Purpose
Student extraclassroom activities or clubs may only be formed for educational, school, or community service purposes, by students in grades 6 through 12, in compliance with applicable laws and regulations, in order to provide learning experiences in business procedures. All extraclassroom activities or clubs shall be approved by the Board of Education.
Definition
Extra-classroom activity funds are money raised other than by taxation or through charges of a Board of Education, for, by, or in the name of a school, student body, or any subdivision thereof.
Organizational Procedures
Students desiring to form an extra-classroom activity or club shall petition their principal in writing. The petition, or charter, shall state the purpose of and describe the activities of the proposed extra-classroom activity or club, and shall be signed by at least ten students before it is presented to the principal for action. If the purpose of the proposed extra-classroom activity or club meets an educational, school, or community service purpose and if the necessary space and equipment are available, the principal, in conjunction with the petitioning students, shall seek an activity or club advisor. When these procedures have been accomplished, the building principal shall recommend to the Superintendent that the extra-classroom activity or club’s petition or charter be approved by the Board of Education.
Approved Extra-classroom Activities
All extra-classroom activities shall be approved by the Board of Education. All approved extra-classroom activities must also be reauthorized at the district’s annual reorganization meeting. The clerk of the board shall maintain an up-to-date register of all extra-classroom activities that are approved or discontinued.
Meetings
All extra-classroom activities shall meet at least once quarterly while school is in session. Meetings must be held on school property. Extra-classroom activities shall not meet outside school property unless they have received the consent of their school principal.
Extra-classroom Activity Officers
Faculty Advisor – Each extra-classroom activity or club shall have a faculty adviser recommended by the Superintendent and appointed by the Board of Education. The faculty advisor shall attend all meetings of the extra-classroom activity or club. The faculty advisor shall assume the primary responsibility for directly supervising the operation of the extra-classroom activity or club by guiding and advising the student officers in planning extra-classroom activities, planning the financial budgets, and preparing the statements of profit and loss. Each faculty advisor shall report to the Board of Education annually on the activities of his/her activity or club.
Central Treasurer – A central treasurer for each building, appointed by the Board of Education, maintains custody of all extra-classroom activity or club funds.
Chief Faculty Counselor – A chief faculty counselor (usually the building principal or their designee) is assigned to coordinate the financial planning of all projects of the extraclassroom activities in his/her building.
Extra Classroom Activity Auditor – An activity auditor, appointed by the Board of Education, shall review the cash receipt slips and cash disbursement orders on a sample basis, periodically throughout the year for compliance with the procedures outlined herein. He/she will also verify, on a sample basis, that the central treasurers at the High School and Junior High School are verifying their balances with the individual clubs periodically during the year.
Student Officers
Each extra-classroom activity or club shall, at a minimum, have a president, secretary, and treasurer. These officers shall be elected annually from among the activity or club’s membership by secret ballot.
Activity Treasurer – The activity treasurer (as supervised by the Faculty Advisor) shall receive all money raised by his/her activity or club and shall immediately deposit such funds with the central treasurer, using duplicate deposit tickets; pay all bills by issuing disbursement order forms (in duplicate); and maintain a ledger showing all receipts and disbursements and indicating a daily running balance.
Financial Procedures
All extra-classroom activity or club funds shall be handled in accordance with the administrative regulations for the safeguarding, accounting, and auditing of these funds as shown in Finance Pamphlet 2, The Safeguarding, Accounting, and Auditing of Extra-classroom Activity Funds, as approved by the State Education Department.
Inactive Clubs and Leftover Funds
An inactive extra-classroom activity or club is an activity or club having no financial transactions for two full school years. If an inactive extra-classroom activity or club is identified, its central treasurer is directed to liquidate the leftover funds of this extra-classroom activity or club, or graduating class (after an appropriate waiting period) to the account of the Student Government. For inactive extra-classroom activities or clubs the process for reactivation is the same as the organizing procedures set forth in this regulation.
Upon graduation, all funds in the Senior Class Treasury will remain in the custody of the central treasurer for twelve months and then be transferred to the account of the Student Government.
Interest Earnings
The central treasurer shall deposit extra-classroom activity or club funds in an interest-bearing account. Interest earned at Shaker High School shall be distributed at least annually to the Student Board of Finance. Interest earned at Shaker Junior High School shall be prorated and distributed annually based on end of year account balances of each extra-classroom activity or club.
Sales, Campaigns, and Fundraising Activities
The faculty advisor shall provide information to the chief faculty counselor and, upon request, to the Superintendent or their designee, on sales, campaigns, and fundraising activities of all extra-classroom activities, including the nature of the event, dates of operation, duration of sale or campaign, and means of solicitation (i.e., direct mailing, etc.).
Travel and Transportation
All overnight trips and foreign travel by any extra-classroom activity or club must receive approval in advance from the Board of Education. The chief faculty counselor or their designee shall provide a written itinerary to each student, along with a copy of the code of acceptable conduct and secure written permission from each student’s parent/guardian for all overnight and foreign travel. Every effort should be made to provide the educational travel opportunity to all eligible students. The faculty adviser must assure that there is sufficient adult supervision at all times.
District transportation may be provided, upon timely and proper request at cost. At the discretion of the Superintendent, the cost may be waived. Each extra-classroom activity or club will be invoiced for the actual cost upon trip completion. Trip cost estimates may be obtained from the transportation department. Although use of commercial private carriers from a Board approved list is permitted, the faculty advisor is required to request the transportation department ascertain that the driver(s) are properly insured, properly licensed, and that the vehicle is appropriate, legal, and safe. The commercial private carrier must guarantee the safety of all students and adults.
Risk Management
The chief faculty counselor shall work with the Assistant Superintendent for Business to assure that the district’s exposure to any risk resulting from extra-classroom activities or fundraisers is minimized. In all cases, where an outside vendor will be using district facilities to conduct its event, the district requires a certificate of insurance with the district named as an additional insured. Periodically, the district may request that it’s primary liability insurance carrier conduct a review of the events of its extra-classroom activities and clubs and may prohibit certain events based on the review of results.
Equipment Acquisitions
All equipment purchases, shall be approved by official action of a majority of the extra-classroom activity or club members. Title to all equipment acquired with extra-classroom activity or club funds shall reside with the district and be carried as an insurable asset and be insured according to district policy. All equipment shall be operated on district property, unless permission from the chief faculty counselor is secured to use the equipment or have it reside off premises. Such equipment shall be tagged as district property but is available for the exclusive use by the extra-classroom activity or club acquiring the item.
Tax Exempt Status
Extra-classroom activities and clubs of the district are not included in the exemption from sales tax granted to the district from New York State. Without exception, extra-classroom activities and clubs are prohibited from using the district’s tax exemption.
If the extra-classroom activities and clubs routinely conduct fundraising events involving the resale of goods or merchandise, each building’s central treasurer should register with the NYS Department of Taxation and Finance as a vendor by filing an application. Only one application is required for all extra-classroom activities or clubs of the building. As a registered vendor, the extra-classroom activity or club’s central treasurer will receive a certificate of authority and the extra-classroom activities or clubs for that building may then issue Resale Certificates to their suppliers and make tax-free purchases for the student fundraising events if such purchases are intended for resale.
The central treasurer at each building must prepare and distribute a list of common types of extra-classroom activity or club fundraising and social events, indicating their taxable status. Any activity or club’s event not specifically listed shall be deemed taxable unless a written determination that it is non-taxable has been issued from the district’s treasurer to the central treasurer. Each faculty advisor should know which activities his/her activity or club undertakes are subject to sales tax and take steps to see that all sales tax information is accurately recorded and sent to the central treasurer.
It is strongly recommended that activities and clubs pay sales tax in the first instance, when possible, and avoid the possibility of error in collecting and reporting sales tax for resale items. However, the central treasurer, at each building, shall be responsible for filing the periodic sales tax returns for his/her extra-classroom activities or clubs.
Contracts, Commitments and Guarantees
All commitments and contracts shall be the sole responsibility of the extra-classroom activity or club, initiating the transaction, regardless of change in advisors, membership, or officers. The district’s treasurer is available to provide guidance and assistance, when needed.
Audit
An independent auditor, appointed by the Board of Education, must audit the extra-classroom activity or club funds annually. The audit should include a statement of receipts, disbursements, and balances for each extra-classroom activity or club together with a reconciliation of cash.
January 28, 2008
Amended: October 24, 2016