Cascade Middle School PTSO By-Laws - Updated 1/22/2024

ARTICLE I – NAME, PURPOSE

Section 1: The name of the organization shall be CASCADE MIDDLE SCHOOL PARENT TEACHER STUDENT ORGANIZATION (CMS PTSO).

Section 2: The CMS PTSO is organized exclusively for charitable, scientific and educational purposes, more specifically to raise funds and support educational endeavors at Cascade Middle School.

ARTICLE II – MEMBERSHIP 

Section 1: Membership shall consist of the members of the Board of Directors and all members that join the organization. All teachers, students, parents and caregivers of a student at CMS are automatically members.

ARTICLE Ill – MEETINGS

Section 1: Annual Meeting - The date, time, and place of the regular annual meeting shall be set by the Board of Directors, and shall occur toward the end of the school year.

Section 2: Special Meetings - Special meetings may be called by members of the Executive Board.

Section 3: Notice - Notice of each meeting shall be given to each voting member by email, public website listing, or general newsletter notice not less than two (2) weeks prior to the meeting.  

ARTICLE IV – BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Section 1: Board Role, Size, and Compensation - The Board is responsible for overall policy and direction of the Organization, and delegates responsibility for day-to-day operations to the President and committees. The Board shall have up to seven (7) Directors and not fewer than three (3) Directors. The Board receives no compensation other than to be reimbursed for reasonable expenses.

Section 2: Meetings - The Board shall meet at least monthly, at an agreed upon time and place. The general membership shall meet every other month during the school year, at an agreed upon time and place.

Section 3: Board Elections - Election of new directors or election of current directors to a second term will occur as the first item of business at the final general meeting of the school year. Directors will be elected by a majority vote of the general membership.

Section 4: Terms – All Board positions are for a two (2) year term. Board Members may not serve two consecutive terms in the same position.

Section 5: Quorum – At regular Board Meetings, there must be a quorum of 2/3 Board Members in order to conduct business. 

At general meetings, there must be a quorum of at least three (3) general members, not including Board Members, before business can be conducted or motions made or passed. If a quorum of general membership is not met, a vote may be sent out to the general membership via email. 

Exceptions include:

a. Board Members may vote to pass Teacher Grants for up to $1,000.00 without general membership approval.

b. Board Members may transact business that is in the necessary and normal course of conducting business without general membership approval.

Section 6: Notice - An official Board Meeting requires that each Board Member have notice at least one (1) week in advance.

Section 7: Officers and Duties - There shall be four (4) officers of the Board consisting of a President (or Co-Presidents), Vice President, Secretary, and Treasurer, with additional optional Chairs, such as Fundraising, Merchandise, Volunteer, and/or Web/Media Chair. Their duties are as follows:

• The President (or Co-Presidents) shall convene regularly scheduled Board Meetings, and shall preside or arrange for other members of the Executive Committee to preside at each meeting in the following order: Vice President, Secretary, and Treasurer.
• The Vice President will preside over committees on special subjects as designated by the Board.
• The Secretary shall be responsible for keeping records of Board actions, including overseeing the taking of minutes at all Board Meetings, sending out meeting announcements, distributing copies of minutes and the agenda to each Board Member, and assuring that corporate records are maintained.
• The Treasurer shall make a report at each Board Meeting, president the Finance Committee, assist in the preparation of the budget, help develop fund raising plans, and make financial information available to Board Members and the public.

Section 8: Vacancies - When a mid-term vacancy occurs on the Board, nominations for new members may be received from present Board Members or the general membership by the Secretary two (2) weeks in advance of a Board Meeting. These nominations shall be sent out to Board Members with the regular Board Meeting announcement, to be voted upon at the next Board Meeting. These vacancies will be filled only to the end of the current school year. The interim Board Member is then eligible to be elected to serve for a full two (2) year term. 

Section 9: Resignation, Termination, and Absences - Resignation from the Board must be in writing and received by the Secretary. A Board Member may be removed from their position if they have missed three (3) consecutive meetings without communication with the Board President or Vice President. A Board Member may be removed for other reasons by a three-fourths vote of the remaining directors.

Section 10: Special Meetings - Special meetings of the Board shall be called upon by the request of the President (or Co-Presidents) or one-third of the Board. Notices of special meetings shall be sent out by the Secretary to each Board Member dated at least one (1) week in advance.

ARTICLE V - COMMITTEES

Section 1: The Board may create committees as needed, such as fundraising, events, etc. 

Section 2: The four (4) officers serve as the members of the Executive Committee. Except for the power to amend the Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws, the Executive Committee shall have all of the powers and authority of the Board of Directors in the intervals between meetings of the Board of Directors, subject to the direction and control of the Board of Directors.

ARTICLE VI - AMENDMENTS

Section 1: These Bylaws may be amended when necessary by a majority of the voting general membership. Proposed amendments must be submitted to the Secretary to be sent out with regular Board announcements.

These Bylaws were approved at a meeting of the general membership of the CMS PTSO on

January 12, 2017.

This amendment to these Bylaws were approved at a meeting of the general membership of the CMS PTSO on January 22, 2024.