summarize the reports offered and arguments made in debate” (Quotation of Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised In Brief, 3rd edition)