T.H. Rogers School Parent Teacher Organization

Constitution and Bylaws

Article I: Name

The name of this organization shall be the T.H. Rogers Parent Teacher Organization (hereafter referred to as “PTO”) and it shall have no affiliation with any local, state, or national organization with similar objectives.

Article II: Purpose

Section 1: To foster a better understanding of the learning process through communication among parent(s)/guardian(s), faculty/staff, and school community.

Section 2: To encourage interaction between family and school in meeting the needs of children.

Section 3: To serve as a source of support for the school administration, faculty, and staff with volunteer and financial assistance to meet the particular needs of the various programs on campus.

Section 4: To cooperate with the school to support the improvement of education in ways that will not interfere with the administration of the school and shall not seek to control its policies.

Section 5: To promote goodwill and support for the school in the community at large.

Article III: Tax-Exempt Organization

Section 1: The PTO is organized exclusively for educational purposes and qualifies as an exempt organization under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954 (or corresponding provision of any future United States Internal Revenue law).

Section 2: No part of the net earnings shall inure to the benefit of, or be distributable to its members, trustees, or officers. No substantial part of the activities of the PTO shall be the carrying on of propaganda or otherwise attempting to influence legislation, and the organization shall not participate in or intervene in (including the publishing or distribution of statements) any political campaign on behalf of any candidate for public office.

Section 3: Not withstanding any other provision of these articles, the organization shall not carry on any other activities not permitted to be carried on (a) by a corporation exempt from the Federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954 (or corresponding provision of any future United States Internal Revenue law) or (b) by a corporation, contributions to which are deductible under section 170(c)(2) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954 (or corresponding provision of any future United States Internal Revenue law).

Section 4: Upon dissolution of the organization, the Board of Directors shall, after paying or making provision for the payment of all the liabilities of the organization, dispose of all of the assets of the organization exclusively for the purposes of the organization in such manner, or to such organization or organizations organized and operated exclusively for charitable, educational, or scientific purposes as shall at the time qualify as an exempt organization or organizations under section 501 (c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954 (or corresponding provision of any future United States Internal Revenue law), as the Board shall determine. Any such assets not so disposed of shall be disposed of by the Court of Common Pleas of the county in which the principal office of the organization is then located, exclusively for such purposes or to such organization, as said Court shall determine, which are organized and operated exclusively for such purposes.

Article IV: Membership and Dues

Section 1: PTO Membership shall be open to the parent(s) or legal guardian(s) of a child enrolled at T.H. Rogers School, and any teacher, administrator or staff member.

Section 2: An annual drive for Membership shall be conducted in the fall semester on a school-wide basis, but new members may be admitted at any time.

Section 3: The annual dues for Membership shall be set by the Executive Committee.

Section 4: Only Members in good standing of the PTO shall be eligible to participate in meetings or serve in any of its elected or appointed positions. A Member in good standing shall be in compliance with these bylaws and current with Membership dues.

Article V: Officers

Section 1: The Officers of this organization shall, hereafter identified and included in the “Executive Committee,” be President, 1st Vice President-Volunteers, Vice President-Internal Fundraising, Vice President-Community Partnerships, Vice President-Hospitality, Vice President-Communications, Treasurer, Secretary, and Parliamentarian. Each office may be filled by two persons serving in a cooperative capacity if recommended in advance by the Executive Committee to the Nominating Committee.

Section 2: These officers shall be elected every year at a spring Meeting no later than April. Their term of office shall begin immediately after the May Meeting.

Section 3: A nominee or nominees for each office shall be found by the Nominating Committee. The Chairperson and all members of the Nominating Committee shall be appointed by the President(s).

(A) The Committee shall be as representative of the school population as is possible, and consist of five (5) Members, including parents, the Principal or Principal’s Designee, and Faculty Representative.

(B) The first duty of the Nominating Committee Chairperson shall be to notify the Membership of the identity of the Committee and the date of the initial meeting, which shall be at least three (3) weeks prior to the election meeting.

(C) The slate of officers selected by this Committee shall be made known to the Membership of the organization in writing at least one (1) week prior to the election meeting.

(D) The Nominating Committee shall recommend Committee Chairs to be appointed by the President(s) of the other slots on the Board insofar as they are able.

Section 4: At the Election Meeting, additional nominations may be made from the floor. Voting shall be by secret ballot. A simple majority of Members present, and voting shall be required to elect.

Section 5: A person may hold only one office at a time.

Section 6: If an office becomes vacant, the Executive Committee shall appoint a person to fill that vacancy, as soon as possible.

Article VI: Duties of Officers

Section 1: The President(s) shall preside at all meetings of the organization and the Executive Committee, and shall be an ex-officio member of all committees, except the Nominating Committee, and perform such other duties as pertain to the office. The President(s) shall serve a two-year term. Co-Presidents shall serve staggering terms. In the absence of the Treasurer, the President(s) shall be empowered as a second signer on checks for the organization. A President shall become a member of the Advisory Committee once the 2-year term is completed.

Section 2: The 1st Vice President(s) shall coordinate all PTO volunteer activities within the school, including, but not limited to, attending training sessions, keeping records of volunteer activities and organizing volunteers for PTO-related events.

Section 3: The Vice President(s)-Internal fundraising shall work with event chairs to facilitate the success of all campus-based fundraisers.

Section 4: The Vice President(s)-Community Partnerships shall oversee all external fundraising, including, but not limited to, securing donation of money, food and grants from local and national companies.

Section 5: Vice President(s)-Hospitality shall coordinate the teams that host events to welcome families and teachers, including, but not limited to, orientation events, community-building activities and Staff Appreciation events.

Section 6: Vice President(s)-Communications shall oversee the PTO website, social media, flyers and other forms of communication with families and staff.

Section 7: The Treasurer shall receive all monies and pay all bills of the organization, shall keep an accurate record of all receipts and expenditures and shall render a report at each meeting of the organization. Each year, the Treasurer shall file the required forms to maintain federal tax- exempt status and to transfer any sales tax revenues to the State Controller’s office. The Treasurer shall perform such other duties as may be assigned by the President(s).

Section 8: The Secretary shall keep the Minutes of all meetings of the organization, shall prepare them for distribution before each meeting, and shall answer all correspondence. The Secretary shall send out notices of all called meetings, and of other meetings when necessary.

Section 9: The Parliamentarian(s) shall advise on all matters of Parliamentary Procedure and shall work to keep meetings efficient.

Article VII: The Executive Committee

Section 1: The Executive Committee shall consist of the elected Officers of the organization, the Principal, one (1) Faculty Representative, and the Advisory Committee.

Section 2: The Executive Committee shall have the power to act for the organization in an emergency. A report of all such actions shall be rendered to the Board at its next regular meeting.

Section 3: The Executive Committee will meet only as needed. A simple majority of the Executive Committee shall constitute a quorum. (Note: see Board of Directors meetings below.)

Section 4: The Past President(s) of the Board or the next highest Officer(s) may be asked to consult with the current Executive Committee.

Article VIII: Board of Directors

Section 1: The Board of Directors (hereafter referred to as “Board”) shall consist of the Executive Committee, all current standing Committee Chairs, and Faculty Representatives.

Section 2: All Committee Chairs shall be defined by the guidelines provided to the Nominating Committee by the current Board. Responsibilities of the Board shall include but not be limited to the following:

(A) The Board shall approve the general annual program of activities and initiatives.

(B) The Board shall review and approve an annual budget including revenue and expenses, prior to submitting it for approval by the PTO members at a regular meeting.

(D) The Board shall approve Chairs of Standing Committees.

Section 3: A quorum shall consist of at least five (5) PTO Members present at Board of Directors meetings, at least two (2) of whom are members of the Executive Committee.

Section 4: Any Officer may be removed by a two-thirds (2/3) majority vote of a quorum of the Board of Directors whenever, in its judgment, the best interests of the PTO are served by the removal. If an Officer has more than three (3) consecutive unexcused absences from a Executive Committee meeting, that Officer may be removed from office. Due notice in writing must be provided to the Officer by the President(s) no later than twenty-four (24) hours before such proceedings.

Article IX: Finance and Accounting Policies

Section 1: The PTO fiscal year shall begin on the first day of August and end on the last day of July of the following year.

Section 2: The Board shall approve a proposed Budget no later than April, to be voted on by Members at the May Membership meeting.

Section 3: The Executive Committee shall designate a financial institution into which all PTO funds will be deposited. Signature cards must be on file at designated financial institution and updated annually.

Section 4: PTO funds shall be expended by check only.

(A) Two authorized signatures shall be required on all checks written by the Treasurer.

(B) Authorized signatories shall be the President(s) and Treasurer.

(C) A check payable to one of the Authorized Signatories cannot be signed by that individual. Any and all checks and related financial information shall be in the possession and maintenance of the Treasurer.

Section 5: There may be a PTO debit card to be used exclusively by the PTO Officers for the sole and express purpose of making purchases on behalf of the PTO where a debit card is required. Treasurer is to maintain a log of purchases made by PTO Officers and reconcile these with budget line items.

(A) The debit card is to be issued in the name of T. H. Rogers PTO. It may also have the name of a Co-President if required by the bank.

(B) Before taking possession of the PTO debit card, the Officers must sign the “PTO Debit Card Usage Agreement.” This agreement will outline the terms of usage including that the use of the card must be solely for PTO purposes and that the use of the card for non-PTO purposes shall constitute justifiable reason for the confiscation of the card, the Officers’ removal from the office, and possible legal action. Additionally, any non-PTO purchases, along with any fees incurred as a result of misuse of the debit card will be the sole responsibility of the Officer who misused the card. This agreement must be kept on file at all times during the given fiscal year and must be signed and resubmitted annually by the standing Officers.

(D) The PTO debit card will not have access to any cash advance options.

(E) The PTO debit card will not have any ATM withdrawal options. The pin for the debit card will only be known by the treasurer and the co-presidents.

(F) Receipts from any and all debit card purchases shall be submitted when the debit card is returned to the Treasurer, or within 7 days of the charge, to allow the Treasurer to reconcile against the bank statement and budget line items.

(G) The Treasurer will maintain a log of which Officer has the card at any given time and charges made during that time will be the responsibility of that Officer.

Section 6: The President(s) are authorized to jointly approve Requests for Funds (hereafter referred to as “RFF”) up to $300 per request. Supporting written documentation must be provided with the RFF form.

Section 7: For any expense, that in part or whole, totals $1500 or more, the PTO will secure at least 2 written bids prior to General Membership voting on the approval of said project or purchase. If there is only one vendor providing the product or service, a written statement should be provided to the board to explain the reason for having a sole source.

Article X: Meetings

Section 1: Membership Meetings

(A) There shall be nine (9) monthly meetings, whose schedule is set by the Executive Committee prior to the end of the preceding school year.

(B) Notice of these meetings shall be distributed school-wide at the beginning of the school year.

(C) These meetings shall be open to anyone within the T.H. Rogers community who wants to attend. Only PTO Members in good standing shall be eligible to introduce motions, debate, and vote at the Membership meetings.

(D) Each Member is entitled to one (1) vote.

(E) No Member may cast a vote by Proxy.

(F) No Member may submit a vote by e-mail or text message.

(G) When necessary, other Meetings may be called by the President(s), a simple majority of the Executive Committee, or upon written request by twenty (20) Members. (1) Notice of meetings shall be given to the Membership in writing at least one week in advance.

(H) A quorum shall consist of a majority of Members attending Meetings.

(I) The purpose of the Meetings is the approval of the annual budget, the nomination and election of Officers, and the adoption or amendment of the Constitution and Bylaws, as well as general assistance in the operation of the organization.

Section 2: Board of Directors Meetings

(A) Board of Directors (hereafter referred to as “Board”) meetings shall be held a minimum of four (4) times during the year.

(i) Dates for the upcoming year will be set prior to the end of the preceding school year.

(ii) No Board meeting will be held during the month of July.

(iii) A Board meeting date may be changed by a majority vote of the Executive Committee with a one (1) week notice given to the members of the Board.

(B) Board meetings shall be open to the Executive Committee, the Board of Directors, and those requested by the Board.

(C) A quorum shall consist of five (5) members of the organization, at least two (2) of whom are members of the Executive Committee.

Article XI: Suggested Order of Business

I. Call to Order by President(s)

II. Principal(s)’s Report

III. President’s Report

IV. Treasurer’s Report

V. 1st Vice President’s Report

VI. 2nd Vice President’s Report

VII. Committee Reports as needed

VIII. Unfinished Business

IX. New Business

X. Adjournment

Article XII: Amendments and Parliamentary Authority

Section 1: The Constitution and Bylaws of this organization may be amended at any Meeting by a two-thirds (2/3) vote of the Membership present, provided the Membership has been given fourteen (14) days written notice of the Meeting and Proposed Amendments.

Section 2: The rules contained in Robert’s Rules of Order Revised shall govern this organization in all cases to which they are applicable and in which they are not inconsistent with these Bylaws.

Article XIII: Administrative Approval

A School Administrator shall approve all organizational activities and communication to be distributed prior to implementation.

Revised/Voted on 5/23/19.