I am also a VP, and all our informal "by-laws" state is that I help the president in whatever capacity she needs and I am in charge of fundraising. Our pres sounds a lot like yours. If she asks me to do something and I want to and think it's a good idea, I do it. If I feel like it's another one of her ditzy ideas, I don't. I think she is difficult and she thinks the same of me. I have no problem over stepping my boundaries because she is a lazy leader. Example: our fall festival is coming up in a week. She did no work on it and even missed an important planning meeting. She came in last week trying to make changes and I said no way. I feel my responsibility is to the parents and the kids, not her. I am here to work for the good of the school,not her, and not for some kind of power trip.
My advice: get more involved. Talk to other board members about what's going on, call a board meeting and talk about this, make a big effort to communicate with the pres so you know what's going on. If she ignores you, go to the principal and ask what's going on with the pizza pricing, where are we at on this issue, etc. The principal will either keep you in the loop or tell you to talk to the pres and then you can tell her the pres isn't keeping you in the loop. Maybe then the principal will see what's going on and talk to the pres about her behavior. Talk to other parents and let them know subtly what's going on and that their wishes are not being adhered to. If you are assertive enough (i.e., a pain in the butt) the pres will have to pay more attention. Good luck!
Hello. I am a co VP of our board and we have had our share of problems. I wish i could say that when a group of people have to work together for a common goal that they could all get along. Unfortunately, that is not the case. As VP, my role is to assist the Pres. as needed. That is all that is stated in our bylaws. Earlier this year, our pres began to feel like i was overstepping my bounds because i voiced my opinion about certain decisions that needed to be made. I feel that i am 20% of a group of 5 people and my opinion counts as much as everyone elses. The role of pres is to preside over meetings and communicate with the principal if needed. Other than that, we all share equal responsibility and rights in decisions made. Best of luck with your situation. Sometimes it helps to sit and talk out your concerns with the person. For me, that helped for a little while. However, soon after that, our pres went back to her old ways and began being very difficult again. You just cant change some people, and i suppose we arent supposed to try..
I am the VP of our parent group. There have been a few instances where the president has not acted correctly. My biggest one, she wrote a letter to a parent and put my name on it without telling me, the parent called me, and I looked like a complete idiot for not knowing what was going on! The President has taken over everything! At the meeting, the parents were saying to sell pizza for $2.00/slice, but she made the decision to have everything $1.00. At the meeting, she said, tell me what you want. The group has become "hers". She does everything her way. I am not even involoved. Just show up at the meetings, which I have no clue what is going on. Help!!! We started out great, but now it is bust! I avoid her, she avoids me. I knew she was controlling, but really! Any advice? I do show up at events and help. Other VP's, what is your role?
