By-Laws – Oxford PTO (Parent Teacher Organization)

ARTICLE I – NAME

The name of this organization shall be the Oxford Parent Teacher Organization

ARTICLE II – PURPOSE AND PHILOSOPHY

The Oxford Parent Teacher Organization is a nonprofit organization dedicated to the enrichment and nurturing of a close relationship between the parents, teachers, and the students by advancing opportunities in the school, home, and the community of Oxford.  Our philosophy is provide educational enhancements, INCLUDING, but not limited to programs, which benefit the majority of the student body and are not normally provided by the Board of Education.

ARTICLE III – MEMBERS

Any parent, guardian, teacher, school administrator or other adult interested in supporting the purpose of the organization may become a member upon payment of dues.

ARTICLE IV – DUES

The Executive Board shall determine the amount of annual dues. Dues are payable at the beginning of the school year. New members pay upon joining the P.T.O.

ARTICLE V – P.T.O. YEAR

The P.T.O. year shall begin on July 1 and end on June 30 of each year with the exception of the Treasurer who transfers responsibility in August.

ARTICLE VI – OFFICERS and EVENT COORDINATORS

  1. The officers of the P.T.O. shall be President, Vice President, Secretary, and Treasurer.
  1. The duly elected officers of the P.T.O. shall constitute the Board of Directors.  The Board of Directors, committee chairs and co-chairs shall constitute the Executive Board
  1. Any member whose dues are paid is eligible to run for office, with the exception of the President and Treasurer who are required to have served on the Executive Board, in any position, for a minimum of one year.
  1. Event Coordinators are coordinators who oversee a single event, or several events, but who do not hold a voting position and therefore need not be in attendance at each monthly meeting.  Event Coordinators are coordinators assigned to individual fundraisers, and/or sunshine/hospitality coordinator(s).

ARTICLE VII – DUTIES AND TERMS OF OFFICERS

  1. President  – The President shall preside at all regular and Executive Board meetings of the P.T.O. The President should preview any P.T.O. materials before their distribution. All phone or email votes should be conducted by the President and/or Secretary and are to be recorded in the minutes of the following meeting. When a phone or email vote is taken, ALL Executive Board members must be contacted. The President shall appoint committees and committee chairpersons for the Advisory Committee if required. The President is the primary spokesperson for the P.T.O.
  1. Vice President – The Vice President shall act as an aide to the President and shall perform the duties of the President in his or her absence. The Vice President shall be responsible for enrolling members in the P.T.O. and maintaining and distributing current volunteer lists.  The Vice President will also coordinate with the Sunshine / Hospitality chairperson(s).  The Vice President shall also create a Student Directory Committee; this committee shall compile information, prepare and distribute a directory of P.T.O. members. The Vice President shall have voting privileges and needs to be present at the monthly meetings.
  1. Secretary – The Secretary shall record and distribute minutes of all meetings of the Executive Board, including the agenda package.  All phone or email votes should be conducted by the President and/or Secretary and are to be recorded in the minutes of the following meeting. When a phone or email vote is taken, ALL Executive Board members must be contacted.
  1. Treasurer – The Treasurer shall receive all moneys of the P.T.O., shall keep an accurate record of receipts and expenditures and shall pay out funds only as authorized by the organization. The Treasurer shall present a statement of accounts at every meeting of the organization and at other times upon the request of the Executive Board, and shall make a full report at the Annual Meeting. The P.T.O. may arrange for bonding of the Treasurer.
  1. The officers shall serve for a two-year term. Officers may hold an office for more than one term.
  1. No officer or member shall receive any profits or payments from the proceeds of any fund-raising activity, except for reimbursements.

ARTICLE VIII – ELECTION OF OFFICERS

  1. Election –The outgoing Executive Board at the last meeting of the school year shall elect the officers of the P.T.O.
  1. Nomination – Nomination of officers shall be made by a nomination committee composed of at least three (3) members, two of who are Board members, this will happen when there are at least 3 or more open positions to be filled. The Executive Board shall select this committee at least six (6) weeks prior to the last meeting of the school year. The nominating committee shall report the name of at least one candidate for each office to be filled at the last meeting of the school year. The consent of each candidate must be obtained before his or her name is placed in nomination. Voting shall not be limited to the nominees.
  1. Vacancy – Any vacancy in an office shall be filled by a majority vote of the Executive Board.

ARTICLE IX – EXECUTIVE BOARD

  1. The voting members of the Executive Board shall consist of the P.T.O. officers, the Immediate Past President, standing committee chairs and co-chairs. One teacher or administrator from each building will also have a vote. The President becomes a voting member in the event of a tie.
  1. II This Board shall be the executive authority of the organization and the official voice of the P.T.O.
  1. III A majority of the Executive Board members shall constitute a quorum for the purpose of conducting a business meeting and voting. Two consecutive absences may result in the loss of the privilege to vote, and may result in the loss of the position by an Executive Board vote.
  1. The Executive Board shall have the authority to pay all approved expenses of the organization.
  1. RESPONSIBILITIES – The Executive Board shall be the basic leadership group charged with the following:
  1. To transact necessary business as well as enforce and introduce new policies in the intervals between Advisory Committee meetings and meetings open to the public.
  1. To coordinate with Committee Chairpersons membership of all standing committees that will serve on the Advisory Board.
  1. To approve expenditures of non-budget items greater than $400.

ARTICLE X – STANDING COMMITTEE CHAIRS

CHAIRPERSONS APPOINTED BY THE EXECUTIVE BOARD

The Standing Committee Members shall serve for a two year team or until their successors are elected to assume their duties.

  1. Fundraising Programs – This committee would run various fundraisers, including, but not limited to, catalog sales, gift cards, Box Tops and/or Valentine candy sales. When more than one chairperson has been elected, the minimum vote is one; the maximum is based on attendance of the chairpersons.
  1. Children’s Programs – This committee shall propose and arrange all school programs.
  1. Adult Programs – This committee shall propose and arrange all programs for the general meetings.
  1. Publicity / Newsletter – This committee shall be responsible for effectively publicizing programs, purposes and best interests of the organization.
  1. Hospitality / Sunshine– This committee shall be responsible for providing refreshments for all P.T.O. sponsored functions. (See standing rules for included functions.)
  1. Book Fair – This committee shall coordinate book fairs.  When more than one chairperson has been elected, the minimum vote is one; the maximum is based on attendance of the chairpersons.
  1. Board of Education Liaison – This committee shall be responsible for serving as a liaison with the Board of Education by attending their standing meetings and reporting back to the Executive Board any pertinent information.
  1. Plant Sale – This committee is responsible for coordinating any flower sale including the Mother’s Day plant sale.  The volunteer chairperson may be one per school, or one person to oversee all the schools.  When more than one chairperson has been elected, the minimum vote is one; the maximum is based on attendance of the chairpersons.
  1. Website – This committee is responsible for the operation of the Oxford P.T.O website which includes, but is not limited to maintaining updates and managing our URL.
  1. Adult Trips  – This committee is responsible for running any adult trip each school year.
  1. Clothing & Shred Drive – This committee is responsible for coordinating the winter and/ or spring Clothing Drive & Shred Drive.

ARTICLE XII – EVENT COORDINATORS

  • Event Coordinators  – Event Coordinators are individuals who serve as the general coordinator of an event.  Event Coordinators will not hold voting privileges and therefore need not be present at each monthly meeting unless their specific event is being planned for. Event Coordinators should attend the subsequent P.T.O meeting after their specific event to report on the event. The P.T.O President will oversee Event Coordinators who facilitate fundraising events.  The Vice President will oversee Hospitality / Sunshine chairperson.

ARTICLE XIII – MEETINGS

  1. Executive Board Meetings – The Executive Board shall meet on a monthly basis during the school year. The President or a majority of the members of the Board shall call meetings.
  1. General Meetings – The general membership shall meet a minimum of once a year unless canceled by the Executive Board.

ARTICLE XIV – FISCAL GUIDELINES

  1. T.O will consider only those monetary requests that are school related as opposed to donations to March of Dimes or community projects.
  1. All moneys allocated to each school, which remain unspent by the last P.T.O. meeting of the school year, will revert back to the P.T.O. General Fund.
  1. All memorial contributions for school personnel shall not exceed $100 and shall be in the form of a lasting school asset or a scholarship.
  1. Appreciation gifts should not exceed $50.
  1. Graduation Gifts – Four $100 savings bonds are to be awarded each year to two girls and two boys from the 8th grade graduating class. The criteria to be used in selection are: The students who show consistent effort and exceptional dedication.

ARTICLE XV – AMENDMENTS

These bylaws may be amended by a majority of the members present at any regular meeting provided notice of the amendment(s) has been given at the previous regular meeting. Bylaws may be amended as needed.

ARTICLE XVI – PARLIAMENTARY AUTHORITY

Parliamentary procedures shall govern all meetings when applicable.

ARTICLE XVII – DISSOLUTION

In the event of the dissolution of the Oxford Parent Teacher Organization the net assets, after payment of debts, will proceed to the Board of Education of the town of Oxford for use within the Oxford Public School System.

ARTICLE XVIII – POLICY

The Oxford Parent Teacher Organization is a non-profit, non-sectarian, non-partisan organization.

STANDING RULES

  1. Monetary requests must be submitted according to the schedule established at the first regular meeting of the new school year. Other requests (not included in the agenda package) may be discussed providing there is sufficient time but may not be voted on until the next scheduled meeting.
  1. Once a motion is on the floor any member may speak after being acknowledged by the President. The member may speak only to the motion on the floor and this member cannot speak again on the same motion if there are others waiting to speak.
  1. Hospitality Committee will provide refreshments for Kindergarten Orientation; Meet the Teachers Nights, High School Awareness, Eighth Grade Graduation and all P.T.O. General Meetings. Each school should submit an annual calendar of events. Any additional requests for hospitality services should be submitted to the Hospitality Chairperson at the meeting prior to the event.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

OXFORD PTO

GENERAL INFORMATION FOR ADVISORY COMMITTEES

 

The Oxford PTO has been established to provide broad support for Quaker Farms School, Oxford Center School & Great Oak Middle School.  Please refer to the “Oxford PTO Bylaws and Guidelines” for more detailed information.

ADVISORY COMMITTEES

As Advisory Committees are established (i.e. Cheer, All Sports, Fine Arts, Band/Chorus) please complete the “Advisory Committee Organizational Data Form” and email to:

Oxford PTO President

together with a listing of all members of the organization including their telephone numbers and email address..

REQUESTS TO CONDUCT A FUNDRAISING EVENT

In order to avoid duplication and/or overlap of fundraising events, all Advisory Committees must submit (one week prior to a regularly scheduled Oxford PTO meeting) an “Application to Conduct a Fundraising Event” to:

Oxford PTO Secretary

Please be as specific as possible when completing this form. All Fundraising requests must be submitted to the Oxford PTO 7(seven) days prior to a normally scheduled meeting. Copies of this request will be distributed to all Executive Committee members for their review, discussion and vote at the upcoming meeting. A member of the Advisory Committee must be present the night this request will be discussed and voted on. Electronic fundraising requests will only be allowed on an emergent basis.

Please note:                      If a school facility is being requested please fill out “Request for Use of Facilities” and send a copy to the Oxford PTO President – Lisa Suttile

All checks for donations to any fundraising event should be made payable to:

Oxford PTO

(With your advisory committee name in the comment area)

 

 

At the completion of a fundraising event, an “Oxford PTO Deposit Form” submitted with all proceeds to:

Oxford PTO Treasurer

Proceeds from an Advisory Committee’s approved event, less 10%, will be deposited into a separate line item for their use as needed. The remaining funds will be deposited into the Oxford PTO main account to assist Advisory Committees with operational costs (i.e., insurance, accountant, etc.) funding major projects, checks, postage scholarship funds and academic funding that Oxford PTO initiates for the organization. Deposit need to be made within two weeks from the completion of the event.  Failure to make timely deposits may cause an organization’s ongoing fundraising efforts to be suspended.  Deposit forms must be completed completely.

Any reimbursement requests that meet the “Request to Expend Policy” (listed below) for items by an Advisory Committee must be submitted no later than two weeks after the event together with form “Request to Expend Funds” completed and submitted with all receipts to:

Oxford PTO Treasurer

 

Reimbursements will not be made unless all receipts are presented to the Oxford PTO Treasurer with the completed “Request to Expend Funds” form no exceptions. 

When ordering merchandise (i.e. sweatshirts, t-shirts, accessories) from your Advisory Committee fundraising event, a copy of the invoice must be provided to the Oxford PTO by the advisory group committee representative.  The checks will need to be payable to Oxford PTO and all deposits will be made prior to requesting a check for the vendor.

GRANTS

 

When an Advisory Committee is interested in submitting a grant that can benefit their organization, the following information should be included in the application:

Legal Name of Organization:    Oxford Parent Teacher Organization

Oxford, CT 06478

Chief Executive Officer/Executive Director:          President

                                                                                    Amanda Burlinson

Treasurer

                                                                                    Lisa Suttile

A copy of the grant application must be submitted to: Oxford PTO Secretary and Oxford PTO Treasurer.

All grant the Executive board as well as the Superintendent must review applications.

 

Grant awards will be deposited into the requesting Advisory Committee’s account and dispersed upon completion of “Request to Expend Funds” (see above).

REQUEST TO EXPEND FUNDS POLICY

  • At the beginning of each school year but no later than the third Thursday of the month the Fine Arts Director, Athletic Coaches and Club Leaders will submit to the Oxford PTO Executive Committee a listing of equipment, uniforms, scholarships, programs and any major purchases required to run their programs more effectively and have not been funded by the Board of Education.
  • These requests will be funded and purchased from funds obtained through fundraising efforts by parents and/or guardians of each organization. All requests by the Fine Arts Director, Athletic Coaches and Club Leaders must be fulfilled before any additional expenditure occurs.
  • A “Request to Expend Organizational Funds” form can only be submitted by organizations if they have funds available for “additional” purchases.
  • During each school year, an organization may wish to purchase “extras”. All organizations must submit seven days prior to the regularly scheduled Oxford PTO Meeting a “Request to Expend Organizational Funds” form and should include all information regarding an upcoming purchase together with a listing of total number of students and the unit cost of items to be purchased. This form will be reviewed and approved by the Executive Committee.
  • If organizations would like to fundraise to help offset costs for programs not covered by each school (i.e. training sessions, clinic etc), a “Request to Conduct a Fundraising Event” must be submitted. This will ensure that all students interested in participating in this extra “program” are aware that additional funds may be available to help offset costs for these programs through fundraising efforts. The fundraising request must clearly state that the funds are being used for the banquet.  This insures that the organization is not fundraising for items already budgeted by the Board of Education budget.

Information updated Sept 2018

* Removed Raffle Information – State does not require approval 9/11/18