Our bylaws state that anyone desiring to help our kids, school and community and follow the bylaws can be members. To be an officer requires that you be a parent/caregiver of a child in our school; that means that a staff member has to have a child in our school. We felt that this would provide flexibility for membership while maintaining control of our Executive board.
Hello All,
His children are coming back to our school.
So far, so good. We had our first PTO meeting. We are planning for the winter projects.
Thanks for all your responses- KBKEH
Who should be a member of a PTO and who can be officers are to me two different issues. We deal with the membership issue by permitting anyone with an interest to be a member. But to be an officer, one must have a student attenting the school at the time the person is elected.
Those who have asked who would want to be a member of a PTO that does not have a child attending the school, well there are many such people. As one example, my daighter has a maama! Thats louisiana for grandma! However this maama and papa are not blood related! They ar enoth members of the PTO! How about an older brother or sister! How about the janitors wife or husband if the janitor is a she? How about the board rep who doesnt have kids at the school. How about the people who live across the street from the school and would just like to be involved?
Restricting membership is something that in my mind comes right out of the old PTA thinking! We dont restrict membership in the American society why should be do it in our schools organizations? Nearly anyone can become a citizen so why cant nearly anyone become a PTO member?
As for managing the PTO (the board) an argument can be made that a vested interest (child in the school)can be made.
It's a matter of what you and your membership want to do. We dont restrict the membership, just who can serve on the board. We have volunteers that arent even members of the PTO nor do they even have children attenting our school.
Our PTA bylaws state the same thing, that they must be a parent or staff at the school.
I agree with venzmama- Why would this parent want to be on your PTO board? What concern do they have with your school and what can they contribute to your school? Strange. I would check your bylaws, if you don't have anything in it, perhaps it could also be a question for the school itself. Would this parent be allowed on school grounds even though they dont' have a child attending and no connection to a child there?
we require that they be connected to a child at our school. we have alot of kids that live with realtives and stating parents would exclude aton of people. we have aunts, uncles and grandparents help out quite a bit. why would they want to be involved in a school outside thier own child's school?
"When you stop learning you stop growing."
