I AGREE with all of you on the above!! The Pres of 2000 & 2001 did an awesome job keeping EVERYTHING (neet, labeled & filed). Since I am now in charge and going in BLINDLY her records have really helped me see things more clearly. I plan to put her system back into effect this year.

Everyone should do a chairmans' planning guide, wish our PTA did a better job of this.

Guess I'll have ta fix it in 2 yrs when I become Prez (current Prez has one year left and I'm slowly warping, er I mean... manipulating her to the dark, er I mean my way of thinking.

She's actually a great Prez

The old files that were passed to me from MANY years became my crutch. Sigh. I will not have that next year. The pres of the school I am going too did not even keep notes but said she would give me her scribbles. I'll take what I can get. We did this when we started the pre-k PTO because we were all so clueless. I can't imagine anyone not using them. You learn from past mistakes.

[ 05-20-2005, 09:15 PM: Message edited by: C. Brooks ]

hawkmom: AFTER I did all this is when no one read anything... meaning the new incoming did not think it was in everyone's best interest to try to follow some guidelines and see the flow of the organization and the "merit" of eduacating yourself on the past. You know, what works, what does not, problems that could be avoided in the future and all that.......

I did not get any binders or anything when I stepped in but managed to check out all the old files and read the minutes and treasurer reports that went back 10 years or more. I found it very interesting and was able to learn about the organization and saw it's evolution and gradual changes. Those documents are an absolute gold mine of information!

I also was able to go through and organize all the files that were just heaped into a big plastic container. I (the organization) purchased a 4 drawer file cabinet and painstakingly organized everything that would be useful (especially old archived minutes and treasurer reports). I hope they are still there as I heard the new Co Presidents cleaned out the files as I mentioned in my last post.

Call me anal too! But I just went out and bought all the officers a binder with dividers and notepads. I told them they are to be passed on to the next person who takes their office. Our bylaws say the president, secretary and treasurer notebooks are to be passed on...we were never handed anything. I'm anxious to see how used the binders will be.

I did all that and believe me I am (was) very anal and ocd about it since I had very little to work with when I came in and wanted to leave the incoming with some sort of leg to stand on. BUT.. what do you do when all your notes and procedures are completely ignored... better yet...What do you do when the file cabinet is "cleaned out"? That means all history is pretty much wiped and disregarded.....