Our PTO is considering changing the executive structure from the traditional President and Vice-President to an Executive Council of 4 - 6 members, each of whom would have equal authority and responsibility for a portfolio of committees (each of which is managed by a Chair.

The reasons are to spread the workload and commitment and thereby generate broader involvement in the executive role.

I am interested in hearing from any other PTO's that may have adopted this structure on the positive and negative experiences, and am particularly interested in example by laws for this structure.

Thanks!

What a great idea!! I was in a group in college (DECA) that did the same thing because of the pure fact the Prez and the school the person represented did everything!
Someday I would love to do the same thing, may even be easier to find people to run with the knowledge that EVERYONE helps!
Hey! May the force REALLY be with you on this one and keep us posted!

Sorry, I don't have experiences to report or examples of bylaws...just my opinion. Our PTO executive board has also been concerned about having ALL the PTO members feel more involved in our organization. To that end, we are trying to put more emphasis on working with committee lists better. (I think we currently tend to work with the trusted few that we know we can count on.)

Personally, I like the idea of officers, because each has assigned duties. However, I am considering having each of the officers over-seeing some committees. There would still be a chair, but the officer would keep tabs on what's going on, and be available for assistance. Perhaps they could give advise about delegating, etc... That seems to be similar to what you're considering.

Take Care,
Jo

Mighty Jo- I really think his idea would work as you could still have- Newsletter Chair, Pot Luck Chair, Treasurer, Secretary, Main Chairperson,etc just to spead the work load but it would also mean more parent involvment and well....
We have so many parents that are so intimidated by the role an officer has that maybe a band of committees may work better.
Just a thought

Mykidsmom -- Thanks for the feedback!!

Our school started out with a structure like that. We had many problems with with it. The largest problem was that no one knew where to turn for direction. We had new people who didn't know where to turn their questions. We had too many people delegating the same responsibilities to multiple people. When there were problems, no one knew who to turn to so they went to the only authority figure they saw, our principal. She simply came in and took over because there was no one person with authority to run meetings and organize who handled what event. After two years of disasters, we decided to create a PTO where every school parent or guardian is a member and an exective board where all decisions, problems, and such are brought. Thank goodness for Robert's Rules of Order.

I think equality is great, but even in a democracy there needs to be a leader.

My suggestion is to make sure you document in detail exactly how each committee functions and where to turn for problems and guidence. Good Luck