Holy Family Catholic School

Holy Family School                 Parent Teacher Organization               Bylaws

ARTICLE I

Name

The name of this organization shall be the Holy Family School Parent Teacher Organization (PTO).

 ARTICLE II

Organizational Authority

 The PTO is sanctioned by Article III, Section C – Parent Teacher Organization of the Holy Family Catholic School Advisory Council Constitution approved March 2000.

 ARTICLE III

Mission

 To enhance and support the mission of Holy Family School by:

1. Supporting and fostering an optimal environment for communication amongst its members; and

2. Actively pursuing the donation of time and talent from all of its members for activities that create a sense of community and spirit of cooperation in the school.

  Mission of Holy Family School

  Holy Family School is committed to providing a Catholic education that teaches the way of Jesus Christ.  Through the helping hands of teachers, staff and parents, each child is encouraged to grow in mind, body and spirit.  Holy Family School strives to enrich the students with love and knowledge by living the Catholic faith.

ARTICLE IV

Membership

Each parent or legal guardian of a student enrolled in Holy Family School , the principal and each teacher employed by Holy Family School is a voting member of the PTO.

 ARTICLE V

Executive Committee

 Section1: Officers

 The PTO Executive Committee shall consist of the following three officers:

1. President

2. Vice President

3. Secretary

All Executive Committee Officers shall meet the following criteria:

1. Must be a parent or legal guardian of a student enrolled in Holy Family School ;

2. Maintain good standing with their financial and contractual responsibilities to the school;

3. Possess interest in and commitment to the ideals of a Catholic education and to the PTO’s and Holy Family School ’s philosophy and mission;

4. Are available and committed to attend meetings and participate in PTO programs and committees;

5. Maintain high levels of integrity, confidentiality and mutual support; and

6. Serve as credible witnesses of the Catholic faith (or to one’s own religion) to the school community and beyond.

Section 2: Officer Duties

 The President shall:

1. Preside at and administer all regular, special and Executive Committee meetings or designate an alternate Executive Committee Officer to preside (in the following order: Vice President and Secretary);

2. Serve as the primary liaison to the Principal;

3. Serve as a voting member of the School Advisory Council.  The President or his/her spouse shall not be an elected member of the School Advisory Council at the same time he/she is serving as President of the PTO.   

4. Work in conjunction with the school’s bookkeeper regarding any financial matters of the PTO;

5. Organize and manage the Lead Room Parent program; and,

6. Perform such duties as are incumbent of this office.

 The Vice President shall:

1.      Perform the President’s duties in the President’s absence;

2.      Determine that a quorum is present at each meeting as defined in Article VI, Section 1. C. and Article VI, Section 2;

3.      Organize and manage the Volunteer Program; and,

4.      Perform additional duties designated by the President.

 The Secretary shall:

1.      Generate and distribute regular and special meeting agendas upon consultation with other Executive Committee Officers;

2.      Summarize and distribute a record of all regular, special and Executive Committee actions in the form of meeting minutes in written and electronic format;

3.      Publicize meetings and all other activities of the PTO in the Monday Memo and on the website.

4.      Organize and manage the Mentor Family Program; and

5.      Perform additional duties designated by the President.

 Section 3: Officer Terms

Executive Committee Officers shall serve a one-year term that runs from May through April of each year.  An Executive Committee Officer is eligible for reelection to any officer position, but no officer shall be eligible to serve more than three consecutive terms in any Executive Committee Officer position.  An Executive Committee Officer, having served three consecutive terms, may again be a candidate for an officer position after a lapse of at least one year.

Section 4: Nominations and Elections

 Nomination Process

In March, the Executive Committee shall coordinate the following for gathering a slate of nominees:

1. Establish a time line for the nomination and election process;

2. Publicize Executive Committee Officer openings;

3. Extend written follow-up to all nominee applicants that includes necessary forms to apply for an Executive Committee Officer position;

4. Gather and publicize biographies with photos of candidates in the Monday Memo and on the website; and,

5. Prepare ballots for election if the number of candidates exceeds the number of vacancies.

Election Process

The following criteria will be used for elections:

1. Voting will take place in April for a period of no more than two weeks.

2. Names of the nominees shall appear in alphabetical order on the ballot.

3. Ballots will be distributed.

4. No more than one vote per parent or legal guardian, principal or teacher will be counted.

5. The Executive Committee will tabulate the ballots within a week after elections close and present the results to the Principal for verification.  Where more than two candidates compete for one officer position and no candidate receives a majority vote, one of the two candidates receiving the most votes shall be selected in a runoff election.  Upon verification, the election results will be reported in the Monday Memo and on the website.

6. In the event only one candidate runs for an Executive Committee Officer position, no election will be necessary.  Candidate will be approved by the Principal.

Section 5: Vacancy

 In the event of a vacancy on the Executive Committee, the remaining Executive Committee Officers and principal shall appoint a temporary officer to serve until a special election can be held to fill the vacancy.  If a permanent officer is not elected within sixty (60) days after the vacancy occurs, the temporary officer shall automatically become permanent for the remainder of the unexpired term.  

Section 6: Termination

An Executive Committee Officer may be removed for any one of the following reasons:

1. At any time fails to meet the general eligibility requirements as specified in Article V, Section 1.

2. Unexcused absences from three regular, special or Executive Committee meetings during a term.

3. If, in the opinion of the remaining Executive Committee Officers and principal, such action is necessary for the best interest of Holy Family School .

 ARTICLE VI

Meetings

Section 1: Type  

1. General

The PTO shall meet monthly throughout the school year August through May.  The time, date, location and notification of the meeting will be arranged under the direction of the Executive Committee.  The May meeting shall be for the purpose of concluding any business for the current school year, installing the newly elected Executive Committee Officers and preparations for the upcoming school year.  The meetings are open to all PTO members.

2. Special

At any time warranted by the President, Advisory Council or Principal, a special meeting may be called.  No less than seventy-two (72) hours notice must be given to the membership stating the purpose, date, time and location of the meeting.

3. Executive Committee

Executive Committee meetings will be held at such time to allow for adequate preparation and distribution of the agenda prior to the regularly scheduled PTO meeting.  Before business can be transacted, motions made or passed, or Executive action be taken at least two-thirds (2/3) of the Executive Committee Officers must be present.

Section 2: Quorum

For any regular, special or Executive Committee meeting wherein a decision must be made, a quorum must be obtained in order for the decision to be valid.  A quorum shall be defined as ten percent (10%) of the voting members of the PTO as defined in Article IV.

 Section 3: Parliamentary Procedure

 Once the quorum has been established and verified, voting can occur.  Each member of the PTO as defined in Article IV is allowed one (1) vote.  An absentee vote of individual members will be allowed at the discretion of the PTO President and extenuating circumstances (e.g., death in the family, illness, etc.). Tallies of votes taken shall be based on the total votes cast.  Majority vote tallies will succeed.

 ARTICLE VII

Fees

 The PTO will assess a fee, on a per student basis, annually, during final registration in August.  The Executive Committee shall review the reasonableness of the fee on an annual basis and present to the Advisory Council any proposed change.  Any revision to the fee must obtain Advisory Council consensus. 

ARTICLE VIII

Service Hours

 Parents or legal guardians of students enrolled in Holy Family School are committed to a mandatory thirty (30) hours of service over the course of the year. The commitment year begins June 1^st and ends May 31^st.  Parents or legal guardians with more than one child enrolled at Holy Family School need only fulfill the requirement for the enrollment of one child.  Hours will be prorated for new families.  Parents or legal guardians who are unable to fulfill their commitment through volunteer time may provide support for the school through the donation of goods and services.  Donated goods or services will usually be credited at the rate of $10.00 value equal to one (1) service hour.  Any unfulfilled hours will be billed at $10.00 per service hour.

ARTICLE IX

Programs and Committees

All members of the PTO are eligible to be members of the programs and committees.  The President of the PTO shall call for volunteers for the programs and committees no later than the April regular meeting.  Each program will be chaired as stated in Article V, Section 2.  Each committee will be chaired by an individual nominated from among members of the committee.  The term of service shall be from May through April.  At each regular meeting the program’s and committee’s chairman will present a written report to all members present.

 The PTO shall maintain the following programs:

 Lead Room Parent

The Lead Room Parent program is responsible for soliciting one (1) parent or legal guardian to act as a liaison for each teacher to the other class’ parents in grades Pre-Kindergarten through 8^th grade, Science, Art, Computers and Foreign Languages.

Volunteer

The Volunteer program is responsible for providing an avenue for parents or legal guardians to fulfill their service hour requirement while also creating a sense of community and spirit of cooperation in the school.

  Mentor Family

The Mentor Family program is responsible for providing a mentor family to each new family of the school to ensure their transition to the school is successful and act as a resource for questions throughout the year.

 The PTO shall maintain the following committees:

Fundraising

The Fundraising committee is responsible for establishing goals or projects and identifying activities or events that would successfully raise funds to meet these goals or projects.  In addition, the committee is responsible for ensuring all fundraising activities or events are within the guidelines established by the School Advisory Council and parish.

Hornet Store

The Hornet Store is responsible for providing the school community unique school logo items and operating an effective uniform resale program.  

ARTICLE X

Temporary and Ad Hoc Committees

The Executive Committee recognizes the need to organize and maintain temporary and ad hoc committees dedicated to specific short-term aspects of the PTO mission.  Such temporary and ad hoc committees shall be assigned titles indicative of their purpose.  Each temporary or ad hoc committee will be chaired by an individual nominated from among members of the committee.

ARTICLE XI

Amendment of Bylaws

Amendment of these Bylaws can be proposed by any member at a meeting in which a quorum is present.  Within 14 days of the meeting at which the amendment was proposed, the President shall give written notification to all members of the PTO of the proposed amendment.  At the next regular meeting, at which a quorum is present, final approval of the amendment shall be made by a majority vote.

 OFFICIAL SIGNATURES FOR LOCAL APPROVAL

 The attached Bylaws have been approved by the Holy Family School Advisory Council and by ballot assent of the general PTO membership.