UNIVERSITY MEMORIALS

INTERNAL REGULATIONS AND MEMORY POLICY

Abstract

The institutionalization of memory spaces within Higher Education Institutions represents a fundamental challenge for the consolidation of policies aimed at preserving Brazilian cultural heritage. This article examines the role of Internal Regulations (regimento interno) as a legal-administrative instrument for formalizing memory spaces, using the Memorial of the Colégio Agrícola Vidal de Negreiros (CAVN/UFPB) in Bananeiras, Paraíba, as a case study. Grounded in Information Science, the study articulates collective memory, cultural heritage, and places of memory with Brazil's museological legal framework. It demonstrates that the absence of formal normative instruments produces a paradoxical condition: the memorial exists de facto but not de jure. This article argues that internal regulations transcend bureaucratic formality, functioning as a dispositif for institutional stabilization, heritage protection against administrative discontinuities, and the assurance of sustained social function in memory spaces. The research, using a qualitative, exploratory approach, draws on a comparative analysis of twelve internal regulations from memory spaces affiliated with Brazilian federal higher education institutions, selected using objective criteria applied to the National Museum Registry (MuseusBr/IBRAM). The analysis revealed three key findings: deliberative collegiality as a consolidated normative pattern, the strategic role of the Permanent Collection Committee, and periodic revision as an indicator of institutional maturity. Critical gaps were also identified: absence of oral history regulation and non-compliance with the General Data Protection Law. The research findings informed the drafting of a comprehensive Internal Regulations proposal for the CAVN Memorial.