Question: Officer Appointments

Our school administrators have decided to start a PTO and just appointed persons to organize the organization. Are elections required or is it up to each PTO as to who will hold offices or how the positions will be assigned?

Asked by Anonymous

Answers:

Advice from PTO Today

Craig writes:
Elections are required, but not yet. The way it typically works is you get several interested people together to talk about the PTO's role and goals for the school. Then you hold an open meeting to present your ideas to parents. At that point you elect an interim leader and appoint a committee to draft bylaws. The bylaws will spell out which offices you will have on the executive board, length of terms, and how officers are elected. Once the bylaws are adopted, you can hold formal elections. The article How To Start a PTO has more details on the process and includes helpful links to tools such as sample bylaws. Good luck!