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Volunteer chair

Staff a shift with people who are cleared to work it

Add shifts with real slot counts, record the clearance the district reported, read the expiry dates yourself before the event, and print the sheet for the clipboard by the door.

When you are done

Every shift filled to its slot count, each volunteer's district background-check status and expiry date recorded on the clearance roster, those expiry dates read by you before the event, and a printed sign-in sheet ready for the clipboard by the door.

Who else you need

The district runs background checks and decides who needs one. PTO HQ never performs a check and never judges who requires one, so get each volunteer's clearance letter and the expiry date printed on it from your school or district volunteer coordinator, then record what the letter says. If your role is read-only or the organization's subscription has lapsed, the Volunteers page renders no entry controls at all, so ask the treasurer or the president to change your role, or ask an officer to record the shift for you.

Add a shift with the number of people it actually takes

  1. Open Volunteers from the sidebar and fill in the form above the event lists.

    It renders only when your role can write the books and the subscription is current.

  2. Name the event and name the shift.

  3. Set the start and the end.

    The times start out at early evening today, so change both. A shift that ends at or before it starts is refused.

  4. Enter the number of people you need, correctly, the first time.

    The count starts at 2. It is capacity: PTO HQ refuses the signup that would go past it, and refuses the count itself unless it is a whole number from 1 to 500. There is no control for editing a shift after it is created, and a shift can be removed only while nobody is signed up to it.

  5. Turn on the clearance requirement for any shift that works directly with students.

    That shift then refuses a signup from anyone whose clearance is not current, it is marked in the shift table as needing a check, and its printed sheet carries a boxed warning.

  • Whether a particular shift needs a check is a district and state question, not a PTO HQ question. Ask your district volunteer coordinator or your state PTA which roles require clearance before you decide.
  • Room parents have no separate record here. Make an event for them and add one shift per classroom, named for the teacher or the room, with the slots you want in each.
The slot count is capacity, and it is set onceThe add-shift form asks for the event, the shift, a start, an end and the number of people you need. The times open at early evening today and the count opens at 2, so change both. The count must be a whole number from 1 to 500 and the end must be after the start. That count is then capacity: PTO HQ refuses the signup that would go past it, no control edits a shift after it is created, and a shift can be removed only while nobody is signed up to it. Ticking the background-check box makes that shift refuse a signup from anyone whose clearance is not current, marks it in the shift table as needing a check, and puts a boxed warning on its printed sign-up sheet.The form above the event listsAdd a shiftEventFall CarnivalShiftTicket tableStartsToday 5:00 PMEndsToday 7:00 PMPeople needed2Needs a current background checkPeople needed is the capacitySlots on that shiftA whole number from 1 to 500.The end must be after the start.Then it is fixedNo control edits a shiftRemove it only while emptyTicking the background-check box does three thingsRefuses a signup from anyone whose clearance is not currentThe shift row reads Background check requiredPrints a boxed clearance warning on its sign-up sheetWhether a shift needs a check is a district question, not a PTO HQ one.

Record what the district said about each clearance

  1. Scroll to the clearance roster, which lists everyone in Membership and directory.

    If the directory is empty the roster is replaced by a panel saying so, with a link to add people. Add them first.

  2. For each person, pick a status, type the expiry date from the district's letter, and save.

    The statuses are cleared, pending with the district, expired, and not on file.

  • Picking cleared with no date is refused: "A clearance with no expiry date cannot be checked later. Enter the date on the district's letter."
  • Picking cleared with a date already in the past stores the person as expired, so the roster cannot say cleared about somebody whose letter has run out.
  • The other three statuses are stored exactly as you picked them, whatever the date says. PTO HQ reads today in your organization's own timezone.
  • A read-only role and a lapsed subscription both see the recorded expiry date and no controls.
What you pick, and what the roster storesOn the clearance roster you pick one of four statuses — cleared, pending with the district, expired, and not on file — and type the expiry date from the district's letter. Picking cleared with a date already in the past stores the person as expired instead, so the roster cannot say cleared about somebody whose letter has run out. The other three statuses are stored exactly as you picked them whatever the date says, and picking cleared with no date at all is refused. PTO HQ reads today in your organization's own timezone, and a read-only role sees the recorded date with no controls beside it.What you pick, and what the roster storesYou pickThe roster storesCleared, with a date aheadClearedCleared, with a date passedExpiredPending with the districtPending with the districtExpired, or not on fileExpired, or not on fileOnly the second row changes. The rest are stored exactly as you picked.And one refusalCleared, with no dateA clearance with no expiry datecannot be checked later. Enter thedate on the district's letter.The date is what makes it checkable later.PTO HQ reads today in your organization's own timezone.A read-only role sees the recorded date and no controls.

Sign people up, and take people off

  1. Find the shift in its event table, pick the person on that row, and confirm.

    The count of open slots drops, and when the last slot goes the row is marked full and the signup control disappears.

  2. Add anybody missing from the picker to the directory first.

    Volunteers come from Membership and directory.

  3. Press the small remove control beside a name to take that person off the shift.

    Its accessible label names the person, so a screen reader announces the name the button does not print.

  4. To remove a shift, take each person off it, message them yourself, then remove it.

    A shift with anybody on it cannot be deleted: "Somebody is signed up for this shift. Take them off it first, and tell them — they have put it in their calendar."

  • PTO HQ refuses a signup when the person is not in the directory, is already on that shift, when the shift is full, when the shift needs a current check and theirs is not current, or when the person is already on another shift anywhere in your organization that runs at the same time.
  • The clearance test at signup compares the recorded expiry date against today, so somebody stored as cleared with a date that has already passed is refused here even while the roster still shows them as cleared.
The five checks a signup passes, and the one that blocks a deleteYou sign somebody up from the picker on the shift's own row, and the Remaining count drops by one; when the last slot goes the row is marked full and the signup control disappears. PTO HQ refuses the signup when the person is not in your directory, is already on that shift, when the shift is full, when the shift needs a current check and theirs is not current, or when they are already on another shift anywhere in your organization that runs at the same time. That clearance check compares the recorded expiry date against today rather than reading the stored status, so somebody the roster still shows as cleared is refused here once their date has passed. The small remove control beside a name takes that person off, and a shift with anybody still on it cannot be deleted at all.Where the picker is, and what it doesA shift rowVolunteerFrom the directorySign upconfirmThe Remaining column drops by oneAt the last slot the row reads Fulland the signup control disappears.Five ways a signup is refusedThey are not in your directoryThey are already on this shiftThe shift is fullThe shift needs a check and theirs is not current todayThey are on an overlapping shift anywhere in your organizationThe clearance check reads today's date, not the stored status,so somebody the roster still shows as cleared is refused here.Taking somebody offThe remove control beside each nameIts accessible label names the person.Somebody is signed up for this shift.Take them off it first, and tell them —they have put it in their calendar.

Check the expiry dates yourself before each event

The warning card and the tile at the top of the page read the stored status, not today's date. A row saved as cleared whose expiry date later passes stays cleared, and raises nothing until a person records the new status.

  1. Open the clearance roster before each event.

  2. Read the date beside every person on a check-required shift.

  3. Save anybody whose date has passed again.

    Saving cleared with a past date stores them as expired, which raises the card.

  4. From each row on the card, take that person off the shift, or update their clearance once the district sends a new letter.

    Each row names the person, the event and the shift.

  • The card's own wording suggests a lapse surfaces on its own. It does not.
A clearance that lapses raises nothing on its ownThe warning card and the clearance-problems tile both read the stored status, not today's date. A row saved as cleared whose expiry date later passes stays cleared: the tile keeps counting zero and no card appears until a person records the new status. A fresh signup attempted after that date is still refused, because that gate does read the expiry date — it is only the card and the tile that read the stored column. Saving cleared again with a date that has passed stores the person as expired, which is what raises the card, and each row on that card names the person, the event and the shift. So open the clearance roster before every event and read the date beside every person on a check-required shift yourself.A clearance that lapses raises nothing on its own1Saved as cleared, date aheadClearance problems: 02The date passes. Nothing runs.Still counts 0No card. No change on the tile.3You save it again, date passedNow it counts 1Stored as expired, so the card raises.A new signup is still refused: that gate reads the expiry date.The card and the tile are what read only the stored status.So before every eventOpen the roster and read every expiry date yourselfSave anybody whose date has passed: it stores as expiredEach row on the warning card names the person, the event and the shift.

How to check it worked

  • A confirmation appears under the add-shift form and the new shift is listed under its event name.
  • Each shift row shows how many slots are still open, and is marked full once the last one is taken.
  • The tile counting clearance problems reads zero. It counts stored statuses, not dates, so zero is not by itself proof that everyone is currently cleared.
  • You have opened the clearance roster and read the expiry date beside every person on a check-required shift, and none of those dates has passed. Nothing in PTO HQ does this step for you.
  • Shifts that require a check are marked as such in the shift table, and their printed sheet carries the boxed clearance warning.
  • The printed sheet names your organization, the event and the shift, and its numbered rows run two past the slot count with the extra rows marked standby.

If it did not work

What you seeWhat it meansWhat to do
The shift row is marked full and offers no control to sign anybody up.Every slot on that shift is taken. PTO HQ hides the control rather than showing one that refuses, and a request that reaches the server anyway is refused for the same reason.Put the person on another shift, or add a second shift carrying the extra slots. A shift's slot count cannot be edited after it is created. Anyone past the slot count on the printed sheet is a standby.
A signup is refused over the person's background check, either because none is on file or because theirs expired on a date the message names.The shift requires a current check and that person is recorded as pending, not on file, or with an expiry date that has passed. The expired message prints the date in ISO form, not the way the roster shows it.Get the current letter from the district, record the status and the expiry date on the roster, and sign them up again. Until then, put them on a shift that does not require a check.
"A clearance with no expiry date cannot be checked later. Enter the date on the district's letter."You picked cleared without filling in the date.Type the expiry date printed on the district's letter and save again. If the letter carries no expiry date, ask the district what it is before recording the person as cleared.
A signup is refused because that person is already on a shift that runs at the same time.They are committed to an overlapping shift, which may be at a different event. PTO HQ checks every shift in your organization, not only the one you are staffing.Pick a different person, or take them off the other shift first if they have told you which one they are doing.
"That volunteer isn't in your directory."Volunteers are drawn from Membership and directory and this person has no record there.Add them in Membership and directory, then come back and sign them up.
The clearance roster is missing and the shift rows offer no picker; the page says the directory is empty and links you to add people.There is nobody to record a clearance for and nobody to sign up.Follow the link, add the people, then return to Volunteers.
"Somebody is signed up for this shift. Take them off it first, and tell them — they have put it in their calendar."You tried to delete a shift that people have committed to.Take each person off with the remove control beside their name, message them yourself, then remove the shift.
The add-shift form is refused with a message naming one field.The event name or the shift name is blank or too short, the times are missing, the end is at or before the start, or the slot count is not a whole number between 1 and 500.Correct the field the message names and submit again.
"Enter a whole number of hours to add, or a negative to correct."You typed a fraction such as 2.5, a zero, or a figure above 1,000 in the hours box. A separate refusal names the volunteer's current total when a correction would drop them below zero.Round to whole hours. Split anything above 1,000 hours across more than one entry, and keep a negative correction no larger than the total already logged.
The tiles, shift tables and clearance roster are all on the page, but there is no form to add a shift, no signup picker and nothing to save the roster with.PTO HQ hides entry controls instead of disabling them. Either your role is read-only or the organization's subscription has lapsed. A request that reaches the server anyway is refused with "An auditor reviews the books and does not change them. Ask the treasurer or another officer to record this." or "Your role is view only. Ask the treasurer or president to change your role if you need to record things."Ask the treasurer or the president to change your role, or to renew the subscription. In the meantime ask an officer to record the shift for you.
Every control is on screen, nothing saves, and the address bar shows /demo-app.You are in the public demo, where every control renders and none of them post.Sign in and work at /app/volunteers instead.

This isn't legal, tax, or insurance advice. Confirm filing dates, bonding conditions, and your state's requirements with your CPA, your state PTA, and your insurer.