This is the same position we were in. I, as the President and wanting the Bylaws, wrote a whole new set.

I certainly hope you're able to obtain some, so as to avoid re-writing, it's a time consuming process !

Naturally, if you cannot acquire a copy of the existing by-laws, the new board will have no choice but to draft a new document. However, before going to that extreme, consider tracking down board members who held a position prior to this existing board (from 3-4 years ago). Also, there may be someone in the administrative office that could lay their hands on a copy if asked. Two possibilities for you......

I am a new PTO board member for the 2010-2011 school year. The entire board will be new, aside from one person. The current board, or the members the year before that, do NOT have by-laws for us.

There is a lot of information that they have not saved, so we are going to be starting our year from scratch. If, by June, when school ends and we are officially the new board, is it ok for us to then create our own new set of bylaws?

We want to do things right, and this site has been a tremendous help to us as far as beginning to research information. We also have the help of a few other local PTO's in the area that have offered to send one or two members to meet with us and guide us through this.

The current board president has not come to any meetings since holiday time, there was a falling out of some sort. The people currently still on the PTO board have children moving on to junior high and have offered to answer questions for us, and give us information, "after you actually hold the position when the year ends". Which is fine, we truly don't hold the positions until then, but there is so much to do and we have no idea what is left in their binders they will turn over.

I asked for a calendar for this current year's events, and there is not one. Really?
Asked what the vision of the principal and the PTO is, and could not get an answer of short and long term goals. The principal was not present at the last meeting due to needing to be at a family function, so we could not directly get an answer from her.

So, really my question is, if there are NO by-laws to be found by summer, then is it ok for us to create our own? With help from here, on our own, and the other school PTO that offered to give us a hand? We have requested to meet with the principal prior to school ending to introduce ourselves, and get on the same page, and learn what she would like to see happen in the next year and more long term.

If you have any other suggestions or guidlines we should adhere to, please let me know. We really are doing this for the children, hoping to increase parental involvement (very little of now, and one parent showed the last 3 meetings-I have heard the current president is not well liked, but I do not know her as we have not met) and we want to be as prepared as possible in dealing with how to run the meetings, and the bylaws, etc so that when the time comes we look like we know what we're doing!