AMENDED AND RESTATED

CONSTITUTION AND BY-LAWS

of the

HOME & SCHOOL ASSOCIATION

LIVINGSTON HIGH SCHOOL

LIVINGSTON, NEW JERSEY

ARTICLE I - Name

The name of this association shall be the Home and School Association of Livingston High School, an independent local organization of parents, teachers, and staff of the Livingston High School in Livingston, New Jersey.

ARTICLE II - Objectives

The objectives of the association shall be as follows:

To foster, encourage, facilitate and effect cooperation between school and home toward the highest level of scholastic training, physical health and mental health, social development, and good citizenship.

To provide a means for maintaining a representative and centralized organization of the parents, teachers, and administration in Livingston High School of Livingston, New Jersey.

To raise and obtain funds for any of the objectives of the association through such entrance fee or membership dues, if any, as may be deemed advisable, and the acceptance of gifts and contributions or otherwise, and to carry on activities for the purpose of raising funds, and to expend and dispose of any funds collected or monies received for and of the objectives of the association. The work of the association shall not be to provide funds for materials and services which should be budgeted by the Board of Education.

ARTICLE III - FUNCTIONS

Section 1. This association shall be non-commercial, non-sectarian, and non-partisan. No commercial enterprise or candidate shall be endorsed by it. Nor shall the name of the organization or the names of its offices in their official capacities be used in any connection with a commercial or partisan interest.

Section 2. This association shall not attempt to direct the administrative activities of the school or control its policies, but shall be free to offer constructive suggestions to the principal, superintendent, and/or Board of Education in promoting the interests of the students.

Section 3. This association will participate with the Parent-Teacher Council of Livingston and may also cooperate with other organizations and agencies active in child welfare.

ARTICLE IV - MEMBERSHIP

Section 1. Any person shall be a member in good standing upon payment of annual dues.

Section 2. The annual dues for each member in good standing shall be determined by the executive board.

Section 3. Professional school personnel shall be granted honorary membership in the association. They shall be entitled to all privileges of membership except the right to vote and hold office.

Section 4. HSA members shall not profit off of HSA events or fund raisers. (Unless following by-laws Article X, Section 5)

ARTICLE V – MEETING OF MEMBERS

Section 1. The annual meeting of the members of the association for the installation of officers shall be held in spring of each year at such hour, dates, and place as may be designated by the executive board.

Section 2. Special meeting of the members may be called at any time by the executive board, providing five days written notice has been given and statement of the purpose thereof, or upon the written request of 75% of the members in good standing, delivered to the recording secretary 15 days prior to the intended meeting.

Section 3. Notice of the time and place of each annual or special meeting (i.e. Installation of Officers) shall be given either personally, or by email, webpage or e-blast, not less than five days before the meeting to each member of the association.

Section 4. At any meeting of the membership, double the board members plus one shall constitute a quorum for all purposes; the act of a majority of the members present at any meeting at which there is a quorum shall be the act of the members. At every meeting of the members, each member qualified to vote shall be entitled to one vote.

Section 5. Priority is to meet in person. Virtual meetings are acceptable if extenuating circumstances, such as inclement weather, arise.

ARTICLE VI - OFFICERS

Section 1. The principal officers of the association shall be a president, or, two people serving as, and sharing equally in, the responsibilities of the position of Co-Presidents, (hereafter referred to as President), at least two but no more than six vice presidents (ie: 1 membership and 2 fundraising), a recording secretary, a corresponding secretary and/or webmaster, and a treasurer who shall be elected by the membership in good standing at the annual election meeting from a slate furnished by the nominating committee, provided, however that nothing herein shall prevent the nomination of any member in good standing not on the nominating list. Additional nominations may be made from the floor provided the consent of each candidate has been obtained before his/her name is placed in nomination.

Section 2. Officers shall serve in their role for a term of at least two years and no more than two years in the same role and shall remain in office until their successors assume office. No officer except the treasurer shall be eligible to the same office for more than one term, equivalent to two years. These officers hereafter shall be referred to as the Executive Board.

Section 3. In case any vacancy shall occur among the officers resulting from death or resignation, such vacancy shall be filled by the executive board for the duration of the un-expired term.

Section 4. The president shall be the chief executive officer of the organization and shall preside at all meetings of the members and of the executive board. The president shall exercise general supervision over the affairs of the organization and shall perform all other duties as may be assigned to him/her by the executive board. The president, with the approval of one executive board member, shall be authorized to approve expenses of $50.00 or less which are not provided for in the budget without the necessary vote of the board.

Section 5. At the request of the president or in his/her absence or disability, a vice-president as designated by the president may at any time and from time to time perform any and all of the duties of the president and shall have such other powers and perform such other duties as the executive board or the president may determine.

Section 6. Preferably two officers shall serve as Vice President of Fundraising

Section 7. All Vice Presidents, Treasurer, Corresponding Secretary/Webmaster, Recording Secretary shall attend and make reports on all current activities at meeting to the executive board and meetings of the association.

Section 8. The recording secretary shall record all votes and minutes of all proceedings.

The corresponding secretary/Webmaster shall attend to the giving of notices of all meeting of the executive board and carry out such correspondence as required by the association.

Section 9. The treasurer and President shall prepare the annual flow spreadsheet. The treasurer shall have the custody of all funds and property of the organization and shall administer its assets, subject to such conditions as may be imposed by the executive board. The treasurer shall be one of the authorized signatories to sign checks or orders. The Treasurer’s account shall be audited annually.

Section 10. Principal of the Livingston High School shall serve as advisor to the association and should be consulted by all officers and committee chairmen on all matters before final action is taken.

ARTICLE VII – NOMINATIONS AND BY-LAWS

Section 1. The nominating committee shall consist of five members: the immediate past president, if available, or the outgoing president of Livingston High School, who shall serve as the nominating committee chair person, two board members, and two members in good standing.

Section 2. The nominating committee shall be responsible for presenting the slate of officers to the membership at least 2 weeks prior to the election meeting.

Section 3. Additional nominations may be made from the floor provided that consent of each candidate had been obtained before his/her name is place in nomination.

Section 4. The election shall be by ballot, provided that there is but one nominee for each office. When there is only one nominee of each office, a motion may be made to approve the slate as nominated and a majority of those qualified to vote shall constitute an election. Absentee or proxy voting shall not be permitted.

Section 5. The by-laws of this association shall be reviewed at least once in every three years by a committee consisting of at least one president and two additional members in good standing.

ARTICLE VIII – EXECUTIVE BOARD

Section 1. The policies and programs of the association shall be determined and directed by an executive board which shall constitute the highest authority of the association and which shall consist of the president, vice-presidents, the recording secretary, the corresponding secretary/webmaster, and the treasurer of the organization.

Section 2. The executive board shall have power to transact necessary business between meetings of the organization and such other business as may be referred to it by the association. The executive board shall approve plans of standing committee chairpersons and may present reports at the meetings of the association for information and any necessary action.

Section 3. Regular meetings of the executive board shall be held a minimum of five times throughout the year. The president in consultation with the principal will determine the dates of those meetings.

Section 4. Special meetings of the executive board may be called by the president or at the request of other members of the executive board.

Section 5. One third plus one shall constitute a quorum of the executive board.

Section 6. At any meeting of the executive board each member shall have one vote except the president/co-presidents, who shall have no vote, except in the event of a tied vote, he/she/they may at his/her/their discretion either cast the deciding vote/s or refer the matter back for further consideration in lieu of casting a deciding vote/s.

Section 7. All executive board meetings are open to all members of the association but without voting privileges.

Section 8. All executive board members shall be members in good standing.

ARTICLE IX – STANDING COMMITTEES

Section 1. The member, type, and duties of standing committees shall be determined by the executive board. The chairpersons of each committee shall be appointed by the president.

The standing committees shall include:

Nominating

Board of Education Observer

SEPAC

The presidents will announce these volunteer opportunities to all members in good standing via HSA webpage, eblast and/or email and will accept volunteers for these committees from any member in good standing via email. There may also be such other committees as the executive board or the membership, with the approval of the executive board, may designate. The term of office shall be for one year for all standing committees.

ARTICLE X - FINANCIALS

Section 1. A projected cash flow spreadsheet for the upcoming year shall be prepared by the Presidents and the Treasurer and submitted to the Executive Board for approval.

Section 2. Each standing committee shall be given a budget under which they must operate; if applicable.

Section 3. Any commitments for expenses above said amounts or requests by individual committees to exceed their budget allocations must first be taken to a formal vote by the Executive Board.

Section 4. All monies raised in a given year are to be allocated to meet the objectives as specified in Article II by June of the school year. Barring unforeseen circumstances, no more than $3,000 should be carried in bank account past June and any carry over money should be allocated toward startup costs for the next school year.

Section 5. When hiring a vendor, every attempt is made to secure multiple bids, particularly if a vendor is a LHS parent.

ARTICLE XI – VOTE OF CONFIDENCE

The President shall have the right to exercise a vote of confidence when deemed necessary. A vote of confidence is the process of polling the Executive Committee and the Presidents when a decision must be made immediately. The action taken on that occasion shall be reported to the Executive Board at its next meeting.

ARTICLE XII - AMENDMENTS

Section 1. The constitution and By-laws may be amended or repealed at any regular or special meeting of the organization by a two-thirds vote of the membership present, provide that the membership has been notified of the proposed amendments in advance.

ARTICLE XIII – PARLIAMENTARY AUTHORITY

Section 1. The rules contained in “Roberts Rules of Order, Revised”, shall govern this organization in all cases to which they are applicable. As supplemented to this document (Appendix 1)

APPENDIX 1 – ROBERTS RULES OF ORDER SUMMARY

RobertsRules.org | Robert's Rules of Order - Summary Version

For Fair and Orderly Meetings & Conventions

Robert's Rules, full text (1915 version)
Introduction to Robert's Rules
Quick Chart of Motions
Chart of Motions in Arabic

Provides common rules and procedures for deliberation and debate in order to place the whole membership on the same footing and speaking the same language. The conduct of ALL business is controlled by the general will of the whole membership - the right of the deliberate majority to decide. Complementary is the right of at least a strong minority to require the majority to be deliberate - to act according to its considered judgment AFTER a full and fair "working through" of the issues involved. Robert's Rules provides for constructive and democratic meetings, to help, not hinder, the business of the assembly. Under no circumstances should "undue strictness" be allowed to intimidate members or limit full participation.

The fundamental right of deliberative assemblies require all questions to be thoroughly discussed before taking action!

The assembly rules - they have the final say on everything!
Silence means consent!

Obtain the floor (the right to speak) by being the first to stand when the person speaking has finished; state Mr./Madam Chairman. Raising your hand means nothing, and standing while another has the floor is out of order! Must be recognized by the Chair before speaking!
Debate can not begin until the Chair has stated the motion or resolution and asked "are you ready for the question?" If no one rises, the chair calls for the vote!
Before the motion is stated by the Chair (the question) members may suggest modification of the motion; the mover can modify as he pleases, or even withdraw the motion without consent of the seconder; if mover modifies, the seconder can withdraw the second.
The "immediately pending question" is the last question stated by the Chair! Motion/Resolution - Amendment - Motion to Postpone
The member moving the "immediately pending question" is entitled to preference to the floor!
No member can speak twice to the same issue until everyone else wishing to speak has spoken to it once!
All remarks must be directed to the Chair. Remarks must be courteous in language and deportment - avoid all personalities, never allude to others by name or to motives!
The agenda and all committee reports are merely recommendations! When presented to the assembly and the question is stated, debate begins and changes occur!

The Rules

Point of Privilege: Pertains to noise, personal comfort, etc. - may interrupt only if necessary!
Parliamentary Inquiry: Inquire as to the correct motion - to accomplish a desired result, or raise a point of order
Point of Information: Generally applies to information desired from the speaker: "I should like to ask the (speaker) a question."
Orders of the Day (Agenda): A call to adhere to the agenda (a deviation from the agenda requires Suspending the Rules)
Point of Order: Infraction of the rules, or improper decorum in speaking. Must be raised immediately after the error is made
Main Motion: Brings new business (the next item on the agenda) before the assembly
Divide the Question: Divides a motion into two or more separate motions (must be able to stand on their own)
Consider by Paragraph: Adoption of paper is held until all paragraphs are debated and amended and entire paper is satisfactory; after all paragraphs are considered, the entire paper is then open to amendment, and paragraphs may be further amended. Any Preamble can not be considered until debate on the body of the paper has ceased.
Amend: Inserting or striking out words or paragraphs, or substituting whole paragraphs or resolutions
Withdraw/Modify Motion: Applies only after question is stated; mover can accept an amendment without obtaining the floor
Commit /Refer/Recommit to Committee: State the committee to receive the question or resolution; if no committee exists include size of committee desired and method of selecting the members (election or appointment).
Extend Debate: Applies only to the immediately pending question; extends until a certain time or for a certain period of time
Limit Debate: Closing debate at a certain time, or limiting to a certain period of time
Postpone to a Certain Time: State the time the motion or agenda item will be resumed
Object to Consideration: Objection must be stated before discussion or another motion is stated
Lay on the Table: Temporarily suspends further consideration/action on pending question; may be made after motion to close debate has carried or is pending
Take from the Table: Resumes consideration of item previously "laid on the table" - state the motion to take from the table
Reconsider: Can be made only by one on the prevailing side who has changed position or view
Postpone Indefinitely: Kills the question/resolution for this session - exception: the motion to reconsider can be made this session
Previous Question: Closes debate if successful - may be moved to "Close Debate" if preferred
Informal Consideration: Move that the assembly go into "Committee of the Whole" - informal debate as if in committee; this committee may limit number or length of speeches or close debate by other means by a 2/3 vote. All votes, however, are formal.
Appeal Decision of the Chair: Appeal for the assembly to decide - must be made before other business is resumed; NOT debatable if relates to decorum, violation of rules or order of business
Suspend the Rules: Allows a violation of the assembly's own rules (except Constitution); the object of the suspension must be specified

By laws revised and voted on December 2022

By laws to be reviewed/revised on or before: June 2026