AHPTSA

The Elections are near! The AHPTA will be nominating and electing its Board Members General Meeting Thursday, April 26th 6:30pm All PTA members are strongly encouraged to attend and vote. Are you interested in one of the positions? Maybe sharing the role? Below is some info on what is entailed and what we will be voting for: President Presides at all meetings and plans the meeting agenda ahead of time with the PTA secretary, utilizing input from others. The president must maintain impartiality when serving as the presiding officer at meetings and be knowledgeable of basic parliamentary procedure. It is important that the president delegate responsibility; empower others and appreciate their efforts. She/he should attend leadership training and education, and encourage other officers, chairs and members to attend. She/he should communicate regularly with officers and chairs and maintain visibility to the membership. The president should have a positive relationship with the principal and staff and encourage PTA members to do the same. She/he should promote a positive image of PTA within the community. Good communication skills are vital. The president should become familiar with the objectives of PTA, the Washington State PTA Uniform Bylaws, and the unit or council standing rules and be aware of and utilize PTA resources from the council, State PTSA, and National PTA. It is important that the president is aware of required deadlines for: the payment of membership service fees, registration for workshops and conferences, application for awards, and submittals for recommendations — as well as annual corporation report, charitable solicitations registration, insurance renewal, and tax filings. The president reviews the PTA bank statements. Vice President Performs the duties of president in the absence or inability of that officer to serve, and shall assist the president when called upon. In case of a vacancy in the office of president, the first vice president or the vice presidents in their order, shall temporarily assume the duties until the vacancy is filled. The position of vice president is one that can be adapted to the needs of each individual PTA. Look at the job description of the president and determine which tasks or duties can be delegated or shared by the vice president. The vice president helps to communicate with the PTA by updating the Arbor Heights WIKI and the Arbor Heights Yahoo group. Treasurer The treasurer shall serve as an active participant on the board of directors and executive committee and attend all the meetings of each. The treasurer should serve as chair of the budget committee and present the budget to the membership. The treasurer should keep an accurate and detailed account, in the books and records of the PTA, of all funds received and all funds disbursed. The treasurer should submit a written monthly financial report at each meeting of the PTA (both general membership and board of directors). The treasurer must provide all financial records if requested by the president or members of the board. It is important that the treasurer (or designated person) receives all funds for the PTA and promptly deposits all funds only into the PTA’s bank account; handles only PTA funds; and, does not deposit funds of other organizations or ASB funds into the PTA account. Bills should be paid BY CHECK ONLY signed by two authorized executive committee members. All financial obligations of the PTA must be authorized by the board of directors or the membership. It is important for the treasurer to attend the State PTA “PTA and the Law” workshop and a State PTA “Money Matters” class. The treasurer should read and understand all references to membership service fees and finances that can be found in the Uniform Bylaws, the PTA’s standing rules, and State PTA materials. The treasurer should forward, to the Washington State PTA, through the appropriate channels, the State PTSA portion of the membership service fees accompanied by the properly completed forms. The treasurer must preserve all vouchers, receipts, bank statements, cancelled checks, and other records, and submit these to the Financial Review committee when requested, or to the board of directors or membership when requested and maintain complete financial records as specified in the records retention timetable. The books must be closed as of June 30 and the books and records submitted for financial review to the financial review committee appointed by the president. The financial review committee shall not include any person who was authorized to sign on the bank account for the period under review. The treasurer delivers to his successor, all books and records, including historical records, promptly at the conclusion of his/her term of office. Secretary The Secretary shall take minutes and record all business transacted at each meeting (board and general meetings) of the unit/council, and of the executive committee, making sure all minutes are complete. The secretary must prepare the minutes for approval at the next meeting. Together with the president, the secretary should plan the meeting agenda and inform the president of any unfinished business at the meetings. The secretary also issues all “calls” or notices of meetings and conducts such correspondence as the board of directors or executive committee may designate. At meetings the secretary also determines if a quorum is present, handles attendance, and in the event both the president and the vice president are absent, calls the meeting to order and asks for nominations for a chair pro-tem. The secretary should work with the treasurer and the membership chair to keep an up-to-date roster of members and keep an upto-date record of all committees, making sure the names, addresses, email addresses and phone numbers of new officers and any changes in this data are entered via WSPTA’s online membership enrollment program, and serve in other ways as directed by the standing rules or by the president. It is important that the secretary also attend a State PTA “secretary’s” workshop to learn in greater detail how to better perform this job. At the end of the year (June 30) the secretary should be sure all copies of the legal documents notebooks and permanent record files are in order and ready to transfer to new officers. Below are additional Auction Positions to consider. Duties may or may not include what is listed: Legislative Chair You can be an effective chair with as little as two hours per month — one hour attending your monthly board meeting and one hour staying informed, writing letters and making calls. Stay updated on issues that affect schools, families and children. Report on those issues at the general meetings, in the weekly bulletin and through the PTA email list when appropriate. For a successful advocacy year: Make sure your membership chair has reported your name to the state PTA office as legislative chair. Sign up with the State PTA office for the Legislative Talk and Action Alert Listserves. You can do this on the State PTA Web page at [|www.wastatepta.org] or email support@wastatepta.org. Access the State PTA website at www.wastatepta.org for the Grassroots Advocate sheet to pass around at each meeting to recruit other child advocates. Make sure that your local PTA has legislation on each board and general meeting agenda. Prepare for the meeting by checking the State PTSA’s website, copying articles of interest from the newspaper, announcing upcoming town hall meetings, etc. Ask for space in your PTSA newsletter for a legislative column. If you are not a writer, look on the State PTA website for ideas or contact your Council or Region Legislation Chair. Make sure your local PTA has a budget for legislation. It should include funds for copying, postage, legislative Assembly, and other expenses. Plan on attending the annual Legislative Assembly in October. This is a two-day gathering to share, debate, discuss and decide the legislative priorities of the Washington State PTA for the year. It also includes informative workshops and dynamic speakers. Contact your Region Legislation Chair for information about upcoming orientation and training meetings. Fundraising Chair Fundraising is one way the PTA can pay for its programs, projects and activities. The fundraising chair works with the PTA Board & membership to determine fundraising activities for the year. Works with office staff to coordinate with the school calendar. The fundraising chair recruits volunteers to chair individual fundraising activities and provide assistance when needed. As with any activity where funds are involved, the treasurer and the fundraising chair must work together to see that the funds are promptly deposited into the PTA’s account and properly recorded in the PTA’s books. The fundraising chair should deliver the funds to the treasurer frequently. Do not wait until the fundraising activity is completed before giving the money to the treasurer for deposit. When a fundraising chair gives funds to the treasurer, they both should count the money and verify the amount. The treasurer should issue a receipt to the fundraising chair. Volunteer Chair Assesses volunteer requirements needed for PTSA events, programs, fundraising drives. Recruits volunteers, enlists coordinators for larger or ongoing programs (bake sales, popcorn, plant sale, Spring carnival) and provides support to these coordinators as needed. Determines other school volunteer needs and recruits accordingly (office help, library help, field day, room parents). Membership Chair The membership chair leads membership recruitment/renewal efforts. The membership chair recruits a committee, plans a membership campaign and prepares campaign materials. The membership chair collects and processes fees appropriately. He/she enrolls members in the WSPTSA web-based system and sends fees and remittance forms to council/State PTA on a regular basis. The membership chair maintains accurate membership records for your local unit. At the end of the school year, the membership chair passes all pertinent materials on to their successor. Communications Chair The Communications Chair shall be responsible for communicating all PTA events to the Arbor Heights Office for publishing of events in school newsletter. He/She shall oversee communication on PTA website and help all chairs distribute information/flyers newsletters, etc to the Arbor Heights community and staff. Grant Chair Finds and writes grants for additional funds for school projects and goals. Auction Chair The Auction Chair shall be responsible for organizing and heading the Auction Fundraiser. He/She shall oversee a committee of volunteers to help make it possible. Some duties include: finding a location, procurements, decoration, working with PTA Treasurer, catalogs, classroom projects, distribute auction information to parents and staff, etc. Thank you!