PTO By Laws
BY-LAWS
Of the
NORTH ELEMENTARY PARENT – TEACHER ORGANIZATION
ArticleI: NAME
Thename of this organization shall be the North Elementary School Parent-
Teacher Organization ofNoblesville, Indiana. Hereinafter referred to as “Organization”.
ArticleII: MISSION STATEMENT
a. Theobjectives of this Organization shall be the unified effort of parents andteachers.
b. To promote the welfare of our childrenin home, school, and community.
c. Tofoster relationships between the parents, school, and teachers in the trainingof the child.
d. To contribute to the highest possiblestandards of the home and of the school.
e. To share the responsibility for helpingstudents gain knowledge by fostering trust,
self-esteem, and mutual respect in the pursuit ofproductive citizenship.
ArticleIII: BASIC POLICIES
Section1: The purpose of this Organizationshall be to support the educational
process at North Elementary School.
Section2: This unit shall benon-commercial, non-sectarian, and non-partisan.
A. SaidOrganization is organized exclusively for charitable, educational,
religious, or scientific purposes under section501(c )(3) of the Internal
Revenue Code.
B. Nopart of the net earnings of the Organization shall inure to the
benefit of, or be distributed to members,trustees, officers, or other
private persons, except that the Organizationshall be authorized and
empowered to pay reasonable compensation forservices rendered
and to make payments and distributions infurtherance of the
purposes set forth hereof.
C. Nosubstantial part of the activities of the Organization shall be the
carrying on of propaganda, or otherwiseattempting to influence
legislation, and the Organization shall notparticipate in, or intervene,
in any political campaign on behalf of anycandidate for public office.
D. Notwithstandingany other provision of these particles, the
Organization shall not carry on any otheractivities not permitted to be
carried on by an organization exempt from Federalincome tax under
section 501(c )(3) of the Internal Revenue Codeor by an organization
contributions to which are deductible undersection 170 (c) (2) of the
Internal Revenue Code.
E. Upondissolution of the Organization, the officers shall, after paying or
making provision for the payment of all theliabilities of the
association, dispose of the remaining assets ofthe Organization to
such organizations organized and operatedexclusively for charitable,
educational, religious, or scientific purposeswhich, at the time, qualify
as exempt organizations under section 501(c)(3)of the Internal
Revenue Code.
Section3: This Organization may not seekto direct the administrative activities of
the school nor seek to control its policies.
Section4: This Organization may cooperatewith other organizations and agencies
active in promoting child welfare, such ascoordinating councils.
Section5: This Organization shall provideongoing communication with the
Noblesville Schools Community Advisory Council.
ArticleIV: MEMBERSHIP
Section1: All parents, guardians,interested patrons of North Elementary
School students, all North Elementary Schoolteachers and staff,
and all North Elementary School administratorsshall be
considered members of this Organization.
Section2: No dues shall be assessed formembership.
Section3: Members in leadership and/orstudent supervisory positions (for example,
but not limited to, officers, executive committeeand committee chairs,
etc.) are required to comply with the NoblesvilleSchools volunteer policy.
ArticleV: MEETINGS
Section1: Regular meetings of thisOrganization shall be held on a monthly basis
with the Principal and in-coming Presidentsetting the dates.
Section2: The regular meeting in May shallbe known as the Annual Meeting and
shall be for the purpose of:
A. ElectingOfficers,
B. Reviewingthe Organization’s budget, and
C. Conductingany other business that may arise.
Section3: Notice of regular meetings willbe publicized. Notice of regular meetings
may be published in the Principal’s newsletter,and each PTO monthly meeting agenda and minutes.
Section4: Special meetings may be heldupon the call of the President. Notice of a
special meeting shall be given at least five (5)days in advance.
Section5: All regular meetings of theOrganization shall be open to the public.
Section6: The privilege of making motions,seconding motions, speaking, debating,
and voting shall be limited to members of theOrganization.
Section7: A majority of the memberspresent at regular meetings shall constitute a
quorum.
ArticleVI: OFFICERS
Section1: There shall be four (4) electedofficers of the Organization: President,
Vice-President, Recording Secretary and Treasurer.In any given year, the officers may be temporarily expanded to include additionalofficers to meet the goals and/or objectives of the Organization.
Section 2: Theterm of the office for the President and Vice-President shall be one year. Theterm shall commence at the end of the last meeting of the school year. Anofficer shall serve a maximum of 2 consecutive terms in the same office.
Section 3: Theoffices of Secretary, and Treasurer are re-electable and may hold forsuccessive terms.
Section 4: Officersmust be a parent or guardian of a student enrolled at North Elementary School.
Section5: Nomember shall hold more than one office at a time.
ArticleVII: NOMINATIONS AND ELECTIONS
Section1: Each year nominations will beaccepted for the offices of President, Vice-
President, Secretary, and Treasurer. Due noticeof the nomination process must be published in the school newsletter and/or aPTO document sent home with all students.
Section2: The Nominating Committee shall
A. Solicitfrom the PTO membership names of those who wish to serve
as officers.
B. Slateone name for each office.
C. Inthe case of President, the current Vice-President’s name shall be
slated. If the current Vice-President is unableto be nominated, then
the candidate for President shall be currentlyserving a term as an
officer or committee chair.
D. Inthe even that no committee chair or officer is willing to accept the nominationthen the Principal and current President shall present to the ExecutiveCommittee possible candidates.
Section3: In all cases, those nominatedmust have indicated a willingness to serve.
Section4: Only members of the Organizationwho are present at the Organization
election meeting may vote for the candidate forthese offices.
Section5: If the office of President isvacated, the Vice-President shall succeed
him/her. If the office of any other Officer isvacated before the end of the
one-year term, the Executive Committee (SeeArticle VIII) shall report at the next regular meeting the name of a candidateto fill the vacated office. A vote of the members of the Organization presentat the meeting will take place, due notice of such election having been given.
Section6: The Vice-President shall appointchairpersons to the various committees
with the approval of the Executive Committee. Thelist of chairpersons will
then be presented to the Organization.
Section7: Any office, committee position,or representative position may be vacated
by resignation, death, or removal. Any officer,committee member, or
representative may be removed for “just cause” bymembers of the
Executive Committee. In the unlikely event suchaction is warranted, all
Executive Committee members must be representedin person or by
proxy. There must be a two-thirds majority vote,in the affirmative, of the
Executive Committee for such removal to takeplace.
ArticleVIII: EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
Section1: The President shall serve aschairperson of the Executive Committee.
The Executive Committee shall consist of thePresident, Vice-President,
Secretary, Treasurer, two (2) Members-at-Large, Principalof the school, and a minimum of two (2) / maximum of three (3) faculty members.
Section2: The Principal shall appoint aminimum of two (2) / maximum of three (3)
faculty members to the Executive Committee, withthe approval of the
faculty of North Elementary School. The Principalwill also appoint
the two (2) Members-At-Large.
Section3: The duties of the ExecutiveCommittee shall be to transact necessary
business in the intervals between Organizationmeetings and such other
business as may be referred to it by theOrganization. These meetings
shall be closed session. The Executive Committeemust then report said
business at the next regular Organizationmeeting.
Section4: Emergency expenditures may beadministered with the consent of the
President, Treasurer, Principal, and two (2)other Executive Committee
members, inclusively, subject to availability offunds.
Section5: The Executive Committee shall:
A. Prepareand submit the new year’s proposed budget to the
Organization.
B. Monitorthe budget.
C. Reviewthe Treasurer’s monthly report (which shall include a Balance
Sheet and Profit & Loss Budget vs. Actual)for approval.
D. Reviewwritten grant requests.
E. Considerfor approval written grant requests not previously budgeted
that are within the constraints of availablefunds and meet the
objectives of the Organization, approve or denysuch requests, and
present approved grant requests to theOrganization at the next
meeting.
Section7: Meetings of the ExecutiveCommittee shall be held at the call of any
member of the Executive Committee. A member orthe Executive
Committee unable to attend a meeting may appointanother member of
the Organization as proxy.
Section8: A majority of the ExecutiveCommittee members present, and/or by
proxy, constitutes a quorum.
ArticleIX: DUTIES OF OFFICERS
Section1: The President shall
A. Presideat all meetings of the Organization and all Executive
Committee meetings.
B. Serveas official spokesperson for the Organization.
C. Coordinatework of the officers and committees in accordance with
PTO objectives.
D. Preparea calendar of PTO meetings and functions to be made
available to the membership.
E. Collectyear-end reports and job descriptions and give it to the
incoming President by the last PTO meeting of theschool year.
F. Shallprepare and make available a written agenda for each meeting.
G. Appointand oversee committee chairmen for all standing committees.
Section2: The Vice-President(President-Elect) shall
A. Presideat meetings in the absence of the President.
B. Recruitand encourage parent participation as PTO volunteers.
C. Assistthe President in any and all ways.
D. Chairan appointment committee to review the By-Laws once every
two years.
E. Actas Chair of the Nominating Committee.
G. Oversees2 major fundraising committees (Fun Run and Carnival).
Section3: The Recording Secretary shall
A. Keepaccurate minutes of Organization and Executive Committee
meetings.
B. Keepaccurate attendance records.
C. Haveavailable at each meeting: agenda, minutes, and current bylaws.
D. Theminutes shall be posted to the PTO website.
E. Maintaina current list of officers and committee chairmen and have
copies available as necessary.
Section4: The Treasurer shall
A. Receiveall monies and maintain an accurate record of the receipts
and expenditures.
B. Disburseall funds non-payment of budgeted expenditures as
authorized by PTO membership.
C. Maintainbank accounts as directed by the Organization and keep
records thereof.
D. Be responsible for preparation of anannual budget in coordination
with the Executive Committee.
a. Thispreliminary budget shall be submitted at the first meeting
of the new school year.
b. Thisbudget shall state that the amount of cash to be carried
from one year to the n ext.
E. Providefor audit of the books and make report of it.
F. Haveavailable at all meetings copies of a written report, including
receipts, expenditures, balances, and a budgetupdate.
G. TheTreasure’s accounts shall be subject to a financial review within
thirty (30) days after the close of the schoolyear by the Principal,
President, Vice-President, and Treasurer for theyear being reviewed.
H. TheTreasurer shall engage a CPA (or other person proficient in the
preparation of not-for-profit tax forms) toprepare Form 990, IT-20NP,
and related Schedules which are due November 15th.
ArticleX: COMMITTEES
Section1: The Executive Committee may formcommittees as needed to serve the
Organization’s objectives. The Vice Presidentshall appoint the
chairpersons of such committees.
Section2: The chairpersons of suchcommittees shall work within the approved
budget and parameters of his/her committee. Anydeviations in excess of
the approved budget or from previous year’soperations must first be
approved by the Executive Committee. It is theresponsibility of the
chairperson to complete the committee report anddeposit summary, if
applicable.
Section3: Each year the school Principalshall appoint one (1) parent/guardian of a
North Elementary student to serve as a CommunityAdvisory
Council (CAC) representative for two (2) yearrotating term to represent
the Organization at the CAC meetings and reportback to the
Organization.
Section4: Nominating Committee
A. Shallconsist of the Vice-President and four other PTO members as
appointed by the President.
B. Theduties of the Nominating Committee are described in Article VII,
Section 2.
ArticleXI: PARLIAMENTARY AUTHORITY
Robert’sRules of Order, Revised shall govern this Organization in all cases towhich
they are applicable and inwhich they are not inconsistent with the By-Laws.
ArticleXII: AMENDMENTS
TheExecutive Committee may review and revise these By-Laws. These By-Laws may
be amended at any regularmeeting of the Organization by a two-thirds (2/3) vote of the
members present andvoting, provided notice of the proposed amendment has been given at
the previous regularmeeting.
ArticleXIII: PTO STANDARDS
The School Board supportsall organizations of parents whose objectives are to promote
the educationalexperiences of Noblesville Schools’ students. Therefore, the Board relies
upon approvedorganizations such as North Elementary PTO to operate in a
manner consistent withpublic expectations for the schools which do not violate the
bounds of community taste.
{Please refer to the boardof School Trustees Noblesville Schools Policy—Relations—
9210 entitled ParentOrganizations.}
As a parent orrepresentative of North Elementary School, you are requested to
follow the expectationsstated in the above policy. Anyone who does not abide by these
standards may face removalfrom any school function or special event.
All parents are encouragedto play an active role in their child’s education. Parents,
teachers, and studentsworking together will help make the school year enjoyable for
everyone.