Faculty And Staff Supplement

The policies and procedures that govern student activity funds are set forth in the Financial Information Resource Manual. This supplement contains excerpts from the Manual that are relevant to faculty, staff, and sponsors of departments, clubs and student organizations.

Definitions:

Student Activity Funds:

Activity funds consist of monies received and held by the campus to be expended for the benefit of students in accordance with District policy.

There are two types of Activity Funds that are common for Texas public schools.

The first type is a clearing account that is used for such things as school pictures and yearbooks. These funds shall be used to promote the general welfare of each school and the educational development and morale of all students.

The second type consists of funds that are the property of student organizations such as student council, choir, and pep squad. The District is required to provide stewardship by properly safeguarding and accounting for these funds. Decisions on the use of student funds are the concern of the specific student groups to whom the funds belong, as long as the decisions regarding the use of funds do not conflict with Board policy and/or legal regulations or restrictions.

Faculty, Staff, and Sponsor Responsibilities:

Faculty, Staff, and Sponsors are required to sign a Faculty and Staff Acknowledgement of Responsibilities form and submit to bookkeeper. The sponsor of each student organization or department is required to maintain adequate records to support the financial activities of the group. Student Activity records should be retained for 5 years. These records are subject to review during the audit of the school’s activity funds and should include, at a minimum, the following:

  • Monthly financial reports for the organization (obtained from the bookkeeper)
  • Copies of money receipts and tabulations of monies collected
  • Copies of invoices or disbursement vouchers
  • Copies of fund raising applications
  • Detailed records, by student, of fund raising proceeds
  • Minutes of the organization’s meetings which detail, at a minimum, attendance, discussion of fund raising activities, and review and approval of expenditures and financial status.

Each month, the sponsor should compare his or her balances and financial records to those kept by the campus secretary/bookkeeper. If there is a discrepancy, the sponsor should promptly contact the bookkeeper. If necessary, the Internal Auditor or Financial Director may be requested to assist.

Collection of Money:

All money collected by an organization, department, or club for fees, dues or other fund raising activities must be recorded in detail using prenumbered money receipts, tabulation of monies collected forms, or collection forms provided by fund raising vendors. All collections must be deposited in the school activity fund.

To secure the deposit of public funds, all activity funds must be deposited with the district’s banking institution. Additional bank accounts are strictly prohibited.
Strictly Prohibited:

  1.  Additional bank accounts
  2. Employees collecting/distributing District funds using peer-to-peer money transfer services (example: Apple Pay, Cash App, PayPal, Venmo, Zelle, etc.)

Money collected should not be kept overnight in a desk or file cabinet, nor should it be taken home by the sponsor. If, for some reason, all records cannot be completed and recorded before the end of the day, the funds should be locked in a locking bank bag or sealed in a tamper-evident bag and stored in the campus safe or vault. The sponsor should keep the key to the bag and the funds should remain secured until the sponsor can complete the deposit records. This must occur promptly, however, and, under no circumstances should personal checks be held for more than five days before being submitted to the campus bookkeeper for deposit. Personal check cashing by faculty members is prohibited by District policy. Likewise, cash should not be removed from activity fund collections and replaced with the sponsor’s personal check. In addition, cash collections may not be used to purchase supplies, refreshments or for any other purpose. Activity fund collections must be deposited intact, in the same manner in which they were received. (See Accepting Checks)

Sponsors will often be collecting money for more than one activity. Each activity should be clearly documented on the collection records. This will assist the bookkeeper in determining the sales tax due at the end of each month. It will also help the sponsor measure the profitability of fund raising efforts.

Depositing Funds Collected:

When a sponsor submits funds collected to the campus secretary or bookkeeper for deposit, these funds should be verified by the bookkeeper in the sponsor’s presence. This is simply a prudent cash-handling procedure that protects both the bookkeeper and the sponsor. After counting the funds, the bookkeeper must provide the sponsor with a prenumbered money receipt or a copy of the tabulations of monies form documenting the amount of the deposit. If for some reason immediate verification is not possible, the funds should be locked in the sponsor’s locking bank bag or sealed in a tamper-evident bag and placed in the vault until such time that both individuals are present for cash verification. The sponsor will bear responsibility for any missing deposits or deposit shortages if funds are not verified in the presence of the bookkeeper.

Fund Raising Activities:

In order to provide administrative oversight of the extensive fund raising activities promoted by the various campuses and organizations, all fund raising activities involving a vendor or requiring public solicitation must first be approved by the principal and designated Financial Services’ Representative. Fundraisers should include a service or product. Under no circumstances should campuses or organizations participate in door-to-door solicitation, “can shakes” or enter into agreements with solicitation firms other than Donors Choose. Donors Choose and other campus specific donation campaigns will be considered on a case-by-case basis. Raffles, bingo, and other games of chance will not be allowed. Each organization will be allowed two fund raising activities per year which involve an outside vendor. Additional funds may be generated through service projects with the prior approval of the principal and the designated Financial Services’ Representative. (Read more fundraising guidelines)

Sponsors desiring to begin a fund raising activity are required to complete a Fund Raising application which must be approved two weeks in advance by the Principal and the designated Financial Services’ Representative. Under no circumstances should a campus or organization enter into agreements or advertise an event until approvals from the Principal and the designated Financial Services’ Representative have been received. The fundraising application details the vendor, product to be sold or service to be rendered, and the estimated proceeds. Any amounts due from previous fund raising activities should also be noted on the application. Sponsors who do not properly manage their activities and have large monetary amounts outstanding will not be allowed to conduct subsequent fund raising activities. Under no circumstances should door-to-door solicitation be allowed, nor should the organization enter into a contract with an outside solicitation firm.

Within one month of the close of the activity, the fund raising recap must be completed and forwarded to the campus bookkeeper. This form details the total receipts and expenditures of the sale; it also provides a section to detail lost, damaged, or returned products. The fund raising recap can easily be completed from the “Tabulation of Monies Collected” forms. Money that is not collected due to a student’s failure to remit funds should be detailed on the recap form. The campus should maintain these records so that the monies due can be collected at registration or prior to graduation.

The Accounting Department will maintain records of vendor and product performance based upon the completed recaps and an annual campus survey. Vendors who repeatedly fail to meet established standards will not be allowed to conduct business within Round Rock ISD.

Activity Fund Expenditures

All expenditures from activity funds must be made by check. No expenditures should be made using undeposited cash. Prior to the expenditure of funds, an activity fund disbursement voucher must be completed and authorized by the principal.

Expenditures must be made in compliance with existing purchasing rules, laws, and regulations. Items currently available on bid must be purchased from a bid vendor. Expenditures in excess of $5000 not otherwise included on a bid should have three documented quotes. Under no circumstances should purchases be made without proper approval.

To the greatest extent possible, purchases should be planned in sufficient time to allow them to be made by a purchase order, activity fund check or purchasing card. Round Rock ISD is not required to reimburse a sponsor for purchases not properly approved in advance by the principal. Therefore, sponsors’ requests for personal reimbursement should be limited in nature. The maximum out-of-pocket expense for a one-time purchase is $250. In addition, requests for reimbursement should be submitted within 30 days of the date of purchase.

Disbursement of Funds

Remember, too, that the principal is not required to reimburse sales tax paid by a sponsor if a purchase was not properly approved in advance.

Club and organization funds should be used for the benefit of the students who participate in the club’s activities. These funds should be expended on an annual basis so that the students who generated the funds can have the benefit of their use.

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