Executive Committee

PTA Job Descriptions

There are two parts to the PTA. The first is the executive committee. The second is the executive board. The Executive Committee differs from the Executive Board in that the Executive Committee is elected by the general membership. The Executive Committee appoints the Executive Board.

Executive Committee

PTA President
The President is elected by the association to lead the unit and to represent its members.

Knows and follows the bylaws of the association
Appoints chairmen and standing committees according to the bylaws
Develops and updates Procedure Books
Consults with the school principal on all matters relating to the school
Invites teachers to participate as active members and chairmen
Presides at all meetings of the general membership and the executive board and expedites those meetings by:
Preparing an agenda
Opening and closing meetings on time
Working with officers and chairmen before meeting to learn who has special reports or additions to the agenda
Attends or is representative to:

council meetings
district meetings,
workshops and clinics
PTA conventions
leadership conferences
other related meetings

Completes all required reports and forms and returns them to the state office by designated deadline
Is an ex-officio member of all committees except the nominating committee

In short, the PTA President is responsible for conducting and running the monthly executive board and general assembly meeting. He prepares the agenda and ensures the meetings are run as smoothly and efficiently as possible. The President also communicates to the MVE administrative issues or concerns that parents bring to his/her attention. The position is a two-year position as outlined in the by-laws. The President relies heavily on the executive board and MVE volunteers. Without them, the job would be impossible to perform.

PTA Vice President
The vice president may be called upon at any time to temporarily assume the duties of the president. A strong vice president can and should be the president's "right hand", acting as an aide and assuming assigned responsibilities. The vice president represents the president upon request. In the event of the president's resignation, the vice president assumes the president's duties until the position is filled in accordance with the local unit bylaws. When local units have more than one vice president, each vice president is designated specific duties such as vice president for education or vice president for legislation. Vice presidents often serve as program chairmen, coordinators of major projects that involve several committees and as a liaison to outside groups that may desire a connection with a local unit. In the case of multiple vice presidents, it is helpful if each vice president is assigned oversight of committees that have connecting areas of responsibility. Vice presidents can be especially helpful in strengthening communication within the executive board as well as within the general membership and other entities in the school system and community.

Treasurer
The treasurer is the legally responsible, authorized custodian, elected by the members, to have charge of the funds of the PTA. The responsibilities of the PTA treasurer include:

Be sure that the books have been audited before accepting them
Work with the budget committee to develop a budget for the coming PTA year
Maintain an accounting system with an accurate record of the expense and receipt transactions of the unit. Keep records up to date
Keep canceled checks, paid bills, receipts, and bank statements for annual audit
Write checks only for items in the budget. Any change in the budget, or purchase of major items not on the budget, must have the approval of the general membership at a regular or specially called meeting.

Corresponding Secretary
The corresponding secretary handles all of the mailings and communications. This includes notices of meetings, thank you notes, birthday announcements, etc. This person keeps the Executive Committee apprised of happenings within the school.

Recording Secretary
The main responsibility for the recording secretary is taking the minutes and action items at each executive board meeting and present the minutes for approval at the next meeting.

Executive Board

Ways and Means
This committee is responsible for major fund-raisers such as the gift wrap sale every fall. There are also ongoing fundraising opportunities provided by area retailers and corporations. Some of these include the Target, the K-Mart School Spirit, and the Farm Fresh Receipts programs. The committee is responsible for distributing information to parents about how they can make money for the school by making purchases at these stores. This committee also helps with the collection and redemption of "boxtop" coupons, and Campbell Soup labels.

Student Directory
Every year, the PTA publishes a directory of student names, addresses, and phone numbers. The function of the directory committee is to obtain and compile in alphabetical order the names of the children whose parents wish them to be in the directory. One directory is given to each PTA member household. Non-members who want a directory may purchase one for a nominal cost. The directory committee must work with membership in order to get the list of names of the PTA members so as to get the directories to the children.

York County Council PTA (YCCPTA)
The YCCPTA representative attends the monthly YCCPTA general membership meetings and relays information to the local unit PTA as necessary. However, the YCCPTA general membership meetings are open to the general public, so you don't have to be a local unit representative or president to attend.

Newsletter
The PTA Newsletter, Hoofprints, is printed monthly during the school year. This publication contains articles and information from the PTA officers and committees as well as the principal and staff of Mt. Vernon. Information is due around the 20th of each month for inclusion in the next month's newsletter. The newsletter should be distributed by the 1st of each month and distributed to each student.

Reflections
Reflections is a contest to encourage the arts in our schools. It is a state-wide PTA sponsored program. The students are allowed to submit one entry in each of the following categories:

music
visual arts
photography
literature

The entries are then divided into divisions - "primary" (grades k - 2) and "secondary" (grades 3 - 5) - for judging. The judges are local volunteers who have an interest in the specific area of art and are knowledgeable in education.
The contest is run at Mt. Vernon during the late Fall. The 1st place entries will be forwarded to the York County Council PTA (YCCPTA) for judging against other elementary schools in the county.

Volunteer Committee
The PTA has a volunteer committee which is responsible for assisting the school staff and event coordinators with finding volunteer persons throughout the year. These volunteers may be parents, grandparents, guardians, or community members. During the first week of school the committee will send home a volunteer sign-up form with a listing of most of the functions and events for the year. After being returned to school, the data from these forms are compiled, and when the planning for a particular event begins, the coordinator references these lists for assistance.
The committee is also responsible for some other activities:

Making math fact awards for each student and distributing to the teachers in November.
Organizing a winter sing-a-long during school hours for the students, with Holiday music and hot chocolate, in December
Serving cold water on field day
Maintaining the bulletin board above the PTA table in the office

As volunteers come to school they must sign in and out in the Volunteer notebook. These hours are totaled monthly and sent to the school board office for record. A volunteer should record hours while at school and hours spent away from the school for: baking, phone calling, shopping for school, cutting, coloring, and party/event planning. A volunteer should not record hours for: eating lunch with a child, a parent teacher conference, or an assembly.
Volunteers must wear a name badge and abide by the "Roles and Responsibilities of the Volunteer" which have been developed by the principal. Copies are with each teacher and always available in the main office.A community member who wishes to volunteer and does not have a student in the school must go through an application process. Applications and handbooks on volunteering are kept in the main office.

Membership Committee
The main goal of the Membership Committee is to build an informed and participating membership that understands what the PTA stands for and how it helps our children and their school. To achieve this, the committee hosts an information table at several school events to allow parents, staff, and other community members the opportunity to see how their membership benefits the school and the students, and to answer any questions they may have. This is also the chance for members to join for the school year. Our main membership drive is at the beginning of the year, however we continue to keep parents informed throughout the school year by letters sent home with students and articles in the school newsletter. We strive to achieve 100% membership, a goal we have achieved for the past four years!!

Legislation/Advocacy Committee
Legislation/Advocacy tracks the legislative agenda set by the state PTA. Each year the VA PTA sets a legislative agenda related to children and public education. The state PTA will generally pick one to three bills that will be submitted to the general assembly for the up coming year. The state PTA will then develop a stance and proposal for each item on the legislative agenda. In August, the proposal for legislative agenda is usually sent to the president of each local PTA. The Legislation/Advocacy chair and/or the president will then put forth the proposal to the general membership for a yea or nay vote. The votes are tallied and forwarded to the state chair thus giving each local chapter a "voice".
In January, the state PTA usually plans PTA day at the general assembly. The Legislation/Advocacy chair should pass this information onto to the PTA for anyone who may want to attend.
If possible, and as time permits, the Legislation/Advocacy chair should track local and federal legislation pertaining to child education that may be of interest to the PTA members.
As part of the "Advocacy" role, the chair should keep he PTA board up dated on up coming advocacy events that may impact children and/or public education. These events may be of interest to PTA members who may want to participate in them.

Art in a Suitcase Committee
This committee is designed to provide students with an opportunity to explore and gain a fundamental knowledge and appreciation for art. It is a yearlong program that involves the assistance of volunteers. Currently, we have five (5) sessions for each class in which the volunteer visits one (1) time during each session and discusses the artwork. All materials are provided and are housed in the library. The volunteer chooses from a selection for each grade level. S/He checks out the work to prepare for the classroom visit, which lasts about 20 minutes. This is not a "hands on" assignment for the students; there is only time for discussing the artwork. Once the session is complete, the art is returned to the library. In depth knowledge of art is not necessary as the publisher of the program provides ample information along with each art copy.
The committee chairperson is responsible for the placement of volunteers with the respective teacher(s). Once this has been completed, the teachers are then given a copy of the volunteer list so that they will know who will be contacting them to set up visits. The chairperson then maintains contact and supports the volunteers that make this program possible. The chairperson also needs to work within the committee's budget to ensure the art is kept up to date.

Spell-a-Thon Fund Raiser
The Spell-A-Thon is a fund-raiser for the school with an educational plus for the students. The students are given a Sponsor Sheet and with parental permission are asked to get family and friends to sponsor them for $.05 or more per word spelled correctly on a test given by their teacher. The Spell-A-Thon test is used as a grade and must be taken regardless of sponsors. There are prizes for participation, prizes for the classes with highest class earning, and prizes for the #1 and #2 winners from each class.

Cultural Arts
The Cultural Arts Committee is responsible for many things such as: school assemblies, Dessert Theater, and the "Catch A Star" program. They affect the school by increasing the learning abilities of the students. Many of the performances are a reflection of the SOL's. The Dessert Theater brings families together while eating dessert and enjoying a scheduled performance. The "Catch A Star" program is designed to encourage and recognize students for their attendance at live fine art and enrichment programs. Students who attend ten (10) or more art events during the academic year will awarded a special certificate while students who attend twenty (20) or more events will be receive a gold certificate. These events may include live plays, concerts, musicals, museums and gallery exhibits, puppet shoes, and dance performances.