What your board should be doing right now

Every month of the PTO year, by role — the tasks, the deadlines that bite, and the things to start now so they're ready later. Assumes a July–June fiscal year; adjust if yours differs.

August: Back to school

August is the highest-goodwill month of the whole year: staff return before students, families show up to orientation ready to say yes, and everything you launch now compounds. In August a PTO board should welcome staff back, get the favorites survey out, adopt the budget, set up payment tools before the first dollar moves, and run a great back-to-school table.

Treasurer

Get the budget adopted

Board first, then membership if your bylaws require a member vote. Nothing gets spent against a budget that doesn't exist.
Set up payment collection before the first event

A platform in the PTO's name connected to the PTO's bank account — never a personal Venmo, Zelle, or PayPal. Untangling that later is misery.
Write down cash-handling rules

Two counters at every cash box, counts signed same night, deposits within days. Boring rules are what protect volunteers from suspicion.

⏰ Deadlines that bite

Meeting-notice clocks begin

Check your bylaws for required notice before the first general meeting — usually 10–30 days.

📅 Start now, thank yourself later

Draft sponsorship asks

Local businesses commit community budgets in early fall — letters should land in September.
Choose the fall fundraiser

If a vendor is involved, contracts and materials need September lead time for an October run.

Prefer the readable version? Read the August guide · or see the whole PTO year at a glance.

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