Re: PTA still collecting class dues and field trip money
Posted by:
been there done that
()
Date: April 05, 2017 09:14PM
Original poster Wrote:
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> Thank you. I provided the regs to the principal
> (who acted shocked) and the PTA collection was
> stopped. Don't know if the principal is an idiot
> or wasn't given all the info he needs to do his
> job. He did say it was easier for the PTA to do
> the collecting and organizing so his staff didn't
> have to. Thanks again.
Oh this is special.
The principal should not have been shocked. They are required to know and follow all of their regulations and policies. The 5810 is very clear. So is the field trip reg.
The principal could very well be an idiot. That disease is rampant in the educational field.
The principal was given all information they needed to do their job. They all had special training on the new 5810. Some just choose to ignore their responsibilities in spite of the training they had. The School Board could care less and does absolutely nothing to hold the staff accountable.
You did not provide much information on what exactly the parents were collecting. There is no such thing as class dues. There is a class fee that is set aside for graduation, cap and gown, and some other things. The school system determines the amount and has to collect it. The field trip money (if this is a true school-sponsored field trip) is also supposed to be collected by the school system.
If the parents are asking for "class dues", etc. for things they want to do to help out the school system, that is illegal UNLESS it is presented as entirely voluntary/optional. This is very important. Some of these groups were in quite the habit of hitting parents up for hundreds of dollars of "mandatory donations". That is bullcrap and you need to watch out for that.
A lot of principals were allowing parents to collect all kinds of stuff for many years. They were letting parents plan field trips, sign contracts for things, etc. etc. Of course it saved them a lot of work. They had no right to do any of this!!!!!!! Those funds were public funds and volunteers do not have the right to contract for usage of those funds. They also were not properly insured to do this. The officer liability policies frequently don't cover them for this type of money and work because they are doing something to help out school personnel. Many times the volunteer policies were not well-managed. The parents didn't have policies, or they let them lapse, they were not big enough to cover losses, they might not have covered government funds, agreements with the school system, etc. Some groups were not doing audits or reviews, or presenting bank statements for review, which negated the policies. So, the parents were turning over vast sums of money (some of these groups were managing a million dollars a year) to these groups for what were technically school issues, thinking they were insured, when they were not. All that money was at risk. ALL OF IT. I know of one group who never did a review or audit in 25 years, told the parents they were doing them, and was funneling millions of dollars over the years through their accounts. Those officers put their homes on the line, put thousands of families at unbelievable risk, etc. etc. Some of this is probably still going on. The principals loved having somebody else do their work and could have cared less about the parents.
The principals have money to bring in hourly finance tech support. It comes out of the same pot that they use to take themselves out to lunch and dinner, order out for breakfast for 300 staff, plan overnight hotel "retreats", etc. They need to quit doing this stuff and start paying more attention to their bank accounts. These people really like to party on the county.
The advantage of making the school system directly control the money is that they have massive self-insurance and commercial policies. If there is a loss, you will get your money pronto. Compare that to trying to get a $1000 trip fee from a Booster club that just got robbed blind, hadn't done an audit in years, etc.
You have the right to see all student payment spreadsheets, all contracts, all bank account statements, all accounting data, etc. etc. on any money you turn in to the school system. If some principal is still allowing this stuff to run through a parent group, they have to get the records from the parent group and present them to you, before the School Board hopefully cans their ass, which of course they won't.
Live and learn, and watch every dollar you turn in to these schools and these parent groups. Ask questions. You really should not have to turn anything in to a parent group unless you want to, but you need to understand the risks. Look up Navy Elementary PTA Embezzlement some time. Litsa took off with some major money and of course they will never get it back. Google Booster club fraud/embezzlement. These groups mean well but these people are many times nothing more than eager volunteers with no professional training. If you give money to the school and it disappears, they will find the funds to replace it fairly quickly.