West Woodland Parent Teacher Association (WWPTA)
Standing Rules
Updated 8/08
The Mission of the WW PTA is to:
• enrich the educational experience
• encourage increased engagement among all students, parents, teachers, staff, administrators and the greater community.
I. DESCRIPTION OF THE ORGANIZATION
A. The name of the PTA local shall be West Woodland PTA, local unit number 6.15.365
B . The unit incorporated as a nonprofit corporation in the State of Washington on November 27, 1984. It is the responsibility of this unit to file an Annual Corporation Report prior to March 1 annually. The unit’s incorporation number is 2-353202-1.
C. The unit’s Federal Employer Identification Number is 91-1143968.
D. The unit was recognized by the IRS as a tax-exempt organization on April 12, 1988 under Section 501(c) 3.
II. LEADERSHIP
A. The Executive Committee of the Board consists of the following elected officers: President, Vice President, Secretary, and Treasurer. These elected officers shall constitute the executive board.
B. Appointed members of the board may include but are not limited to: Volunteer Coordinator, All School Program Coordinator, Legislative Liaison, Membership Coordinator, Room Rep Coordinator, Auction Chair, Newsletter Editor, Webmaster, Hospitality Chair, Outreach Coordinator, Scholarship Coordinator and Teacher Representative. At the discretion of the Board, some of these roles may be filled by elected Vice Presidents.
C. All Board Members must be PTA members in good standing. All members of the board are entitled to voice and vote at all board meetings.
D. Any elected or appointed position may be held jointly by two people.
E. Each Executive Committee member is expected to attend all board and general meetings.
F. If an Executive Committee member misses three meetings within an academic year without excuse from the president, the position will be considered vacant and re-election procedures begun.
G. Appointed Board members are requested to attend all board and general meetings and required to attend only if they are on the agenda.
H. An individual may serve up to four years in a single elected position. Elected terms may run for two years. Staggering elected roles such as co-President, Vice Presidents, Treasurer and Secretary is highly recommended.
III. GENERAL MEMBERSHIP
A. All parents, guardians, teachers and staff who complete a membership form and pay the fee are considered members of the West Woodland PTA and are invited to vote for officers, approve the budget, adopt/revise the standing rules, approve the nominating committee, elect officers and discuss and vote on other issues that come before them.
B. The membership fee shall be no more than $2.00 above the combined fees of the National PTA, the Washington State PTA (WSPTA), and the Seattle Council PTA (SCPTA) fees. Any increase in the West Woodland PSA portion of the fee must be approved by the general membership.
C. The students of West Woodland Elementary shall be considered honorary members of this PTA without vote or the privilege of holding office.
IV. DECISION MAKING PROTOCOL
A. Meeting schedules
1. The PTA Board shall plan the schedule and programs in advance of the current school year. This information will be made available to the General membership within the first month of school.
2. The Board meetings shall be held monthly on the same day and time to be determined by its current board.
3. General meetings shall be held regularly as determined by the Board.
B. Agendas & Minutes
1. Agenda items for consideration at either the Board or General meeting shall be submitted to the President no later than seven days prior to the meeting at which they will be discussed. Items submitted later than this will be considered at the discretion of the President.
2. The President shall post agendas for Board and General Meetings on the PTA bulletin board at least one day prior to the meeting for which they are intended.
3. The Secretary will prepare minutes of all meetings, post them on the PTA bulletin board and distribute them to Board members within seven days.
C. Quorums & Voting
1. All Board Members can vote
2. PTA Board quorum is one member more than half the membership of the Board as defined at the first Board meeting of the Year.
3. PTA General quorum is twelve members.
4. A quorum is required for any vote. Voting results will be based on simple majority. A tie is not a majority.
D. Nominating Committee, Elections and Appointments
1. The Nominating Committee for election of Executive Committee members shall consist of the Room Representatives and Room Representative coordinator from the current year, two current Board members who are not running for office and any other PTA member in good standing. Total committee shall not exceed twenty members.
2. The nomination proceedings will commence by March. The nominating committee should publicize the candidates to the general membership two weeks prior to the election.
3. Elections for the new Board members shall be held before June 1.
4. Appointed members are approved by elected officers by a simple majority vote at a spring Board meeting for the following school year. Any positions remaining open shall be filled as soon as possible for the following year.
V. FINANCE & LEGAL RECORD
A. The Executive Committee of the Board is responsible for raising, distributing and reviewing the funds for the organization.
B. The Treasurer shall prepare a proposed budget with input from the PTA and its committees and programs. Planning for the next year’s budget should begin in late February or early March. The board shall review its proposed annual budget in the spring (April or May) of each year. It is recommended that the outgoing and incoming Presidents and Treasurers be part of the budget planning sessions.
C. At the September general meeting the membership shall review and finalize the current year’s budget. A majority of attendees is required for final approval of the budget.
D. The PTA Board may modify the approved budget for expenditures of up to $1,000 from the approved budget (not to exceed $5,000 per year) without the General Membership approval. All larger appropriations will be referred to the General Membership for authorization.
E. The PTA shall conduct the required audit of its books and records at the close of the fiscal year, June 30th.
F. Original copies of all legal documents shall be kept in a secure location in the PTA office or the main office of the school. Only elected officers shall have access to the contents. One copy of these documents shall be maintained in our unit file with the State PTA office. One copy of these documents shall be maintained in a legal document file maintained by the Treasurer.
G. The signatures of the President, Treasurer and others as deemed necessary by the Board shall be on the signature card for the WW PTA’s authorized bank account. Only elected officers shall be signers for the account.
VI. RECOGNITION
A. One or more Golden Acorn Awards shall be presented annually in the spring to an outstanding volunteer(s). An award committee chair, appointed by the President in April shall convene an award committee and select recipient(s) from the school community. The award committee shall determine the recipient(s). Awards will be presented in June.
B. One or more Outstanding Educator Awards shall be presented annually to an outstanding teacher or educator. An award committee chair, appointed by the President in April shall convene an award committee and select recipient(s) from the school community. The award committee shall determine the recipient(s). Awards will be presented in June.
VII. LOCAL & STATE PTA REPRESENTATION
A. Voting delegates to the SC PTA shall be one of the co-President(s), one of the Vice-Presidents and Secretary. The alternates shall be the Treasurer and Legislative Representative.
B. The PTA Board shall vote for the position of WS PTA Regional Director.
C. The voting delegates to the annual WSPTA convention shall be determined in the following order: Outgoing President, Incoming President, Incoming Vice-President, Incoming Secretary, Incoming Treasurer, Outgoing Vice-President, Outgoing Secretary, Outgoing Treasurer. The Board shall determine the number of delegates to be funded by the PTA.
D. The voting delegate to the WSPTA Legislative Assembly shall be determined in the following order: Legislative Representative, President, Vice-president, Secretary, Treasurer, PTA member in good standing. The board of directors shall determine the number of delegates to be funded by the PTA.
VII. STANDING RULES
A. The Standing Rules will be presented annually and adopted by a majority vote at the first General Meeting.
B. The Standing Rules may be amended at any regular General Meeting by a two-thirds vote of attending members.