If you Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) has been around for at least a year, chances are you already have a bunch of paperwork that’s getting passed from one volunteer leader to another.
And if your school parent group has been around for many years a PTO record retention policy will serve you well, especially since odds are high that you have banker’s boxes full of records that all smell a bit mildewy.
Most PTO’s don’t write out their policy in their bylaws or standing rules, so we’re going to cover in this post exactly what records you need to keep and for how long.
Let’s dive into the PTO record retention recommendations so you can also let go of guilt about letting go of what you no longer need.
Keep These Forever
A few things really do need to stick around for the life of your PTO.
Anything related to how your group was formed goes in this category.
Your determination letter from the IRS, if you have 501(c)(3) status.
Your EIN letter.
The documents that prove who you are, legally.
Note that you don’t necessarily need every scrap of paperwork that led up to getting your non-profit status or your EIN… just the final documents once you have them.
You should also keep every version of your bylaws and standing rules.
Not just the current set of governing documents, but all of them.
Keeping all versions of your bylaws and standing rules tells you a lot about how your group has evolved, and at some point there may be some things your group wants to reinstate.
It’s a history of your group.
Also keep executive board and general membership meeting minutes.
All of them, forever, no exceptions.
You don’t necessarily need to keep hard copies of these documents.
It’s perfectly fine to retain a digital version, as long as the documents are organized in a cloud file that all officers and leaders can access.
PTO Records You DON’T Need to Keep
Here’s where you get to breathe a little.
Come audit time, treasurers often print out a big packet for the auditor (bank statements, receipts, etc.).
That packet does not need to live in your closet for eternity.
If you have a digital copy of that supporting paperwork, you’re covered.
In fact, that digital copy counts just as much as a paper one.
What you do want to keep from the audit is the auditor’s report itself.
But again, it doesn’t have to be a paper copy.
If your auditor sends it digitally, keeping only a digital copy is fine.
Many PTOs print a copy for the audit so members can look at it, which is a smart way to be transparent about your PTO’s financial situation.
Just recycle that paper copy once the year is over and keep the digital version going forward.
Managing Past PTO Meeting Minutes
If your PTO has minutes going back to the dawn of time, handwritten, sitting in a binder that smells a little like the 1990s… you have two choices.
Keep the paper.
Or hand the project to your historian or secretary and start the digitizing process.
There are scanning apps now that make this shockingly easy with just your phone, no super complex technology needed.
I’d actually recommend going digital here versus keeping the documents in paper form.
PTO closets are not exactly climate controlled, gorgeous archival spaces.
The potential for water damage just from normal environmental humidity is likely over time.
You don’t have to digitize everything in one weekend either.
Make it a year-long project and tackle a little bit at a time.
Once it’s scanned and uploaded into your PTO’s cloud file system, let the paper go.
What to Do with Old Programs and Keepsakes
You’re probably wondering what to do with the old programs and memorabilia from your PTO’s past events.
Think scholarship luncheon programs, Founders Day booklets, event flyers, award certificates and the like.
All of these things have real historical value.
But you really only need one copy.
Maybe consider digitizing these items too so they can be preserved and available to future PTO “generations.”
Anything from the past five to ten years likely already exists in a digital forma, so double check before investing the time to digitize them.
Beyond ten years back (think pre 2010), paper might be all you’ve got, and that’s okay.
Just start building the habit now of saving digital copies as they’re created, so future-you isn’t standing burdened with a pile of smelly ephemera.
When the Paper Is Just… Gross
If something is mildewy, moldy, or otherwise falling apart, digitize it and let it go.
Even if it has historical value.
A health hazard is a health hazard, historical value or not.
Once it’s digitized, you’ve got options too.
Drop it into a photo sharing app.
Turn old scholarship luncheon photos into a slideshow and post it to your group’s YouTube channel.
Get a little creative with it, especially if your school or PTO has an anniversary coming up.
Others will love to see the literal history of your group.
Why Digitizing is Better Than Holding on to Physical Paper Copies
The reason why I’m advocating for digitizing your PTO’s records, memorabilia, etc. is because the information is more useful and valuable to your PTO now and going forward in a digital format.
I once got a few boxes of old records from a previous PTO President that absolutely reeked of mildew because they were improperly stored.
The meeting minutes, talent show programs and scholarship notification letters were covered with mold and mildew and ultimately had to be trashed.
It comes down to the fact that digital copies are easier to keep and hand off to the incoming volunteer to use.
They can never be left to linger in a humid basement and become a problem instead of a resources.
And digitizing PTO records eliminates the need to pass more than a password onto the new volunteer.
Watch This
This video covers the basics of a PTO record retention policy your group can adopt:
Over to You
You don’t have to keep everything and your PTO’s record retention policy should detail what’s most important in your group’s bylaws.
Be sure to keep determination letters, EIN letters, all versions of your bylaws and standing rules, and all PTO meeting minutes forever ideally in digital form.
Everything else?
Digitize what has value, recycle what doesn’t, and stop letting the PTO closet be overrun with smelly paper clutter.
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