ARTICLE I: NAME, DESCRIPTION & PURPOSE

Section 1: NAME—The name of the organization shall be the St. Johnsbury School PTO. The PTO is located at 257 Western Avenue, St. Johnsbury, VT.

Section 2: DESCRIPTION—The PTO is an organization that exists to foster a sense of community, to encourage parent participation and to advance the educational quality of our school. The PTO serves pre-kindergarten through eighth grade and welcomes teachers and friends of the St. Johnsbury School District. Our primary role is to offer consistent and unified voluntary support to the school, its children and teachers, including the making of distributions to organizations that qualify as exempt organizations under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.

Section 3: PURPOSE—The purpose of the PTO is to enhance and support the educational

experience at the St. Johnsbury School, to develop a closer connection between school and home by encouraging parent involvement, and to improve the environment at the St. Johnsbury School through volunteer and financial support.

ARTICLE II: MEMBERSHIP

Membership shall be automatically granted to all parents and guardians of St. Johnsbury School students, plus all staff at the St. Johnsbury School. There are no membership dues. Members have voting privileges, one vote per member.

ARTICLE III: OFFICERS

Section 1: EXECUTIVE BOARD—The Executive Board shall consist of the following officers: President, Vice President, Recording Secretary and Treasurer. Officer positions can be shared. The school Principal, or his/her designee, is a voting member of the Executive Board.

Section 2: TERM OF OFFICE—The term of office for all officers is one year, beginning June 30 and ending June 29 of the following year. Officers may serve more than one term consecutively, with no limits on the number of terms. Any PTO member may run for any office.

Section 3: QUALIFICATIONS—Any PTO member in good standing may become an officer.

Section 4: DUTIES

Executive Board: Develop the PTO’s annual budget, establish and oversee committees to

conduct the work of the PTO, establish fundraising programs, and approve by majority vote

of the Board unbudgeted expenditures.

President: Preside at general PTO meetings and Executive Board meetings, serve as the official

representative of the PTO, and retain all official records of the PTO.

Vice President: Oversee the committee system of the PTO, assist the President, and chair

meetings in the absence of the President.

Recording Secretary: Record and distribute minutes of all Executive Board meetings and all

general PTO meetings, prepare agendas for official PTO meetings, and hold historical records

for the PTO.

Treasurer: Serve as custodian of the PTO’s finances, collect revenue, pay authorized expenses,

follow all financial policies of the PTO, and hold all financial records.

Section 5: BOARD MEETINGS—The Executive Board shall meet on an as-needed basis.

Section 6: REMOVAL—An officer can be removed from office for failure to fulfill his/her duties, after reasonable notice, by a majority vote of the Executive Board.

Section 7: VACANCY—If a vacancy occurs on the Executive Board, the remaining Executive Board shall appoint a PTO member to fill the vacancy for the remainder of the officer’s term.

ARTICLE IV: MEETINGS

Section 1: GENERAL PTO MEETINGS—General PTO meetings shall be held to conduct the

business of the PTO. Meetings shall be held monthly during the school year or at the discretion

of the Executive Board.

Section 2: VOTING—Each member in attendance at a PTO meeting is eligible to vote, one vote

per person. Absentee and proxy votes are not allowed.

ARTICLE V: FINANCIAL POLICIES

Section 1: FISCAL YEAR—The fiscal year of the PTO begins August 1 and ends July 31 of the following year.

Section 2: BANKING—All funds shall be kept in a checking account in the name of the St. Johnsbury School PTO, requiring one signature of the Executive Board and held at a local financial institution. Funds under $50.00 may be spent by an officer without the approval of the PTO. Funds over $50.00 must be applied for with a purchase order and approved by a 2/3 majority vote of the PTO. Funds from the collections programs may be spent by the Executive Board without approval of the general PTO. The PTO administration and activities budget may be spent at the discretion of the Executive Board.

Section 3: REPORTING—All financial activity shall be recorded in a computer-based or manual accounting system. The Treasurer shall reconcile the account(s) monthly and report all financial activity monthly.

Section 4: ENDING BALANCE—The organization shall leave a minimum of 50% of the projected fiscal budget in the treasury at the end of each fiscal year. The projected fiscal budget for the upcoming school year will be voted upon by the general PTO during the May meeting.

Section 5: CONTRACTS—Authority to sign contracts is limited to the President or the

President’s designee.

ARTICLE VI: BYLAWS AMENDMENTS

Amendments to the bylaws may be proposed by any PTO member. Amendments presented at a

PTO meeting shall be considered for voting at a subsequent meeting. Two-thirds (2/3) approval

of all members present and voting is required to adopt an amendment to the bylaws.

ARTICLE VII: DISSOLUTION

In the event of dissolution of the PTO, any funds remaining shall be distributed to the departments funded by the program budget.

ARTICLE VIII: VOTING PROCEDURE

The voting procedure for this organization shall follow Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised.

These bylaws were adopted on January 12, 2010.