AAPC's District Bylaws
Adopted on January 2010
Article I – Name
The Name of this organization shall be Pasadena Unified School District African-American Parent Council (AAPC).
Article II – Vision
AAPC is a model coalition of collaborative parents, students, and communities. The AAPC respects and embraces the diverse cultures of our communities, facilitates educational equity and improvements in academic outcomes, values varied forms of parent involvement to foster the healthy development of all students, and provides the tools and skills necessary for families to access information to purposefully participate in a rapidly changing world.
Article III – Mission
To honor and embrace the identity and experiences of Pasadena Unified School District’s African-American families, advocate for the cultural acceptance of all, and mobilize and engage all stakeholders to transform the system to ensure a high quality education for every student.
Article IV – Membership/Composition of District-Level AAPC
The membership of this body shall include parents and/or guardians of African-American students, Pasadena Unified School District employees, community representatives, and other interested individuals who live within the attendance zone of the district or work with/for the District. The majority of district-level AAPC shall be composed of parents and/or guardians of African-American students enrolled in PUSD schools.
Composition of district-level AAPC will be one Site Representative representing the school-level AAPC.
Target schools are PUSD Schools with a population of 10% or more African-American students.
Membership of district-level AAPC shall be determined in June of each school year.
The school-level AAPC must “qualify” in June, in order for that school site representative to having the right to vote in the fall, to the district-level AAPC.
All members of the district-level AAPC shall have the right to participate in any and all discussions and activities, with the exception of voting, which is the exclusive function and obligation of the active school AAPC Site Representatives.
ATTENDANCE
Attendance shall be recorded for each Site Representatives’ Meeting. If a Site Representative misses two (2) consecutive Site Representatives’ Meetings or more than three (3) Site Representatives’ Meetings in a term year, from September to June, the member may forfeit membership on the district-level AAPC as determined by the district-level AAPC Executive Committee.
If any voting member fails to attend three meetings within a 10-month period, the district-level AAPC Executive Committee may determine that the individual’s membership shall be forfeited.
DUTIES OF INDIVIDUAL MEMBERS
Work to collaborate with the District Board, administration, staff and community members to carry out the vision and mission of AAPC.
Any member officially representing district-level AAPC at a meeting or event shall do so only with the consent of the district-level AAPC Chairperson and Executive Committee and shall present the district-level AAPC concerns as agreed prior to the event. The district-level AAPC representative will report to the next scheduled district-level AAPC meeting.
VOTING
Each voting member must be present and shall have one (1) vote.
RESIGNATION, LEAVE OF ABSENCE AND TERMINATION OF MEMBERS
A member may resign by filing a written resignation with the secretary of the district-level AAPC with an effective date included.
If a member misses two consecutive or three district-level AAPC meetings in a year without due cause, the district-level AAPC Executive Committee may consider revoking the voting rights of said Site Representative for the rest of the school year.
Article V – General Membership Meetings of District-Level AAPC
All district level meetings are open to the public.
All meetings shall be made known by public notice with sufficient time to ensure maximal participation by the public. At the minimum, the agenda must be posted 72 hours prior to the scheduled meeting date. Emergency meetings may be held provided each member is contacted at least 48 hours in advance.
There shall be a minimum of ten (10) regularly scheduled meetings in a twelve (12) month period. Special meetings may be called, provided all previously registered and participating members are notified.
The Secretary shall have the responsibility for contacting each member at least (5) days in advance of the regular monthly meeting or any special meetings. Communications can be by phone or email.
All meetings shall be documented in minutes.
All meetings shall require a quorum, equal to at least one person more than half to be present to validate or approve any motion to be adopted on behalf of district-level AAPC. All meetings shall require the Chair or his/her designee to be present for official business to take place. This designee shall be an Executive Committee Officer of the district-level AAPC.
Article VI – Executive Committee Officers and Duties
The district-level AAPC Executive Committee shall consist of the following Officers:
· Chairperson
· Vice-Chairperson
· Secretary
· Parent Volunteer Liaison
· Immediate past Chairperson
The term of office shall be for 1 year, but no more than 2 consecutive terms in the same position. The majority (3) of the Executive Committee shall be parents/guardians of PUSD students.
Shall require that an Executive Committee Officer be present at Standing Committee and Subcommittee meetings, as necessary.
Shall ensure that all Officers to be nominated are “active members in good standing” for at least six (6) months prior to serving.
Midterm vacancies shall be appointed for the remainder of the vacated term by the Chairperson with the majority approval of the Executive Committee.
OFFICER DUTIES
Chairperson –
o Preside over all Council meetings or designate an executive committee member to act as a substitute.
o Shall prepare meeting agendas with majority approval of the Executive Council.
o Shall represent district-level AAPC at school and community functions as needed.
o Shall attend one meeting at each school site.
Vice-Chairperson –
o Shall assist the Chairperson in general duties, as requested.
o Shall perform other duties assigned by the chairperson.
o Shall attend one meeting at each school site.
o Shall assist school Site Representatives in operations.
Secretary –
o Shall keep accurate, concise and permanent Minutes of all meetings.
o Shall maintain a current listing of district-level AAPC membership, including date of appointment and end of term date.
o Shall record attendance
o Shall disseminate all communication, including the distribution of minutes, to all members.
Parent Volunteer Liaison –
o Shall act as a liaison between the district-level AAPC and school-level AAPC.
o Shall support school-level AAPC activities.
Immediate Past Chairperson –
o Shall assist the district-level AAPC Officers, especially the new Chairperson in order to provide continuity for the officers and membership.
o Shall serve as a source of information and as a contact person to help members with issues that they may need help understanding and resolving.
o Shall enforce the by-laws and serve as the parliamentarian during Executive committee and district-level AAPC meetings.
Article VII – Nomination and Election of Executive Committee
NOMINATION OF OFFICERS
o A nominating committee composed of, at least, one Executive Committee member and 4 school Site Representatives.
o The nominating committee shall agree upon a slate of candidates to include a Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson, Secretary, Parent Volunteer Liaison, and shall present the proposed slate to the general membership at the 2nd meeting.
o A nominee for the position as an Officer must be an “active member in good standing” for at least 6 months prior to serving.
o If the membership officially adopts the slate by a majority vote, the slated members become the elected Executive Committee.
o The elected Executive Committee members shall decide amongst themselves the positions they will serve.
o If the slate is not adopted by a majority vote, the district-level AAPC shall take nominations from the floor.
VIII – Operation of the Executive Committee
o District-level AAPC Executive Officers shall be elected to serve for a period of 1 year and for no more than 2 consecutive terms, in the same position.
o A majority of the members of the Executive Committee should be present at any Executive Committee meeting to constitute a quorum.
o A majority vote of the voting members present shall be required for any action to be sanctioned by the Executive Committee.
o All proceedings of the Executive Committee shall be promptly reported at the next succeeding general meeting of district-level AAPC.
Article X – School-Level AAPC
PURPOSE
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MEMBERSHIP AND MEETINGS
o There shall be 5 regularly scheduled meetings during a school year
o In June of every school year, must elect its school Site Representative to the district-level AAPC.
NOMINATIONS AND ELECTION OF OFFICERS
o A nominating committee composed of 5 members shall agree upon a slate of candidates to include a Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson, Secretary, Project Coordinator and a parliamentarian, shall present the proposed slate to the general membership at the following meeting.
o A nominee for the position as an Officer must be an “active member in good standing” for at least 6 months prior to serving.
o If the membership officially adopts the slate by a majority vote, the slated members become the elected Executive Committee of the school-level AAPC.
o The elected Executive Committee members shall decide amongst themselves the positions they will serve.
Article XI – Amendment of Bylaws
RATIFICATION
Amendments to PUSD AAPC Bylaws are allowed.
Amendments can be presented by any PUSD AAPC Member (Executive, School Site Representative, or Member at Large).
The district-level AAPC members proposing bylaw revision or amendments shall be allowed to address, discuss, and present the issue to the general body for discussion.
Bylaw revisions, if approved, shall become effective immediately. Evidence of voting and the presence of the required quorum shall be documented in the district-level AAPC meeting minutes.