Sargent PTO Eliminates Member Dues To Open Voting Membership To Entire Sargent Community

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Sargent Elementary PTO Board President, Erin Giunta, announced at the last Board of Education Meeting 10/13/2020 that they are creating ways to be more accessible to parents in their community by removing dues to be a voting member of the PTO. “One of the things we are trying to do to help is to make the Board and the PTO more accessible to everybody.” The meeting was also announced on the Sargent Elementary PTO website.

The Sargent PTO Board Meeting was last Thursday, where they elected or re-elected Board members and and adopted proposed changes to their bylaws. Erin encouraged that everyone in the Sargent community is welcome to attend the PTO Meeting.

“[This is] one of the things we are changing in our bylaws,” Erin stated, “is removing dues to become a voting member, so that everybody in the community of Sargent has a voice and will not feel impeded by feeling like they have to pay dues to become a member to have a vote or voice in any of the meetings.”

The previous bylaws stated: "All members considered to be in good standing are granted voting rights." Further: "Dues, if any, will be established by the Executive Board. If dues are charged, a member must have paid his or her dues to be considered a member in good standing with voting rights."

That language was eliminated completely, and now reads: "The families of students currently enrolled at Sargent, the faculty and staff, and the principal are automatically considered members of the PTO. All current members are granted voting rights. Members of the broader Beacon community are also welcome to attend PTO meetings to provide their input and perspectives on PTO and school-related initiatives, however such attendees are not granted voting rights."

Resources and volunteer information is available at the Sargent PTO website, including a video from Jenny Kaplan, LCSW, on suggested ways to be a supportive parent to kids in a Remote Learning environment, titled "Emotional/Psychological Aspects Of School Reopening Discussion.”