SAINT MICHAEL CATHOLIC SCHOOL PARENT TEACHER ORGANIZATION

CONSTITUTION AND BYLAWS

ARTICLE I
NAME
The name of this organization is the St. Michael Catholic School Parent – Teacher Organization
(SMCSPTO).
ARTICLE II
ARTICLES OF ORGANIZATION
The organization exists as an unincorporated organization of its members and these bylaws, as
from time to time amended, shall be deemed to be its Articles of Organization.

ARTICLE III
OBJECTIVES
Section 1. The organization is organized exclusively for the charitable, or educational purposes
within the meaning of Section 501(C)3 of the Internal Revenue Code or corresponding
Section of any future Federal Tax code (hereafter “Internal Revenue Code”).
Section 2. The objectives of the organization are:
A. To promote the welfare of children and youth in the home, school, and community;
B. To strive to enrich our children’s environment;
C. To work to create a greater appreciation of our Catholic faith and education;
D. To bring into closer relations, the home and school, so that teachers may coordinate
with parents, the primary educators of their children in forming, informing and
transforming our children and youth in the light of the Gospel;
E. To develop between educators and other stakeholders such united efforts that will
secure for all children and youth the highest advantages in physical, mental, social,
spiritual and moral development;
F. To sponsor and support fundraising activities which contribute to the fiscal health of the
school.
G. To support and promote appreciation of the important role that our teachers and staff
have by sponsoring teacher appreciation events.
Section 3. The Pastor shall have absolute discretion to amend the Constitution and Bylaws, and
to remove members and officers of the SMCSPTO.

ARTICLE IV
MEMBERSHIP, DUES, AND PRIVILEGES
Section 1. Membership in this PTO shall be made available without regard to race, color, creed,
national origin, gender, religion, or disability.
Section 2. Membership shall be available to all Faculty, Support Staff, Parents, Guardians, and
family members of students currently enrolled at St. Michael Catholic School.
Section 3. This PTO shall conduct an annual enrollment of members but may admit new
members at any time.
Section 4. The membership year shall be from July 1 to June 30, inclusive.
Section 5. Dues of the organization will be determined by the Principal. These per family dues
will be payable at registration collected by the school and directly deposited into the
SMCSPTO account. The principal may also choose to include PTO dues in registration or
other fees.

ARTICLE V
MEETINGS
Section 1. General membership meetings will meet at a minimum of four times a year; August,
January, March and May, approved changes may be necessary due to Easter Break.
Section 2. The privilege of making motions and voting shall be limited to dues paying members
in good standing.
Section 3. Items for the meeting agenda may be submitted to the SMCSPTO President no less
than one week prior to the monthly general membership meeting. The Agenda is then
prepared by the secretary.
Section 4. At any general membership meeting, for the transaction of business, a simple
majority vote will be taken of the members in good standing present, along with at least
two officers.

ARTICLE VI
OFFICERS AND THEIR ELECTION
Section 1. Each officer of the organization shall be a dues paying member of the organization
and Virtus trained.
Section 2. The officers of this organization shall be:
A. President, Vice-President, Secretary, PTO Liaison , Treasurer, and Teacher Liaison in
succession;
B. Treasurer is not an elective position. St. Michael Catholic School bookkeeper is the
appointed treasurer for the organization;
C. The Teacher Liaison position consists of two teachers (one from Grades 4-8 and one
from Grades PK4-3) yearly assigned by the Principal sharing the duties;
D. In the event of a resignation or vacancy of an office or an appointed chair of the
organization, there will be a special election. The vacancy will be posted and all
nominations will need to be submitted, in writing, within a week of the posting. A
posting/slate of nominees will be available within a week of receipt of the nomination
deadline. The slate of nominees will be voted upon at the next scheduled membership
meeting;
E. The Principal shall appoint any officer, as needed, with the President’s recommendation.
Section 3. Nomination of Officers
A. Any member of the organization may submit the name of another member for
consideration as a nominee for election. Nominations will be taken by March 31.
B. Officers will be nominated and serve a two year term with Vice President and Secretary
terms to end on even years and President on odd year; PTO liaison will be elected
yearly.
Section 4. Election of Officers
A. Each candidate will submit a bio and reason for wanting to run for that position. If there
is only one candidate for a particular office, that candidate is appointed to that position;
B. Voting shall take place with ballots in Gator Bites newsletter; election ballots need to be
turned in by April 30 to the school office;
C. The Principal shall tally the votes;
D. Newly elected officers will be announced at the last general meeting of the SMCSPTO in
May and shall assume their positions and responsibilities as of June 1.

ARTICLE VII
DUTIES OF OFFICERS
Section 1. In addition to the duties that may be set forth elsewhere in these bylaws, the
President shall:
A. Preside at all meetings of the organization, and the Executive Committee and shall be an
ex-officio member of all committees;
B. Work with the Principal to keep communications between the school and the parents
open;
C. Work to achieve fundraising goal(s) set by the Principal;
D. Present all fundraising ideas to the Principal before administering them;
E. Coordinate with the Secretary to ensure information is updated and given to families
through Gator bites and Tuesday folders;
F. Recruit all Committee Chairs with Principal approval;
G. Keep in contact with Committee Chairs;
H. Present all contracts to the principal for approval and signature.
I. Report the activities of the SMCSPTO at the monthly St. Michael Catholic School
Advisory Board meeting;
J. Update and make available to the membership the Procedure Manual stating
procedures not covered by the bylaws.
Section 2. In addition to the duties that may be set forth elsewhere in these bylaws, the Vice-
President shall:
A. Preside in the absence of the President and shall act as aide to the President;
B. Preside in the absence of another officer;
C. Coordinate with the Volunteer Coordinator to solicit volunteers for fundraising functions
and other school events;
D. In the case that a vacancy occurs in the office of President, serve the unexpired term;
E. Coordinate with Committee Chairs to write thank you notes and other correspondence
needed for school functions.
Section 3. In addition to the duties that may be set forth elsewhere in these bylaws, the
Secretary shall:
A. Keep a written record of all meetings of SMCSPTO and the Executive Committee.
Minutes should be typed no later than five days following the meeting and copies
distributed to the officers for approval and signature. One copy of the approved
minutes should be kept on file;
 B. Communicate with the President about the information that needs to go in the Tuesday
folders and Gator Bites newsletter;
C. Coordinate with the St. Michael Catholic School’s administrative assistant to prepare
school information and obtain approval by the Principal prior to Gator Bites email
distribution;
D. Assist the President with other duties as assigned.
Section 4. In addition to the duties that may be set forth elsewhere in these bylaws, the
Treasurer shall:
A. Receive all monies of the organization and keep accurate records of receipts and
expenditures;
B. Prepare and present an annual budget with input from the Principal and President at
the August meeting. Prepare and present a budget report at each SMCSPTO meeting;
C. Prepare and file a quarterly report with the school office;
D. Copy all checks and deposit slips prior to making a deposit. Copies will be kept in a
binder in the school office;
E. Write all checks gaining the required two signatures, Principal, Pastor, or his designee;
F. Maintain at least $500.00 in the treasury to start the new year;
G. Issue reimbursements when a completed form and receipt is submitted. Copies of the
reimbursement form and receipts will be kept for the treasurer’s file;
H. Maintain records of all expenditures and income from all fundraising events and
functions;
I. Work to recoup returned check amounts.
Section 5. In addition to the duties that may be set forth elsewhere in these bylaws, the PTO
Liaison shall:
A. Coordinate with PTO Room Parents to recruit volunteers for SMCSPTO functions;
B. Keep communication with PTO Room Parents regarding activities within the SMCSPTO;
C. Report to Committee Chairs.
Section 6. In addition to the duties that may be set forth elsewhere in these bylaws, the
Teacher Liaison shall:
A. Attend all Executive Board meetings;
B. Act as a liaison between SMCS faculty and SMCSPTO sharing important information;
C. Coordinate classroom activities with Room Parents (if existing) for PTO events.

ARTICLE VIII
FISCAL YEAR
The Fiscal Year of the organization shall run from July 1 to June 30, inclusive.

ARTICLE IX
EXECUTIVE BOARD/MEETINGS
Section 1. The Executive Board shall consist of:
A. The officers of the organization;
B. The school Principal or his/her representative.
C. The parish Pastor as available.
Section 2. The Executive Board shall:
 A. Transact the necessary business between organization meetings and such other
business as may be referred by the organization;
B. Create standing committees;
C. Approve appointment of special committees;
D. Approve appointments of committee chairpersons;
E. Approve plans of work of the organization’s standing and special committees;
F. Present reports to the organization.
Section 3. Regular Standing Meetings:
A. Regular meetings of the Executive Board will be held monthly on a specific day and
week and designated time agreed to by the Board at the first meeting of the year;
B. In the event that an Executive Board member shall be absent from two or more regular
meetings, without due cause, shall be, at the discretion of the majority of the Executive
Board, considered a resignation from one’s position;
C. Special meetings of the Board may be called by the President or by the majority of the
members of the Board giving three day’s notice.
Section 4. Four Executive Board members present shall constitute a quorum to transact any
business.
Section 5. The Executive Board may transact business of this organization in an emergency;
however, no action shall be in conflict with that taken by the voting body of the
organization and/or the Executive Board. Any such action may be repealed by a two-thirds
majority of the general membership at the next monthly membership meeting.
Section 6. The SMCSPTO will meet at a minimum of three times a year. As stated in Article V
Section 1.
Section 7. The Executive Board will meet monthly, or as often as necessary to address SMCSPTO
matters.
ARTICLE X
SPECIAL AND STANDING COMMITTEES
Standing Committees:
A. Chairpersons of all special and standing committees shall be members in good standing;
B. The Executive Board shall prescribe such special and/or standing committees, as it may
deem necessary to promote the objectives and carry on the work of the Harvest
Festival, Soup Bowl, Book Fair, Auction, and/or other event/program/activity agreed to
by Executive Board;
C. Chairpersons of special and standing committees shall not serve for more than two (2)
consecutive years, unless other volunteers are not forthcoming;
D. Co-chairperson will assume the role of Chairperson when chairperson steps down
during the event/program/activity;
E. Chairpersons of special and standing committees shall present a written plan of work to
the Executive Board for approval (i.e. fundraising, raffles, activities that generate
additional revenue, etc.);
F. No committee work or expenditures shall be undertaken without the consent of the
Executive Board;
G. A standing committee will be in the inclusion of one or two representatives from each
homeroom class. It will be up to the classroom teacher how these parents are utilized in
 his/her classroom. The job of these room parents is to offer a line of communication as
the teacher or PTO requires;
H. Any gifts or donations shall be turned over to the Executive Board to be inventoried and
secured in a lock box till the time the Executive Board and/or membership decides
where to allocate the gifts or donations;
I. A final committee report shall be presented to the Executive Board at the conclusion of
the school year event/program/activity.

ARTICLE XI
RULES OF ORDER/CONDUCT OF MEETINGS
Section 1. As a Christian community uniquely Catholic the SMCSPTO will endeavor to arrive at
consensus in its deliberations. If there is a dispute, formal decision-making will use
parliamentary procedures as outlined in Robert’s Rules of Order.
Section 2. Generally, the order of meeting shall be:
 Call to Order and Prayer
 Approval of minutes
 Approval of Reports
 Committee Reports
 Old Business
 New Business
 Future Business and topics for future agendas
 Meeting dates
 Prayer and Adjournment

ARTICLE XII
AMENDMENTS
Section 1. This constitution may be amended by a vote of two-thirds of the total voting
membership.
Section 2. Amendments must be presented to the SMSCPTO Executive Board at least one
meeting prior to voting on such.
Section 3. As noted in Article III, Section 3, the Pastor has final authority over any amendments
to the Constitution and Bylaws.

ARTICLE XIII
BYLAWS
Section 1. Bylaws in accord with this constitution may be developed to further specify the
internal operation of the SMCSPTO.
Section2. Bylaws may be developed and amended by a vote of a two-thirds majority at any
regular meeting.
Section 3. Bylaws and /or amendments to bylaws must be presented at least one meeting prior
to voting on such.

Drafted: March, 2016