I don't think it's a case of the Principal having authority to veto PTO fundraisers, but more his role in controlling student activities and how school property is used. In my experience, they do have that responsibility and authority.
Since he wants to discuss it with you, it sounds like the door is still open. The principal may have had (or heard about) bad experiences with dances at other schools. He may have some misconceptions. He may just need reassurance as to the plan. It might help if you are prepared to listen to his concerns and to explain how the last dance was planned, what safety precautions were taken, how many volunteers you expect, etc.
By the way, I recommend you try to never let something be brought to a vote that you haven't privately discussed with the principal (if it involves the school, teachers, or students). This approach really served me well. Sometimes ideas I thought were simple, had repercussion's that we never considered. Sometimes our principal had concerns and we could deal with them or make compromises before the meeting. It's much better if you've hashed it out and have his support in advance.
I am the PTO President of a 3rd - 5th grade school and have had 3years of PTO experience. I just attended our first "official" Exec Board Meeting that lasted 3.5 hours. I need some guidance to a certain situation that arose tonight. Our school held a fundraiser dance last year with great success. Students/Parents were lined outside the door to get in. Part of our agenda this evening was to discuss our fundraisers for this school year so a Board Member brought up the dance. The Board voted and we won in favor of (10 out 11). But then the Principal (who's new to our school) said he's not sure about a school dance and did not allow his PTA to have one at his k-5 school. Does the Principal have a right, after a majority vote of the Exec Board to turn the vote around and tell us that it's a subject that he needs to discuss only with the me (President). We went back and forth about the responsibilities of the PTO and that our rights to make fundraising decisions is up to us and we should be able to decide on the fundraisers by vote. I can see if I was distributing flyers that I would need his approval, but I can't see that he can tell the Organization what fundraisers we can have. Isn't the school itself considered public property and by paying property taxes say that the school belongs to the community and as a community, if we vote to have a dance, we can? HELP!!
Back against the Wall
