1. Title
1.1.
The Association shall be called The High
School Dublin Parents’ Association.
2. Objectives
2.1.
To be proactive in supporting the welfare and
educational interests of the pupils in The High School in co-operation, where
possible, with the school’s Board of Governors and/or Board of Management, the
school’s Principal and its teachers.
2.2.
To foster the sharing of educational knowledge and
social activities among the members of the Association.
2.3.
To create structures to enable the committee of the
Association to liaise with the membership with a view to keeping the membership
regularly informed about developments relating to the school and establishing
areas of concern or interest to the membership with the intention that any
matters so arising will inform the deliberations and actions of the committee.
2.4.
To adopt a programme of activities which will promote the
involvement of parents, in consultation with the Principal, in the operation of
the High School.
2.5.
To promote a partnership approach between the parent
body and the Principal, Board of Governors and Management Committee, and to act
as a conduit for active and meaningful communication between the school and the
parent body with regard to matters affecting the school and the education and
welfare of all its pupils.
2.6.
To advise the Principal and/or the Board of Governors
and Management Committee, through a regular communications structure, on any
matter relating to the school
2.7.
To ensure that the High School Board of Governors
and/or Management Committee promotes contact between the school and the parents
of pupils in the High School and facilitates and gives all reasonable
assistance to the Parents’ Association
3. Membership
3.1. Ordinary Members
3.1.1.
Ordinary Membership of the Association shall be open to
all parents or guardians of pupils attending the High School, Dublin on payment
of their membership fee.
3.1.2.
Paid up Ordinary Members of the Association shall be
entitled to attend and vote at Annual General or Special General Meetings.
3.1.3.
Paid up Ordinary Members of the Association shall be
entitled to be nominated to serve on the General Committee of the
Association.
3.2. Associate Members
3.2.1.
The Association recognizes that from time to time it
may be advantageous to the association to elect an individual who is not a
Parent or Guardian of a pupil attending the High School, Dublin as a member of
the Association.
3.2.2.
The General Committee may elect an individual who is
not a Parent or Guardian of a pupil attending the High School, Dublin as an
Associate Member of the Association.
3.2.3.
Election as an associate member will be for a term of
one year unless otherwise specified by the General Committee.
3.2.4.
Associate membership may be extended beyond any defined
term by the General Committee.
3.2.5.
Associate Members of the Association may be co-opted to
working groups established by the General Committee to support the general aims
and objectives of the Association.
3.2.6.
Associate Members of the Association shall be entitled
to attend the Annual General and Special General Meetings of the Association.
3.2.7.
Associate Members of the Association shall not be
entitled to vote at Annual General or Special General Meetings.
3.2.8.
Associate Members of the Association shall not be
entitled to be nominated to serve on the General Committee of the
Association.
3.3. Honorary Members
3.3.1.
The Principal, members of the School Teaching Staff,
Members of the Board and Members of the Management Committee, shall be Honorary
Members of the Association. However, the Principal and any members of the
School Teaching Staff, Members of the Board or Members of the Management
Committee, whose children are attending the school will be Ordinary Members of
the Association while their children are attending the High School, Dublin.
3.3.2.
Honorary Members of the Association may be co-opted to
working groups established by the General Committee to support the general aims
and objectives of the Association.
3.3.3.
Honorary Members of the Association shall be entitled
to attend the Annual General and Special General Meetings of the Association.
3.3.4.
Honorary Members of the Association shall not be
entitled to vote at Annual General or Special General Meetings.
3.3.5.
Honorary Members of the Association shall not be
entitled to be nominated to serve on the General Committee of the Association
4. Subscriptions
4.1.
The Annual Subscription shall be €12 per annum. or such
other sum which has been set from time to time by the annual General meeting
pursuant to clause 4.2.1 below. All
subscriptions shall be payable in conjunction with the school fees.
4.2. Ordinary Members
4.2.1.
The Annual Subscription for Ordinary Members shall be
set from time to time by an Annual General Meeting of the Association.
4.2.2.
The General Committee of the Association may, from time
to time, recommend an increase in the Annual Subscription Rate to the Annual
General Meeting and, in such case, the Annual General Meeting shall vote on
such increase with the issue to be decided by a simple majority.
4.2.3.
All subscriptions shall be collected along with School
Fees over a 9 Month Period from September to May.
4.3. Associate Members
4.3.1.
Associate Members of the Association shall be exempt
from Membership Subscriptions.
4.4. Honorary Members
4.4.1.
Honorary Members of the Association shall be exempt
from Membership Subscriptions.
5. Committee
5.1.
Composition of
the Committee. The Committee shall consist of a President and ten ordinary
members (the General Committee), consisting of five men and five women.
5.2.
Nomination /
Election Arrangements. Elections to fill ordinary vacancies on the
Committee shall take place at the AGM. Candidates for election must be proposed
and seconded by members of the Association and have given / give their consent
to act on the Committee if elected.
5.3.
The General
Committee Members shall be elected to the General Committee for a fixed
term of two years. Members shall retire on completion of their term and the
vacancies so created shall be filled at the Annual General Meeting. Retiring
Committee Members are eligible to go forward for re-election. There shall be no
upper limit to the number of terms which any member may serve on the General
Committee.
5.4.
Officers of the
Committee
The
Association shall have four Officers to be drawn from the General Committee as
follows:
-
President
-
Vice President
-
Secretary
-
Treasurer
5.4.1. President
-
To be eligible for nomination, candidates for President
must be an ordinary member of the association and have served at least one year
as a member of the General Committee.
-
The President shall be elected by the General Committee
of the Association following the resignation of the previous President. The
President shall be elected to serve for a fixed term of two years.
-
The outgoing President, or a member who has served a previous
term as President, may be elected to serve a second term provided that they
remain an ordinary member of the association. No member may serve more than two
terms as President.
5.4.2. Vice President
-
The General Committee shall elect from its members a Vice
President to serve for a fixed term of one year.
-
The Vice President shall deputise for the President at
Meetings of the Association and / or at Events organised by the Association,
the School, or other Organisations where representation on behalf of the
Association is appropriate and the President is unavailable.
5.4.3. Honorary Secretary
-
The General Committee shall elect from its members an
Honorary Secretary to serve for a fixed term of one year.
-
The primary responsibility of the Honorary Secretary
shall be the maintenance of records of the association.
5.4.4. Honorary Treasurer
-
The General Committee shall elect from its members an
Honorary Treasurer to serve for a fixed term of one year.
-
The primary responsibility of the Honorary Treasurer
shall be the maintenance of the Accounts of the Association.
5.4.5. Election of Officers
-
Voting shall be by secret ballot and simple majority.
Should the voting result in a tie then the selection will be made by drawing
lots.
5.4.6. Casual Vacancies
-
Casual Vacancies that occur shall be filled as follows:
o
President: By co-option from the General
Committee or Officers. A co-opted president must retire at the next Annual
General Meeting. Any period served by a President serving a casual vacancy
shall not be counted as part of the maximum length of service as set out above.
o
Vice President / Honorary Secretary / Treasurer:
By co-option from the General Committee.
o
General Committee: By co-option. Committee
members co-opted shall serve for the remaining unexpired term of the Committee
Member whose retirement created the vacancy.
5.5. Representation on the Board and Management
Committee of the School.
5.5.1.
The Association will be represented on the School Board
and the Management Committee of the School.
The Association will additionally be represented on any sub-committee of
the Board and Management Committee as established by the Board and Management
Committee.
5.5.2.
Representation on the Board and Management
Committee
-
The President and one other member of the General
Committee shall represent the Association on the Board and Management Committee
of the School.
-
The General Committee shall elect from its membership
the Associations second nominee to the Board and Management Committee of the
School.
5.5.3.
Representation on the sub-committees to the Board and
Management Committee
-
The General Committee shall elect from its membership
the Associations nominees to the sub-committees of the Board and Management
Committee of the School.
5.6.
Other Committee
Roles. The General Committee shall elect from its membership the
Associations nominees to other Committee roles including but not limited
to:
5.6.1.
The Association’s representative on the National
Association of Compass - Cooperation of Minority Religion and Protestant Parent
Associations (Post Primary).
5.6.2.
A Student Liaison to engage with the Student Body.
6. Meetings of the Association
The Association will meet at
least once a year at an Annual General Meeting. A Special General Meeting of
the Association may be summoned by either the General Committee or the Ordinary
Members of the Association as set out below.
6.1. Annual General Meeting.
6.1.1.
The Annual General Meeting of the Association shall be
held no later than 31 October each year. Notice of the Annual General Meeting
shall be sent to each member not less than seven days before the meeting.
6.1.2.
At an Annual General Meeting twenty five Ordinary
Members (including the President and Members of the General Committee if
present) shall form a quorum.
6.2. Special General Meetings
6.2.1.
Special General Meetings of the Association may be
summoned by the Committee.
6.2.2.
Special General Meetings of the Association may also be
summoned upon written requisition of not less than 30 Ordinary Members
addressed to the Honorary Secretary and (i) stating the object of the proposed
meeting and (ii) supported by any papers to be circulated to the membership in
advance of the meeting.
6.2.3.
Notice of a Special General Meeting shall be sent to
each member not less than twenty one calendar days before the meeting.
6.2.4.
At a Special General Meeting twenty five Ordinary
Members (including the President and Members of the General Committee if
present) shall form a quorum.
6.3. The Chair
6.3.1.
At all meetings of the Association the President shall
occupy the Chair. In the event of his or her absence, the Vice President in the
first instance or one of the other Officers of the Association or other General
Committee member shall be appointed as chair.
6.4. Voting
6.4.1.
Except in the case for alteration of the rules (under
rule 7) or upon dissolution of the Association (under rule 8), every question
at meetings of the Association shall be decided by a simple majority on a
showing of hands. However the chair of the meeting may decide that a matter
will be decided by secret ballot. In the event of an equality of votes, the
chair shall have a casting vote in addition to any vote to which he or she is
entitled as a member.
7. Alteration of Rules
7.1.
Proposed alterations to these Rules may be made either
at an Annual General Meeting or at a Special General Meeting (summoned either
by the association’s committee of its own motion or as requisitioned pursuant
to Rule 6.2) specially convened for that specific purpose.
7.2.
Notice of such proposals must, in the case where it is
intended that they be considered at the Annual General Meeting, be sent in
writing to the Honorary Secretary at least one month before the date of the
AGM.
7.3.
Where a Special General Meeting is requisitioned for
that purpose by the Committee the Committee shall provide a minimum of twenty
one days advance notice to the Members.
7.4.
Where a Special General Meeting is requisitioned by 30
members in accordance with Rule 6.2 the committee shall convene such Special
General Meeting no sooner than 30 days and no later than 45 days from the
receipt of such requisition although, given such time limits, such requisition
must be submitted so as to allow the Special General Meeting to be convened within
term time or during the period of the State examinations.
7.5.
In all cases, the committee shall circulate the details
of the proposal alterations to the membership at least 21 days before the date
set for such meeting. No alteration to the rules may be made except by a
majority of at least two thirds of those members present and entitled to
vote.
7.6.
All rule changes will be effective from the end of the
meeting at which they are adopted.
8. Dissolution
8.1.
The Association shall not be dissolved, except at an
Annual General Meeting or at a Special General Meeting especially convened for
the purpose.
8.2.
Dissolution of the Association shall require a
resolution carried by four fifths of the votes in respect of same.
8.3.
Any surplus funds which may be in hand at the time of
dissolution shall be handed over to the school.