The name of this organization
shall be the Deer Creek Parent-Teacher Organization, Inc.
This includes the individual school site PTOs, as well as
the Executive PTO Board which acts as the governing body of
the organization.
Article II. Purpose
To encourage a cooperative and open communication
between parents, teachers and administrators in the
education of students.
To bring closer the relationship of home and school
so that parents, teachers and administrators may work
cooperatively and productively toward the education and
safety of the children.
To enhance the educational facilities and
opportunities for the students of Deer Creek Schools that is
not otherwise provided for in the school district budget.
To give parents and students an organized opportunity
to show appreciation to teachers and administrative staff.
Article III. Policies
This organization shall neither seek to direct the
administrative activities of the school nor to control its
policies.
This organization may make suggestions to the
administration concerning activities of the school, if such
suggestion is made toward the betterment of conditions for
all concerned. (i.e. students, teachers, administrators and
parents.)
Article IV. Membership
Any parent, step-parent, or legal guardian with a
child enrolled and attending that Deer Creek School who will
uphold the policies of the PTO and agree to the Bylaws.
Each school site staff member.
Each member will have the privilege of making
motions, voting and serving on committees.
School Board Members, the District Superintendent,
Administration Directors, the Principal, and Assistant
Principals are considered advisors and do not have the
privilege of voting. These advisors however, are always
encouraged to contribute to discussions at any meeting.
Article V. Meetings
Each school site will hold public monthly meetings
from September through May. These meeting dates should be
determined no later than July 1 for the school year and
widely publicized to all parents and staff.
Any meetings that are not previously on the annual
calendar must be well publicized to all members with a
minimum of 48 hours notice.
A school site PTO may hold closed meetings with
either officers or officers and committee chairs. However,
this is not considered a quorum to vote on matters
pertaining to the general PTO membership. (i.e. spending of
funds, approval of budget, etc.)
The Executive PTO Board will meet monthly from August
through May. These meetings are closed to general
membership. Special meetings may be called throughout the
year with a minimum of 48 hour notice.
Article VI. School Site
Officers and Committee Chairs
Each school site PTO Board will consist of a
President, Vice-President, Treasurer and Secretary. Job
descriptions for these positions will be updated annually in
the Standing Rules by the Exec. PTO Board.
Each officer must ensure that their organization is
adhering to these Bylaws, the Standing Rules, as well as all
district and school administrative policies.
The President’s responsibilities include (but are not
limited to):
Preside over all PTO meetings
Monitor and support all activities of the other officers and committee chairs
Communicate with the membership on a minimum of a monthly basis via newsletter, website,
e-mail, etc.
Attend monthly Exec. PTO Meeting and present school status report
The Vice-President’s responsibilities include (but are not limited to):
Act as an assistant to the President and
shall perform all duties of the President in her/his
absence
Monitor and support activities of committee
chairs
Attend monthly Exec. PTO Meeting
The Treasurer’s responsibilities include (but are not
limited to):
Create and manage budget for each school year
Reconcile and report on budget each month at
PTO Meeting
Reconcile school site balance sheet to Exec.
PTO Financial Report monthly
Properly deposit all money collected in bank
The Secretary’s responsibilities include (but are not
limited to):
Record minutes at each of the monthly
meetings
Transcribe the minutes and provide copies for
next meeting for approval
Maintain all minutes of the current school
year on file
Each school site PTO officers will appoint Committee
Chairs for the proper execution of their activities.
All officers and committee chairs shall deliver to
their successors’ documentation of the current year’s
activities at the close of the school year as well as
organize transition meetings for new officers.
Each term of office is from June 1 through May 31.
There are no term limits for officers, however, each officer
must be re-nominated and re-elected into office each year.
Any officer resignation should be made in writing to
both the remaining school site PTO officers as well as the
Exec. PTO President. The position will be filled through
the regular nomination process unless the resignation occurs
in March or after. Then the remainder of the PTO officers
will assume the responsibilities of that position.
Officers can be removed from office by majority vote
of the Exec. PTO Board for deliberately violating the PTO
Bylaws or school/district policy as well as negligence of
duty, excessive absenteeism, or irresponsible behavior.
Article VII: Election of
School Site Officers
Each school site will have a nominating committee
that consists of the school principal, the current
Vice-President and one elected member at large. This
committee should be formed no later than the end of
January. The nominating committee shall present its
recommended slate of officers by written notice in March at
which time additional nominations may be made from the
floor.
Only those persons who have consented to serve will
be eligible for nomination.
At the March meeting, after motion to close
nominations is made and confirmed, the ballot is final. The
only exception will be if a position is vacant. Any new
nominee for that position must be publicized to the
membership at least one week prior to the April meeting.
If more than one candidate is running for an office,
the nominees may each speak to the membership regarding
their background, qualifications, etc.
Elections will take place at the April meeting. If
only one individual is running for each office, votes may be
taken by a show of hands, followed by a motion from the
floor to accept the vote. If more than one individual is
running for an office, voting must be done by ballot. The
ballots should be counted by the nominating committee, and
the ballots should be held at the school for one week before
destroying.
All votes will be a majority vote (more than half) of
those voting. Blank ballots and abstentions do not count.
No proxy votes will be allowed.
Article VIII: Executive PTO
Board
The Executive Board PTO consists of the President and
Vice-President of each school site; the Executive Board
President, Vice-President, Treasurer and Secretary; the
district liaisons (School Board Member and the
Superintendent); Advisor (outgoing Exec. Board President)
and any Executive Board Committee Chairmen. The only
members with voting privileges are the school site
Presidents and Vice-Presidents and the Executive Board
Officers.
The President’s responsibilities include (but are not
limited to):
Preside over all Exec. Board meetings
Review By-laws when needed
Update Standing Rules annually
Monitor and support all activities of school
sites as well as the Exec. PTO fundraiser
Coordinate training for all PTO officers
Ensure that all historical information is
maintained and passed on
The Vice-President’s responsibilities include (but
are not limited to):
Act as an assistant to the President and
shall perform all duties of the President in her/his
absence
The Treasurer’s responsibilities include (but are not
limited to):
Preparing monthly financial reports for the
Exec. PTO Meeting and managing the approval of those
reports by all school sites
Proper accounting of all funds deposited by
each school site PTO
Distributing officer of all funds
Custodian of funds (transferring funds to
higher yield accounts or CDs when possible)
Filing Income Tax Returns
The Secretary’s responsibilities include (but are not
limited to):
Taking minutes during each meeting and
providing a typed copy via e-mail to all attendees
within one week of the meeting.
Prepare “talking points” for Exec. PTO
representative to report at site PTO meetings
Coordinate all meetings
All officers will attend site PTO Meetings on a
rotating basis throughout the year
Article IX: Election of
Executive Board Officers and Committee Chairs
Eligibility for each office includes:
President - must be a former Deer Creek PTO
President and preferably a current member of the
Executive Board
Vice-President - must be a former Deer Creek
PTO Officer and preferably a current member of the
Executive Board
Treasurer - prior Deer Creek PTO treasurer
experience preferred, as well as a background in
finance/accounting
Secretary- must be a former Deer Creek PTO
officer.
Nominations for the officer positions on the
Executive Board shall be taken during the March meeting.
There are no term limits, but each officer must be
re-nominated and re-elected each year.
The Executive Board President may prepare a slate of
officers for approval, but any nominations from the floor
must be accepted as well.
Elections will be held during the April meeting. All
officers/members present at that meeting will each cast one
vote. Voting by proxy will be allowed. Votes may be taken by
a show of hands, or in the case of one or more individuals
seeking the same office, a written ballot.
The term of office is from June 1 through May 31. All
new Exec. Board Officers may attend the May meeting as
guests, however they will not be granted voting privileges.
All committee chairs may be nominated by the
President, but must be approved by the Board.
Article X: Fundraising
A fundraiser is defined as
one activity or
event that is intended to generate money to support the
school. Each school site is allowed to have two PTO
fundraising activities or events each school year. If an
additional fundraiser is requested by a PTO, it must have
Exec. PTO Board approval.
Activities that do not require a monetary donation on
the part of patrons, such as “clipping” programs, rebate
programs (store, credit card and restaurant), recycling,
etc. are classified as donations and are to be directed to
the school’s donation account.
Fundraisers must have the approval of the school
principal and be sanctioned by the Deer Creek Board of
Education. The details of this process will be included in
the Standing Rules.
Fundraising activities should be driven by a defined
purpose and goal. The distribution of the funds must also
be voted on by the membership.
School fundraisers, although sometimes managed by
parents, are not to have their funds deposited in the PTO
bank account.
Service projects, which are defined as any
service that is sold to patrons without a mark-up, is not
considered a fundraiser. Each PTO may do an unlimited
number of service projects. However, each project should be
voted on by the membership.
Article XI: Finance
Each school site PTO must submit their annual budget
to the Exec. PTO Officers by July 30 for approval. This
budget must be approved by the membership in their September
meeting. A standard budget format will be included in the
Standing Rules.
Each school site can spend no more than 20% of their
operating budget on overhead (which includes supplies,
teacher appreciation, hospitality, family events, etc.)
School grants should account for the remaining 80% (which
includes educational materials, equipment, resource
training, educational events, etc.)
Each month the Exec. PTO Treasurer prepares a finance
report that must be reconciled by each site Treasurer prior
to the monthly Exec. PTO meeting. At the Exec. PTO Meeting,
the Exec. Board must vote to accept the finance report.
A PTO may not spend over $100 without a majority vote
of the membership.
Each PTO should spend the money that is raised in
that school year during that school year. The maximum
amount of money that can be held over to the next year is
$3,000. Any deviation from this rule must have approval of
the Exec. PTO Board.
The Exec. PTO Treasurer’s accounts shall be examined
annually by an auditor or an auditing committee of not less
than two members. When satisfied that the Treasurer’s
annual report is correct, they shall sign a statement to
that fact at the end of the report.
Article XII: Voting
For school site meetings, a quorum will be at least
four persons, of which, two must be school site PTO officers
and two must be general members.
A simple majority vote of the quorum present shall
constitute a decision. Blank ballots and abstentions do not
count. No proxy votes will be allowed at school site
meetings.
For Exec. PTO meetings, a quorum will be all present
at a scheduled meeting. Proxy votes will be allowed at
Exec. Board PTO Meetings. With the consent of all members,
votes on timely issues may be taken via email.
Article XIII: Bylaws
The Bylaws of this organization may be amended by a
majority vote of the Executive Board.
Voted on at 5/24/2007 at May
14, 2007 Exec. PTO Meeting.
