I cannot speak to the policies/best practices of a PTO, but as a Board Member of the State PTA as well as a Region Advisor, I can confirm that Unit Bylaws are to be updated every 3 years in order for your Unit to be in Good Standing.
I believe this is Nation wide... I'm curious as to how Units are operating as an actual PTA while not in Good Standing with the National/State Organization.
I share Hmmm's feelings. I co-chaired the PTO presidency once for a few short months. We were friends. We were both dedicated to the school and intelligent, reasonable people. It was MISERABLE. I know some have done it successfully. I've happily co-chaired the secretary position on a workgroup. But there are just too many decisions that need to be made quickly as pres.
As far as the teacher's role, I've seen it work well both ways. In our elementary PTO, school staff could not serve as one of the 5 elected officer positions. But we had teacher rep positions on the Board and teachers could chair committees. In middle school, a school staff member (also a parent) was quite successfully the president.
I understand your dilemma, and understand the concept of a parent being accessable, easier to talk to, etc.: however, the T does stand for TEACHER and they can be such an awesome help and support for your group. In my experience, it's not having a teacher that is the problem as much as it is having co-whatever's ..... especially if it's not a large school....I will never share a co position again.... teacher or parent....
However things work out....always keep the goal as to what is best for the kids and school. Do that, and somehow things will more than likely work out for whatever is the best for everyone.
I agree with the majority here. Normally the Principal is not an officer of the group, and as such does not have "control". But, when a teacher is put into a decision making position, it can become difficult for the Principal/Teacher relationship to not influence the officer's decisions. IMO it is best to have the Bylaws indicate that staff members are members, but can not hold Executive positions.
Thanks for the info! We do have a template from our state PTA that we're filling in. Very good to know that co's aren't allowed in your state. Perhaps this, rather than the co being a teacher is the heart of the problem. Definitely got the teachers up in arms by just having this discussion...
Since you are a PTA, have you contacted your state or district office for help with the bylaws, or this issue specifically? In my state, there is a specific bylaws template that must be used for local units, and there really aren't a whole lot of things you can change in it. I thought that was typical for most states, so if you're starting from scratch, you might want to check into this. Also, my state doesn't even allow Co-Presidents.
Since the T in PTA is for teacher, you're generally not going to find bylaws that specifically exclude teachers from being officers in PTA-land.
