Hi Sad-Not at all acceptable. That money is not their personal lunch account. I too can see if you have a group of volunteers working all day at the school that occasionally (not even all the time) you could call out for a pizza or something like that but I know for a fact that most of our PTAs don't have a problem getting food donated for volunteers for events that require that.
If they are volunteering in the classrooms or something like that, they can pack a lunch just like our kids do.
mom2m&a is right, if you aren't able to stop it yourself by hanging tough and not giving in to them (and I know it's hard but the right things always are), you can go to council or state. I haven't been approached with the issue but if I was, I'd have to go out and talk with them and explain what acceptable expenses are. If that didn't work, I'd have to get State involved. (funny thing is, they'd probably end up here complaining about how the PTA is telling them what to do ) but it is not right and not acceptable. They are taking advantage of your PTA. Someone has to stop it. It's not quite embezzelment but it's a step in that direction...

Maybe I have a different view of the world than most people, but I don't think the PTA/PTO should ever be responsible for anyone's food expenses. Absolutely not ever for lunch meetings (they had to eat anyway - why should other parents pay for their meals?) and I still don't think even if you order in a pizza. We are all volunteers - we should not get paid for our work. I work incredibly long hours at my kids school - I volunteer in each classroom and I do all kinds of things - chair fundraisers, run meetings, help in the library, even help sort the mail in the office. I don't expect a penny for my time and effort - it's my choice and as a parent I would be appalled that a board member would think it's ok to have hard-earned fundraising money spent on my personal use.

Somehow the group at your school got off track. Since it's a PTA, can you call your district office and see if they can intervene? How would the PTA feel about how these people are spending money?

Sometimes you have to pick your battles. If you feel this bad about the situation, can you go back in and see if you can get back on the board?

Thank you all for your responses to answer some of your questions. Elections have not happened and had I not quit I would have been the president again next year and to be honest if I said I wanted the job again next year the principal would make sure it happened. I don't think changing from PTA to PTO would have a magical effect on the group. I am just looking to start a school focused group not replace the PTA. When I said the PTA has a lock of fundraising I didn't mean I couldn't do a fundraiser there are just SO Many going on that as a parent I'm sick of my child brining home fundraiser things.

Michelle - to directly answer your question before I was president the PTA board went out to lunch at least once a week with the PTA picking up the tab. Please understand I don't have a problem with feeding volunteers who are working at school. If you are woking all day at school on a project then calling out for pizza is ok. My issue was that it was always the board - never any of the people doing the grunt work - and they would go to a expensive places to eat. For example, the board would meet at school check in at the office so they would be seen then they would take off to have a two hour lunch at a restaruant half way across town. My point being if they were doing important PTA work at school then they didn't have time to spending 2 hours and lots of $$ on lunch. I agree that the PTA needs people who are willing to work for what is right. The teacher who sat on the board told the principal that I was the only parent with morals on the board. But the fact of the matter is that I just don't want to fight any more with the board. The PTA in our school Does do some good things but the negative far out weighs the positive at least for me for now.

Your posting breaks my heart and I hope it is still time for you to charge back in there. Sure you have this group that sees the PTA as a social club for their own fun. I don't see anything wrong with them going out to lunch as long as they aren't using PTA funds to do it. As for going to the trainings and conventions and wasting PTA funds to use it as a party weekend, it's unacceptable. I recently dealt with this issue as one of the members from one of my units that attended convention, didn't attend ANY of the meetings, events, or workshops. She spent the whole weekend partying in Vegas on the PTAs dime. It is a touchy matter but she is being asked to pay her PTA back.
What breaks my heart is that you allowed them to push you out. It sounds like you had much support and when they asked you to resign, you should have said no. They probably asked you to resign because they knew you wouldn't be beaten in the election. If it isn't too late, jump back in. Don't let them bully you out of what you are trying to accomplish.
These people DO NOT represent PTA. There are plenty of wonderful people in the organization and unfortunately it's the bad ones that appear to represent us. Squeaky wheels...
If that doesn't work, do what I did when they pushed me out (I didn't give in but lost to a hostile takeover and a stuffed room full of people, most of them new to the PTA, I also didn't prepare enough to make sure that my supporters were there). I'm council President now and I know that I have accomplished wonderful things. (It was just an extra bonus to see the outgoing boards faces, when I was introduced as Council President!)
The amazing thing is, these people ceased to be involved at the school. This past year was wonderful because they weren't as careful about finding someone they could control, as they were about making sure I wasn't there. I'm still involved and this board is wonderful!
Please don't give up. I've said it before, PTA needs people like you who care more about their children than their social status.
Keep fighting!!!

My question here is "why does the group have a 'lock' on the fundraising'? I would think the school itself has the only lock on that. Talk to your principal about forming the group you suggested. I think it is a great idea. I also think you can run fundraisers with it, to fund the free events you spoke of. The reason I know it will work? I've done it. My problem was with a PTO full of cliques. A group who had $$ signs in their eyes. A group who didn't want to reach out to other parents, parents who couldn't attend their meetings even if they had felt welcome. I started by running a fundraiser For The School General Fund. So I KNOW your group doesn't have the lock on that. I worked with a few parents who had the same ideals as myself (you know, those out-dated ideas of For The Whole School, For Every Child, etc.) and we did things like a Santa Shop (at close to cost as a service, not as a fundraiser), we did things like read to students, tutor students, assist parents/grandparents in finding classrooms, etc.

Guess what? I've been asked to run for pres of our group! Seems those out of date ideals aren't so out of date after all!

Good Luck!

Is your PTA board using PTA funds when they go out to lunch? I know conference fees are legitimate expenses, but what about their expenses at the hotel bar? Even when I worked in the real world [img]smile.gif[/img] I was able to veto these kinds of expense reimbursements for employees. The entire PTA membership has a say in how the money is used, and should vote on it. The attendees should also be held accountable for their time spent at conferences in some way.

Have you had officer elections yet? It seems as if the teachers and parents that supported you and liked the changes brought about during your tenure, they would vote to keep you in office. The board shouldn't be able to force you out if you are doing your job responsibly. Is the principal or any of the teachers a part of your PTA board? Our principal sits on our board, as well as a couple of teacher representatives, and it helps to keep us focused on the purpose and objectives of why the PTA exists.

Also, I'm curious as to why you think a change from a PTA to a PTO would make a difference. It seems like the same people would want to run it regardless of what it is called.