Leadership Town Hall Meeting www capta org Webinar
Leadership Town Hall Meeting www. capta. org
Webinar Control Panel • The control panel is found on the right side of your screen. • Select your audio interface here. • Your microphone will be muted to reduce echo and background noise. • We’ll answer questions at the end. Just type them in the box here. 2 www. capta. org
Welcome! Celia Jaffe California State PTA President 2019 -21 Sherry Skelly Griffith California State PTA Executive Director www. capta. org
Presenters Maria Steck Vice President, Leadership Services Melinda Kirkland Treasurer Lynn Miyamoto Parliamentarian Brad Waller Heather Ippolito Michael Morgan Vice President, Membership Services Commission Communications Membership Services www. capta. org
Leadership Services Team www. capta. org
Topics for Tonight 1) Elections 2) Virtual Meetings 3) Finance, Finance 4) Preparing for the new school year 5) Staying connected with your parents 6) Membership – TOTEM and setting up for next year 7) Question & answer session www. capta. org
Elections
General Election Information • Given the current state prohibition on social gathering, CAPTA and National PTA are providing flexibility that allows for voting and elections to take place in a virtual environment. The following information is meant to guide units that consider this option. • IMPORTANT – units have no obligation to hold elections under current conditions. You may simply wait until an in-person election meeting can be held. At some point however, elections may be necessary if you are not allowed to meet in person. www. capta. org
Nominating Committee • Does the slate of officers need to be posted? • Yes, your proposed slate of officers should be posted 28 days in advance. Important that you provided adequate notice of meeting to your members. • We never elected a nominating committee and do not have a slate of officers, what should we do? • It is still important to hold an election. You will need to take all nominations from the floor for the positions listed in your bylaws. Please see the California State PTA Toolkit for further details. www. capta. org
How To Run An Election Via Teleconference/Virtual Meeting If the election is uncontested, the slate can be elected by voice vote. If the election is contested, the unit must hold a ballot vote. Units should preserve the confidentiality of the vote as much as possible. The unit must ensure that each voting member has equal advance notice of the virtual election meeting and has access to the technology needed to vote. • Verify membership. • Keeping detailed minutes of your teleconference/virtual meeting is crucial as a record of the election and as proof that you have conducted the election meeting, especially if your election meeting or results are challenged. • • www. capta. org
Procedure for Running From The Floor • How do people run from the floor? • You can handle this one of many ways. A few suggestions: • Have those who want to run from the floor announce their intention at the very beginning of the teleconference. That way it will make things easier when the time comes to hold the election. • Have those who are interested in running from the floor make their intent known within a certain time frame after the meeting notice goes out. The chair could then announce the names of those who are running from the floor to let people know in advance who is running for the various positions. www. capta. org
Ballot Voting • How do we handle a ballot vote when people wish to remain anonymous regarding who they are voting for? • There are several alternatives for handling a ballot vote. Some of the conferencing services will allow you to vote and only the organizer sees who has voted. You can utilize Survey Monkey, the free version, if you set the account up ahead of time and have the names of the candidates. www. capta. org
What If Elections Cannot Be Done By End Of The Fiscal Year? • Seek guidance from your District PTA on how to conduct your election if you are past the end of the fiscal year. • Boards staying in place past the end of the term is not the ideal situation. For many reasons, PTA leaders may need to move on from their current position. Whenever possible, we recommend that boards try to hold an election meeting prior to the end of the term, in most cases, June 30 th, 2020. www. capta. org
CAPTA Resources CAPTA has created a google form for ballot voting. Go to our website: https: //capta. org/news-publications/covid 19/covid-19 -resources-for-pta-leaders/ Search the toolkit for nominations and elections guidance https: //capta. org/pta-leaders/run-your-pta/toolkit/ http: //toolkit. capta. org/running-yourpta/nominations-and-elections/the-election/ www. capta. org
Finance
Staff/Teacher Appreciation Can our PTA buy gift cards for our school staff members since we cannot hold our annual staff appreciation activities? NO • Giving a gift card is the same as giving someone cash. • The IRS considers cash gifts (including gift cards and gift certificates) as reportable income on the recipient’s tax filings. • Giving a volunteer cash or a cash equivalent like a gift card on behalf of the organization may cause them to be considered an employee or an independent contractor by government agencies. • "A public charity is prohibited from allowing more than an insubstantial accrual of private benefit to individuals or organizations. This restriction is to ensure that a tax-exempt organization serves a public interest, not a private one. If a private benefit is more than incidental, it could jeopardize the organization’s tax-exempt status. " (IRS Publication 4221) • For these reasons, our policies and procedures expressly forbid giving gift cards purchased with PTA funds: “PTA funds cannot be used to purchase personal gifts for staff or volunteers, such as gift cards. ” (California State PTA Toolkit, Recommended Budget Line Items) www. capta. org
Staff/Teacher Appreciation • What can PTAs do for staff appreciation while schools are closed? • If local businesses or members of the community wish to donate gift cards/certificates to school staff, you may facilitate that donation. • You may pay for a staff appreciation meal for all staff members by paying a restaurant directly. • You can issue a “rain check” for your usual staff appreciation activities and plan to hold them as soon as in-person school resumes or whenever large gatherings of people are permitted again. • You can send thank you notes (by mail, email, or social media) thanking staff for all their amazing work during this trying time. You should work with the school principal to determine the best way to distribute these notes to the staff. www. capta. org
Banking and Bill paying • If you don’t currently have access to online banking, sign up now. Contact your branch and see what you need to do in order to review the PTA bank statements. If possible, get “view only” access for your auditor or another non-check signer who can review the bank statements and reconciliations monthly. • If a person or company you need to pay can accept an Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) or a payment from your bank’s bill payment system, you can process the payment via that method. Complete an Authorization for Payment Via EFT/Bank Bill Pay Services form and attach it to the Payment Authorization form for this expense. Visit the California State PTA Toolkit at http: //toolkit. capta. org/ for additional information. • Electronic signatures are acceptable on all payment authorization forms. www. capta. org
Carry-Over Funds • Be cautious. We all want to help with relief efforts in our communities, but finances for next fiscal year could be uncertain. Next year’s board will need sufficient operating funds to hold activities and events in the fall, possibly before any fundraising can be done. • Current PTA guidelines recommend that unrestricted reserves should not exceed 50% of the association’s budget for an average year. Generally accepted nonprofit guidelines recommend that a nonprofit’s unrestricted reserves not exceed two years’ of operating expenses. www. capta. org
Donations • What do we do with donated funds/items now that we can no longer hold the event for which they were donated? • If the donations were solicited specifically for an event you are now not allowed to hold and not as general donation to the PTA, you will need to contact the donors and ask them if their donation may be converted to a general donation to the PTA or if they would like their donation refunded/returned. For your protection, it is best to obtain donor instructions in writing. • Payment for goods or services purchased as part of a fundraiser are not considered donations. www. capta. org
Beware of Fraud • PTAs should be particularly careful of email “phishing” scams. Do NOT wire funds. Do NOT purchase gift cards. • Be certain that any unusual emails are actually from your fellow PTA officers. “If in doubt, check it out” via a text message, phone call, or new email message. • Do not click on any suspicious links or open any unusual or unexpected attachments until you have confirmed with the sender that they are legitimate. • Pay attention to your monthly bank statements and be sure to reconcile your bank statements with your records monthly. Remember to have both bank statements AND reconciliations reviewed and signed by someone who is not a signer on the bank account. www. capta. org
Preparing for the New School Year
Summer planning – New board elected Enter officer contact information into PTAEZ Prepare new budget Recruit volunteers for the new board Figure out logistics for future meetings Plan on attending trainings being offered by your Council, District and CAPTA • Start preparing for the new school year • • • ü Fundraising ü Programs www. capta. org
Summer planning – No new board elected • Review expenses for the summer months (Before June 30) • Work with your principal to plan an election meeting • Recruit volunteers for the board positions prior to your election meeting • Work on closing out the 2019 -20 fiscal year www. capta. org
Remember… WORK WITH YOUR PRINCIPAL
Keeping in Touch
Communication tips • Continue with your communications • Keep your website up-to-date • Social media is a great way to stay connected www. capta. org
Social media ideas • Virtual spirit weeks • Teacher Appreciation Week • Link to outside content • Share posts www. capta. org
Membership with Totem
Membership with Totem HOW YOU CAN LEVERAGE TOTEM TO GROW MEMBERSHIP IN A
New (and Old) Issues • School Closures • Electronic Registration • Busy Parents • Social Distancing • Many Unknowns www. capta. org
Getting Set Up on TOTEM Five Easy Steps to Launch Online Membership http: //bit. ly/e. Membership. Quick. Start 1. Invite/Activate Leaders 2. Add and Verify a Bank Account 3. Customize Membership Signup 4. Launch Online Membership 5. Promote Online Membership www. capta. org
Updating Leaders • After the election! • Invite new leaders: http: //bit. ly/e. Membership. Invite • Manage leaders: http: //bit. ly/e. Membership. Manage www. capta. org
Message Center and Promotions • Message Center • Contact your leaders • Remind existing members to re-join • Message those who have not re-joined • NEW! Multiple language support • Outside Totem • Email lists • Phone lists • School messaging • Social Media www. capta. org
RESOURCES
Online Resources 1) California State PTA website - https: //capta. org/ 2) Totem - https: //jointotem. com/ 3) National PTA – https: //www. pta. org/
Reach out to your local resources! District Contacts https: //capta. org/about/our-team/districts-and-councils/list-of-district-pta-offices / Council Contacts https: //capta. org/about/our-team/districts-and-councils/
www. capta. org
www. capta. org
Thank you for attending! On behalf of the Board of Directors from California State PTA, Thank you for all you are doing on behalf of your communities during these uncertain times. Remember…. with PTA you never walk alone www. capta. org
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