Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Holy Cow, We successfully had PTA elections!

Last week I wrote about William Ludlow and posted a photo of his grave at Arlington Cemetery. Coincidentally, one of his permanent neighbors in section 3 is United States Army Brigadier General Henry Martyn Robert. Tonight we had our PTA meeting and I was reminded of his contribution to public meetings. While living in New Bedford, MA he found himself frustrated by the fact that he couldn't effectively control a church meeting for a local Baptist Church. In response he wrote Robert's Rules of Order for Deliberate Assemblies.
I would STRONGLY urge anyone on any public board to familiarize themselves with this book. Our local ANC uses them and anyone who doesn't enjoy endless disorganized meetings should consider their adoption.
That said, after an excruciating amount of time at tonight's PTA meeting we actually accomplished a lot.
A member of the DC PTA answered some questions.
Bylaws are decided by the National PTA though there is some tweaking by the individual PTAs. Each parent pays dues and each parent gets a vote. The DC PTA can help us establish our non-profit status.
These were the biggies. If anyone else remembers more of them, feel free to post.

We held elections and I must say I couldn't be happier about the positions that were filled. Although I don't know the full names of each person elected, I do have at least their last name:

LSRT
Mr. Michael Showalter (Child in Pre3)
Ms. Simon
Mr. Franklin
Ms. Carpenter

Treasurer
Mr. Allard (Child in Pre3)

Secretary
Ms. Nadine Henderson (Child in Pre3)

Financial Secretary
Ms. Stephanie Mullette (Child in Pre3)

Each person elected expressed enthusiasm and an interest in organization. I personally asked each of the new members how they felt about future meetings. Each expressed a desire to adhere to a tighter agenda and keep the meeting concise. YEA!!!

There is a spot for a community member on the LSRT however it is chosen by those members of the LSRT and not an elected position. Anyone interested can contact me or any of us listed on the LSRT or the Principal, Ms. Cobbs.

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