You believe, you care and you want to make a difference in the children's lives therefore things matter.
3 cheers for you! Very wise to make historical sheets for each event & fundraiser ... it will be a lifesaver more than most can realize.
Take care and let us know when those board positions are up ... I double dare you to run!
That all sounds very familiar. I was trying to put folders together with evaluations, budget needs, etc. filled out by the current coordinators of each event that our PTO held. For nothing more than ideas/helpful info. for the next coordinator so it doesn't appear to be such a huge undertaking. The board said I was trying to control everything. That people should be free to do what they want. I'm fine with that, but for those who lack the ideas, I was thinking of it as a foundation not a rule.
Things are the same here. As I said above, this other member & I asked to have a meeting with the board members to go over some of our issues. I did not want to bring them up at a general meeting & it become a free for all. We had our 1st meeting (2 wks ago) & were given exactly an hour. We did not finish everything in an hour so they scheduled another meeting (date of their choosing) for last night. I rec'd an email yesterday afternoon that they were cancelling due to "lack of attendees" and they will determine whether we need to reschedule at the general meeting on Nov. 9th. I wish I would not let these things bother me & I could just turn my back on it, but I can't! Soooo, we'll see what happens.
I was just checking in to see how things were going 3MCood and wanted to share. Another fundraiser coming up and a new parent volunteered to run it this year. The parent called in frustration - after volunteering to organize it the board did not supply any information on the 'how' of the fundraiser (do the same one year after year) nor did they supply a vendor phone number (same vendor year over year) when asked. Now the parent is turning to other parents for answers when they should be able to get help from the board. The optimist in me wants to believe this is the boards way of trying to make some changes in the fundraiser but history says something different.
I would go to the principal immediately. If things aren't resolved there, then I would go to the superintendent. It really disgusts me that some people abuse their power in the PTO when they hold an office. I am the PTO President at my son's school and would never abuse my authority. Luckily, parents are not allowed to be treasurer in our PTO so we don't have to worry about what happens with the money. Our fourth grade math teacher has been our treasurer for years and she is super! Good luck to you!
Most likely the school or district is in full control of who has bulding access, including parent groups meetings and activities.
It would be surprising if your principal or district manager had no say in these matters....you can check your school board policy manual to see what the building 'visitor groups' policies are......an indepdent parent group operates on campus, not by right, but by privildege, or under authorization and agreement to abide by district standards and to adhere to policies and codes.
3MCoord,
I am hearing you loud and clear! I have a very similar situation - and worse! Last year, I was asked to be the PTO President. The current President was stepping down and did not hold an election or even an end of the year meeting! I worked all summer preparing for the task and finding people for all the empty officer positions. Our first board meeting the prior President showed up and "took my position" away as well as the other officers I had appointed. She stated she should have held an election; but failed to do so and many people that were interested in running for positions were very upset. Turns out - that is not true. (big suprise there- huh?) She informed the school board that all of the officers including myself stepped down from our positions and asked a school board trustee to fill in for the Presidency - which he did. Now there is a PTO with no Treasurer, no Reporter, no Historian, ect.... I have spoken to the each of the Principals, the Superintendent, and the School Board regarding this issue - they can't do anything due to the fact that PTO is self-governing. Another little tidbit - there has not been an audit in 2 years during her Presidency, and there has not been a Treasurer either! I have personally seen checks on the account made payable to herself - signed by herself - with no supporting reciept! Our school and children are suffering due to one bad apple. What to do now?
