Updating your Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) bylaws and standing rules might seem like an overwhelming process, so I’m here today to break it all down for you.
Let’s get into what you really need to know when you’re updating your group’s governing documents!
This process works the same for both PTO and PTAs or any other group that uses bylaws and standing rules.
Review Governing Documents Regularly
The first thing to know about updating your group’s bylaws and standing rules is that this ia s process to happen regularly.
Not every year, but generally every other year.
It really depends on if there have been changes to your group that aren’t addressed in the governing documents.
That’ll be a signal to you that it is time to take a look at your governing documents.
So, don’t create the bylaws and standing rules, set them on a shelf, and just ignore them.
That is the exact opposite of the purpose of bylaws and standing rules.
They’re supposed to be user guide for your group.
They should be guiding all of the decisions that you’re making as a PTO and outlining some of the procedures that you should be following on the regular.
If you’re not using bylaws and standing rules to guide your group, your group is at risk for developing drama and an unhealthy environment.
Sorry to call out the worst case scenario, but many of the issues that pop up with PTO members and leaders not acting appropriately could’ve been prevented with a good set of governing documents.
Because they set out expectations for members to follow and rules to abide by.
Use Plain English
The second thing is that when you are updating the bylaws and standing rules know that fancy language does not make them more official.
Neither does using super complicated sentence structures.
You actually want to be using real, normal language, just how you would speak.
When you’re updating a set of bylaws and you’re finding that you’re having difficulty understanding what it means, that’s your signal to simplify the wording.
Having it be very complicated and using multi-syllabic words and complicated sentence structures does not make it more official or proper.
What it is doing is actually hurting your group because it’s making it so that it’s not usable.
A good guideline to follow is to have it be as simple as needed for a 5th grader to understand.
Now, in reality maybe your 5th grader won’t actually be able to understand everything but they should get the gist of the documents.
To do this, you’re really going to need to be intentional about being straightforward and using less fancy words.
This will make the documents easier to understand.
This in turn which will make the bylaws and standing rules easier to implement and follow by current and future group members.
And that’s exactly what you want.
Follow the Right Update Process
Third thing to know about updating bylaws and standing rules is that there is a specific process to follow to properly update them.
The process is all laid out in the Bylaws and Standing Rules Made Simple kit and it’s a straightforward process.
Resist the temptation to rush the process or skip steps.
That will cause trouble for your group and depending on the changes, members could lose trust that the group is operating fairly.
When you are following the process and updating the bylaws in particular, because of the nature of bylaws and their overall importance and kind of heft of meaning to your organization requires following a specific update process.
Because the bylaws are so foundational for your group, spelling out the whole aim of your group, the mission, the purpose, big picture items like that are super important, you don’t want to just willy-nilly change them.
You have to be presenting the proposed changes one month and then giving everybody enough time to think about and talk about it.
You don’t want to vote until the next month’s meeting so that there can be full consideration of the changes.
This will give members time to think about the proposed changes and potential unintended consequences.
Tweaking the bylaws before the changes are implemented will be better for the group in the long term since you won’t be in a constant cycle of updating and changing the laws until they’re right.
Implement Approved Changes Right Away
The last thing is that once you have gone through the update process and the proposed changes have been approved, know they go into effect immediately.
With legislation passed through your statehouse and signed into law by the governor, there’s always an explicit effective date.
But that’s not the case with bylaws and standing rule updates,
The second that the group decides on a change, that change is now the new rule that everyone needs to follow.
Because of this, new copies of the bylaws and standing rules should be distributed after every change so everybody can stay up to date and follow the updated procedures and rules.
Resources You’ll Love
Creating or updating bylaws shouldn’t be a nightmare.
Our Bylaws and Standing Rules Made Simple breaks down the process of creating or updating your PTO’s governing documents into easy to follow process anyone can do.
Written in straightforward English, the kit transforms your bylaws into off-putting legalese into powerful tools that’ll get everyone on the same page.
Take your school parent group from disorganized and unclear to professional and effective.
Watch this!
Over to You!
I hope this has been super, super helpful to getting you into a more comfortable place with your group’s bylaws and standing rules.
And that when you are going through the process of updating them, you’re keeping things in mind:
- You’re reviewing them consistently on an annual or bi-annual basis.
- You’re using real plain and simple language (no fanciness is needed!).
- You’re following the right process to approve them
- You’re implementing the changes straight away.
Happy bylaws and standing rules updating!
