Saturday, May 16, 2009

CONSTITUTION OF RAFFLES PARENTS’ ASSOCIATION (“RPA”)


Constitution
Of
Raffles Parents’ Association (“RPA”) 

NAME

  1. The Association shall be known as the RAFFLES PARENTS’ ASSOCIATION (or in its abbreviated form “RPA”).


PLACE OF BUSINESS

2.   The place of business shall be at:

Raffles Institution
1 Institution Lane Singapore 575954

or such other address as may subsequently be decided upon by the RPA Management Committee and approved by the Registrar of Societies.


OBJECTIVES

3.   Its objects are:

a) To establish a formal group of Rafflesian parents;
b) To establish a formal link between Rafflesian parents and the school;
c) To share jointly with the school in the total development of its pupils;
d) To keep parents informed of developments in school;
e) To facilitate parents’ active involvement in the activities of the school; 
f) To pave the way for parents to enhance the resources of the school in the interest of their children.


MEMBERSHIP

4.   There shall be two classes of membership: Ordinary Membership and Associate Membership.

a) Ordinary Membership is restricted to parents of current students of Raffles Institution (“Rafflesian”). Parents of a Rafflesian will be eligible for one membership. However, both parents can attend all functions and activities of the RPA, but only one parent is eligible to vote.

b) Associate Membership is restricted to parents of students who have studied at Raffles Institution or Raffles Junior College. Associate members can attend all functions and activities of the RPA but they are not eligible to vote and stand for election to the RPA Management Committee. However, they may be invited to join or head the RPA Sub-committees.

5.   All parents of students of Raffles Institution are deemed members of the RPA. Parents joining the RPA should submit their names as Mr. and Mrs., and in the case of single parents as Ms, Mdm or Mr. to the Secretary. A copy of the Constitution of the RPA shall be provided to the member who has fully paid his/her subscription fee and who has specifically written in to the RPA to request for a copy. 

Any parent of a Rafflesian who do not wish to be a member of the RPA must expressly opt out of the RPA. This is done by completing an Opt-Out Form which is available from the RPA upon request. 

The right to opt-out must be exercised within the student’s first 3 months of education in Raffles Institution. No opt-out is allowed after payment of the subscription fee.


ENTRANCE FEES, SUBSCRIPTION AND OTHER DUES

6.  No entrance fee is necessary. A non-refundable subscription fee of such amount as shall be determined by the prevailing RPA Management Committee from time to time is payable for Ordinary and Associate Members.

7.   Subscriptions are payable in advance within one month of joining. The total subscription fee payable in advance by a member shall be calculated as the annual subscription fee multiplied by the number of years the child is expected to study in Raffles Institution.

8.   The quantum of subscription fee may only be varied by a simple majority vote by members of the prevailing RPA Management Committee taken at a Management Committee Meeting.


MANAGEMENT AND GENERAL MEETINGS

9.   The supreme authority or the RPA shall be vested in a general meeting of members presided over by the Chairman. At least one quarter of the total voting membership or 30 voting members of the RPA whichever is lower, must be present at the general meeting to form a quorum.

10.   An Annual General Meeting will be held within six months of the close of each financial year. At any other time, an Extraordinary General Meeting must be called by the Chairman on the request in writing of 30 members or more and may be called at any time by order of the Committee.

11.   At least two weeks’ notice will be given of an Annual General Meeting and at least ten days’ notice of any other general meeting and particulars of its agenda will be notified to its members. Such notification shall be in the form of post, facsimile or email as deemed necessary. The following points must be considered at the Annual General Meeting:
a. The previous financial year’s accounts and report of the Committee.
b. The election of office bearers and auditors for the following year.

Any member who wishes to place an item in the agenda of a General Meeting may do so provided he/ she gives notice to the Secretary one week before the meeting is to be held.

12.   In the event of there being no quorum for an Annual General Meeting, the meeting shall be adjourned for half an hour and should the number then present be insufficient to form a quorum, those present shall be considered a quorum, but they shall have no power to alter, amend or make additions to any of the existing rules. In the event of there being no quorum for an Extraordinary General Meeting, the meeting shall be cancelled.


MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE

13. A Committee consisting of the following shall be elected at each Annual General Meeting:
A Chairman
Two Vice-Chairmen (One each for the Secondary school & Junior College)
A Secretary
An Assistant Secretary
A Treasurer
An Assistant Treasurer
Ten Committee Members (Five each from the Secondary school & Junior College)

In the event there are insufficient members from the Secondary school or Junior College filling the allocated positions as stipulated above, such positions may be filled by any ordinary member elected at the Annual General Meeting. In addition to the above, the Principal, Senior Deputy Headmaster, Deputy Headmaster or Vice-Principal and/or a representative staff of Raffles Institution may be present at any Committee meeting.

14.   Names of the above officers shall be proposed and seconded at the Annual General Meeting and election will follow on simple majority vote of the members. All officers may be re-elected to the same or related post for a consecutive term of office. The Treasurer and the Assistant Treasurer may be re-elected to the same post for a maximum of two consecutive terms.

15.   The Committee shall meet at least once a month, with the exception of June and December when the school is on vacation. The Chairman may call a meeting at any time by giving seven (7) days’ notice to the Committee Members. At least half the Committee Members must be present for its proceedings to be valid.

16.   The duty of the Committee is to organize and supervise the current activities of the RPA and to make decisions on matters affecting its running when the general meeting is not sitting. It may not act contrary to the expressed wishes of the general meeting.

17.   Additional members may be co-opted into the Management Committee during a Committee Meeting by a simple majority vote of the Management Committee members. Co-opted members are not eligible to vote in all meetings.


OFFICE BEARERS

18.   The duties of the office bearers are as follows:

a. The Chairman shall chair all general and committee meetings. He/she shall also represent the RPA in its dealings with the school and other persons.

b. The Vice-Chairmen shall assist the Chairman and shall deputise for him/her in his/her absence.

c. The Secretary shall keep all records, except financial, of the RPA and shall be responsible for their correctness. He/she shall keep minutes of all general and committee meetings and maintain an up-to-date register of membership.

d. The Treasurer shall keep all funds and collect and disburse all moneys on behalf of the RPA and shall keep an account of all monetary transactions and shall be responsible for their correctness. He/she is authorized to expend up to $200.00 per month of petty expenses on behalf of the Association. He/she will not keep more than $200.00 in the form of cash and money in excess of this will be deposited in a bank to be named by the Committee. Cheques for withdrawals from the bank will be signed by either the Chairman or Vice-Chairman in addition to the Treasurer.

e. The Assistant Secretary shall deputise for the Secretary in the latter’s absence and assist him/her whenever necessary.

f. The Assistant Treasurer shall deputise and assist the Treasurer when the need arise.

g. All Committee and Co-opted Members shall assist in conducting the affairs and activities of the RPA. They may be called upon to head subcommittees.

h. Any member of the Committee absenting himself from three meetings consecutively without satisfactory explanations shall be deemed to have withdrawn from the Committee, and a successor may be co-opted by the Committee to serve until the next AGM.

i. Any changes in the Committee shall be notified to the registrar of Societies within two weeks of the change.


AUDIT AND FINANCIAL YEAR

19.   Two voting persons not members of the Committee will be elected as Auditors at each Annual General Meeting and will hold office for one year only and shall not be re-elected for a consecutive term. They will be required to audit each year’s accounts and present a report upon them to the general meeting. The Financial year shall be from 1st January to 31st December.


PROHIBITIONS

20.    a. Gambling of any kind is forbidden on the RPA premises. The introduction of     materials of                gambling or drug taking and of bad character into the premises is prohibited.

b. The funds of the RPA shall not be used to pay the fines of members who have been convicted in Court.

c. The RPA shall not engage in any Trade Union activity as defined in any written law relating to trade unions for the time being in force in Singapore.

d. The RPA shall not attempt to restrict or interfere with trade or make directly or indirectly any recommendation or any arrangement with its members which has the purpose or is likely to have the effect of fixing or controlling the price or any discount, allowance or rebate relating to any goods or services to be supplied by them.

e. The RPA shall not hold any lottery, whether confined to its members or not, in the name of the Association or its office bearers, Committee or members.

f. The RPA shall not indulge in any political activity or allow its funds and/or premises to be used for political purposes.

g. The RPA shall not raise funds from the public for whatever purpose without the prior approval in writing of the Assistant Director, Operations, Licensing Division, Singapore Police Force and other relevant authorities.


AMENDMENT TO RULES

21.    No alterations or additions/deletions to these rules shall be made except at a general meeting and they shall not come into force without the prior sanction of the Registrar of Societies.


INTERPRETATION

22.    In the event of any question or matter arising out of any point, which is not expressly provided for in the rules, the Committee shall have the power to use their own discretion. The decision of the Committee shall be final unless it is reversed at a general meeting of the members.


DISSOLUTION

23.     a. The RPA shall not be dissolved except with the consent of not less than three-fifths of the                   members of the RPA for the time being resident in Singapore, expressed either in person or by             proxy at a general meeting convened for the purpose.

b. In the event of the RPA being dissolved as provided above, all debts and liabilities legally incurred on behalf of the Association shall be fully discharged, and the remaining funds will either be donated to charity or disposed off in any manner the Committee deem most desirable.

c. Notice of dissolution shall be given within (7) days of the dissolution to the Registrar of Societies.


SCHOOL’S INTEREST

24.    The Chairman will consult with the Principal of RI on all matters affecting the school or having implications for the school and act in such cases only with the approval of the Principal.