Cornwall-on-Hudson Elementary School P.T.O.

By Laws
The Cornwall-on-Hudson Elementary School P.T.O. By Laws were voted on May 14, 2003 and posted June 4, 2003.

CORNWALL-ON-HUDSON ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
PARENT TEACHER ORGANIZATION
BYLAWS

ARTICLE I: NAME

The name of this organization is the Cornwall-on-Hudson Elementary School Parent Teacher Organization.

ARTICLE II: ARTICLES OF ORGANIZATION

The organization exists as an unincorporated association of its members. Its' articles of organization are these bylaws and from time to time they may be amended. These bylaws shall govern this organization.

ARTICLE III: OBJECTIVES

The objectives of the organization are:

To promote the welfare of children and youth in home, school and community.
To bring into closer relation the home and the school, that parents, guardians and teachers may cooperate intelligently in the education of our children.
To develop between educators and the general public such united efforts as will secure for all children the highest advantages in physical, mental and social education
To fund in part or in full programs, activities and events that will enhance their social, physical and mental education.
To raise funds to accomplish the above objectives.

ARTICLE IV: BASIC POLICIES

The basic policies of the organization are as follows:

The organization shall be non-commercial, non-sectarian and non-partisan.
The name of the organization or the names of the members in their official capacities shall not be used in any connection with a commercial concern or for any partisan interest or for any purpose not appropriately related to promotion of the objectives of the organization.
The organization shall not, directly or indirectly, participate or intervene in any way, including the publishing or distribution of statements, in any political campaign on behalf of, or in opposition to any candidate for public office; or devote more than an insubstantial part of its activities in attempting to influence legislation by propaganda or otherwise.
The organization shall work with the school to provide quality education for all children and shall seek to participate in the decision-making process, establishing school policy, recognizing that the legal responsibility to make decisions has been delegated by the people to the Board of Education.
The organization may cooperate with other organizations and agencies concerned with child welfare, but the person(s) representing the organization shall make no commitments that bind the organization.
In the event of the dissolution of the organization, its assets shall be yielded to the Cornwall-on-Hudson Elementary School Activity Fund.

ARTICLE V: MEMBERSHIP

Section 1: Any person who subscribes to the objectives and basic policies of the organization, has a child in the school, or is a present or past faculty/staff member, or an immediate past PTO Executive Board member having served within the last two years, may become a member upon payment of annual dues, subject to compliance with the bylaws. Membership in the organization shall be made available without regard to race, color, creed, religion, national origin, sexual orientation or physical ability.

Section 2: The organization shall conduct an annual enrollment of members, but may admit persons to membership at any time.

Section 3: The membership year shall begin on July 1 and end June 30 of the succeeding year, in conjunction with the fiscal year.

Section 4: Only members of the organization shall be eligible to vote on any proposals or necessary business at the meetings of the organization, or to serve in any of its elective or appointive positions.

Section 5: Annual Dues

Annual dues to the organization are $10.00 per family membership;
Faculty/staff membership is $5.00.

ARTICLE VI: OFFICERS AND THEIR ELECTION

Section 1: Officers and their election

The officers of the organization shall consist of a President, two Vice-Presidents, Recording Secretary, Corresponding Secretary, Treasurer, Grade Parent Chairperson and Hospitality Chairperson. All positions may be held by more than one person, if so elected.
Officers shall be elected by ballot or vote at a regular meeting of the organization in the month of May.
Officers shall take office following the close of the meeting in the month of June, and shall serve for a term of two years or until their successors are elected. The term of office shall be as follows: President, Second Vice-President, Recording Secretary and Grade Parent Chairperson will be elected in odd years. First Vice-President, Treasurer, Corresponding Secretary and Hospitality Chairperson shall be elected in even years.
A person shall not be eligible to serve more than two consecutive terms in the same office. An officer who has served at least one-half of a term shall be credited with having served the full term.
No person shall hold more than one office at the same time.

Section 2: Nominations

Nominations for offices shall be accepted from the floor by members at large in accordance with parliamentary procedure.
If circumstances warrant, a Nominating Committee may be formed. The Nominating Committee shall be composed of 5 members, 3 of whom shall be elected by plurality of the Executive Board from its body, and 2 who shall not be members of the Executive Board, elected by a plurality of the organization at a regular meeting of the organization at least 30 days prior to the election meeting. From this elected group, the chairperson of the nominating committee shall be appointed by the President.
The Nominating Committee shall nominate eligible person(s) for each office to be filled and report its nominees at the regular meeting of the organization in May at which time additional nominations may be made from the floor.
Eligible members of the Nominating Committee may be nominees for office without resigning from the committee.
Only those persons who have consented to serve shall be nominated for or elected to office.
Any person who has paid membership dues in the PTO for the current year shall be eligible for nomination to office.

ARTICLE VII: DUTIES OF OFFICERS

Section 1: The President shall:

Preside at all meetings of the organization, the Executive Committee, and the Executive Board at which he/she may be present;
Be a member ex-officio of all committees except the nominating committee;
Coordinate the work of the officers and committees of the organization in order that the objectives of the organization may be promoted;
Shall sign in the absence of the Treasurer;
Co-sign with the treasurer and Kids Klub Treasurer all disbursements;
Appoint the standing committee chairperson with the approval of the Executive Board;
Have the power to appoint a parliamentarian;
Appoint a chairperson or chairpersons of the Kids Klub program with majority vote of the Executive Board;
Appoint a treasurer or treasurers of the Kids Klub program with majority vote of the Executive Board;
Establish the dates and times of regular meetings prior to the onset of the academic year.

Section 2 The First Vice President shall:

Act as aide to the President;
Perform, in their designated order, the duties of the president in the absence or inability of that officer to act; and this shall not apply if the office of president is vacant;
Direct the membership drive and collect membership dues. Such dues will be recorded and funds surrendered to the Treasurer;
Keep accurate accounting of membership rank and file in coordination with Treasurer;
Co-sign with the treasurer all disbursements;
Coordinate the list of Committee Chairpersons and members

Section 3: The Second Vice-President shall:

Serve as an aide to the President;
Direct the fund raising activities of the organization in conjunction with the executive board and
Review the monthly-reconciled bank statement submitted by the Treasurer.

Section 4: The Recording Secretary shall:

Record the minutes and take attendance of the Executive Board and PTO members at all meetings. In the event of 2 consecutive absences by a member of the board, the recording secretary shall notify the absent member that upon the next consecutive absence the Executive Board may reconsider that position;
Maintain a permanent file of the minutes, committee reports, and the records pertaining to their work of the organization;
Send minutes of meetings to Executive Board within one week after meeting;
Keep a copy of the bylaws;
Provide copies of minutes to Executive Committee.

Section 5: The Corresponding Secretary shall:

Conduct the correspondence of the organization under the direction of the Executive Board;
Send notice of meetings as required;
Be responsible for press releases and announcements as necessary.

Section 6: The Treasurer shall:

Have custody of all of the funds of the organization;
Keep a full and accurate account of receipts and expenditures;
Make disbursements in accordance with the budget adopted by the organization or as otherwise authorized by the Executive Board;
Obtain one additional signature of either the President or First Vice President on all disbursements;
Present a financial report at every meeting of the organization and at other times when requested by the Executive Board. Said financial report shall be attached to the monthly minutes;
Present a reconciled bank statement monthly to the President and Second Vice-President for their approval and signature;
Cosign all Kids Klub checks;
Be responsible for the maintenance of books of account and records;
Keep such permanent books of account and records as shall be sufficient to establish the items of gross income, receipt, and disbursements of the organization, including the number of its members and the dues collected; and
Coordinate membership list with First Vice-President.

Section 7: The Grade Parent Chairperson shall:

Be responsible for the overall coordination and guidance of the individual Grade Parents;
Provide a list of all Grade Parents to the PTO President and School Principal;
Schedule and conduct an orientation meeting for all Grade Parents at the beginning of the school year;
Schedule and distribute, as appropriate, a list of all bake sale dates, and responsible Grade Parents;
Be responsible for the initiation of the phone chain, as directed by the School Principal;
Schedule and host a year end Grade Parent Thank You Coffee in accordance with the budget allowance.

Section 8: The Hospitality Chairperson shall:

Be responsible for providing refreshments for, setting up and cleaning up from specific PTO sponsored and/or supported events such as Open House, Holiday and Spring Concerts;
Organize and inventory the basic supplies at the beginning of each school year and replace them as necessary.

Section 9: Each Officer shall:

Perform the duties outlined in the bylaws, those prescribed in the parliamentary authority, and those assigned from time to time, and;
Upon expiration of his/her term of office or in case of resignation, deliver to his/her successor all material pertaining to his/her office no later than thirty days following the transfer of office.

ARTICLE VIII: EXECUTIVE BOARD

Section 1: The Executive Board shall consist of the elected officers of the organization.

Section 2: The duties of the Executive Board shall be:

Transact the necessary business in the intervals between regular meetings of the organization and such business as may be referred to by the organization;
To create committees, in accordance with the provisions of Article XI;
To approve the appointments of the standing committee chairpersons made by the President, and
To approve the plans of work of the Standing Committees;
To present a report at the regular meetings of the organization;
To review and submit a report for the fiscal year at the regular meetings of the organization;
Transact business and approve disbursements deemed necessary prior to approval of the new budget (i.e. the period of time from July 1 through mid October) at the October meeting.

Section 3: Special Meetings of the Executive Board shall be held by its members during the school year as deemed necessary, the dates and times to be established by the Board. A majority of the Executive Board shall constitute a quorum. These special meetings of the Executive Board may be called by the President and shall be called by the President upon request of a majority of the members of the Board. Failure of an Executive Board member to attend three consecutive meetings without notification to the President shall be grounds for a reconsideration of that member's position by the Executive Board. After the second such absence the Secretary shall notify the member of the provision of the bylaws.

ARTICLE IX: EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

Section 1: The Executive Committee shall consist of the elected officers of the organization, the Principal of the school or a representative appointed by him/her, the immediate past-president of the organization, the Chairpersons of Standing Committees and a Teacher Representative.

Section 2: The duties of the Executive Committee shall be to meet at the call of the President and perform only those duties pertaining to an advisory body or of such nature as to require action between meetings of the Executive Board.

ARTICLE X: MEETINGS OF THE ORGANIZATION

Section 1: A minimum of six regular meetings of the organization shall be held during the school year, the dates and times to be established by the President prior to the onset of the academic year. Five days' notice shall be given of a change of date, when possible.

Section 2: The annual budget/reorganization meeting shall be held prior to the first organizational meeting, at which time the annual reports of officers and committee chairpersons shall be presented to the newly elected officers.

Section 3: Special meetings of the organization may be called by the President or by majority of the Executive Board. In addition, upon the written request of the thirty-three (33%) percent of the membership, the President shall call a special meeting. Five days' notice shall be given, when possible, of any special meeting.

Section 4: Five members of the Executive Board shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business in any meeting of the organization.

ARTICLE XI: COMMITTEES

Section 1: The Executive Board may create such standing committees as it deems necessary to promote the objectives of the reorganization and to carry out the work of the organization.

Section 2: The President with the approval of the Executive Board shall appoint the chairpersons of the standing committees. The term of each chairperson shall be one year or until his successor is appointed.

Section 3: The chairperson of each standing committee shall prepare a plan of work, and after its approval by the Executive Board, shall carry out its provisions. No committee work shall be undertaken without the approval of the Executive Board. Within 30 days of conclusion of the event, the committee chairperson shall submit to the Executive Board and the membership-at-large a summary report of events, costs, attendance and any other pertinent information.

Section 4: A Finance Committee, of not less than two members, shall be appointed by the Executive Board at the last meeting in June. In lieu of a Finance Committee the Executive Board may appoint a professional auditor to perform the duties of an auditing committee. Such committee shall be responsible for a full annual review of the Treasurer's books, and will sign a statement to that fact.

Section 5: Other special committees may be created by the organization or by the Executive Board.

Section 6: The President shall be member ex-officio of all committees.

ARTICLE XII: KIDS KLUB

Section 1: The Kids Klub is a Standing Committee whose objective is to provide a variety of enriching after-school activities. The activities will be determined by the Chairperson of Kids Klub and approved by majority vote of the Executive Board and school principal;

Section 2: The Chairperson of the Kids Klub shall be appointed by the President with the approval of the Executive Board by majority vote. The term of the Chairperson shall be one year. The duties of the Chairperson shall be:

To present a report at the regular meetings of the organization including a financial report from the Kids Klub Treasurer;
Obtain activity leaders;
To coordinate the scheduling of the programs through the office of the school principal;
To prepare a Kids Klub budget with the Kids Klub Treasurer and present it at the October organizational meeting for Executive Board and membership approval.

Section 3: The Treasurer of the Kids Klub is appointed by the President with approval of the Executive Board. The term of the Kids Klub Treasurer shall be one year or until a successor is appointed. The duties of the treasurer shall include:

Having custody of all the funds of the Kids Klub;
Keeping a full and accurate account of receipts and expenditures;
To make disbursements in accordance with the Kids Klub budget, as authorized by the President, Executive Board and/or Kids Klub Chairperson;
Obtaining one additional signature of either the President or Treasurer on all disbursements;
To prepare a Kids Klub budget with the Kids Klub Chairperson to be presented at the October organizational meeting for Executive Board and membership approval;

Section 4: Upon dissolution of the Kids Klub, its assets shall revert back to the PTO General Fund.

ARTICLE XIII: DISSOLUTION OF THE ORGANIZATION

The organization may dissolve and terminate its organization in the following manner:

Upon receipt of a petition recommending dissolution of the organization, and signed with their names and addresses by ten members or ten percent of the membership, whichever is larger, not including members of the Executive Board. The Executive Board shall submit the question of dissolution to a vote at a special meeting;
Written notice stating the question of such dissolution shall be given to each member entitled to vote.
Only those persons who were members of the organization on the date of submission of the question of dissolution and who continue to be members on the date of the special meeting shall be entitled to vote on the question.
Approval of dissolution of the organization shall require the affirmative vote of two-thirds of the members present and entitled to vote at the special meeting, a quorum being present.

ARTICLE XIV: FISCAL YEAR

The fiscal year of the Organization shall begin on July 1 and end on the following June 30.

ARTICLE XV: NON-INUREMENT

No Part of the net earnings of the organization shall inure to the benefit of, or be distributed to, its members, officers, or other private persons, except that the organization shall be authorized and empowered to pay reasonable compensation for services rendered and to make payments and distributions in furtherance of the objects of the organization.

ARTICLE XVI: PARLIAMENTARY AUTHORITY

The rules contained in the current edition of Robert's Rules of Order, Newly Revised, shall govern that the organization in all cases in which they are not in conflict with these bylaws.

ARTICLE XVII: AMENDMENTS

Section 1: The bylaws may be amended at any regular meeting of the organization by a two-thirds vote of the members present and voting, provided that notice of the proposed amendment has been sent to each member entitled to vote at least five days prior to the vote.

Section 2: By a majority vote at a meeting of the organization or by a two-thirds vote of the Executive Board, a committee may be appointed to submit a revised set of bylaws as a substitute for the existing bylaws. The requirements for adoption of a revised set of bylaws shall be the same as for an amendment.

Section 3: Every three years from the date of approval, the bylaws shall be reviewed by a committee, revised if necessary, and reproved by the organization.

Revised: May 8, 2003

Kristine Williams, President

Lisa Silverstone, Recording Secretary

E-mail: PTO "at" COHESPTO.org (please note change)