District-affiliated school-support or booster clubs may use district facilities with prior approval of the appropriate administrator. Other parent groups may use District facilities in accordance with Policy GKD.

It is recommended to coordinate with the campus sponsor and administrator for each event on a district campus and utilize the PTA Usage of School Facilities document.

At times, clubs may become insupportable due to lack of member support, financial instability, failure to file taxes or due to club conflict.  Booster club members may vote to dissolve with majority vote as defined in club bylaws. PISD and the IRS require the return of money remaining in a bank account to the campus activity fund in care of the school within 30 days.  Any other distribution of funds is strictly prohibited by law. It is PISD’s practice that the principal of each campus maintains the right and authority to dissolve or reform a Booster Club at his/her discretion if is determined that the Booster Club is not functioning in a way consistent with program, campus, UIL, federal, state or district policies.  Club funds are required to be deposited in the campus activity fund in care of the school within 30 days. Per the Secretary of State – if dissolved, all records of the Booster Club must be returned to the campus administrator or to the District Internal Auditor within 30 days of dissolution. Steps need to be taken to properly close down a club or otherwise face costly late fees and fines from taxing authorities. Please contact the Plano ISD Finance department for step-by-step instructions for club dissolution.

Bylaws are the operating rules specific to your club and are required by PISD and the IRS. Bylaws help resolve conflict, define processes and provide a road‐map for future officers. Bylaws should be signed and dated by the president annually and updated throughout the year when there are any changes. A sample template can be found in the index. Per Plano ISD Policy GE-Local, Booster Clubs are required to submit a copy to the campus principal or designee annually. See our Bylaws page for a complete guide.

All Booster Club and exempt organizations records should be maintained in a manner to facilitate the transfer of duties to new officers each year. Audit documentation should be maintained in the permanent records of the organization. Organization records not permanently retained may be kept for at least five years after the end of the fiscal year. These records should be available upon request from the respective campus principal and/or district administrator at any time, with partnership and transparency at the center of the operational goal.

Scholarships must be awarded based on a student’s need or merit (e.g. essay contest, GPA). Clubs may wish to outline the standard process for scholarship application and distribution in their by- laws. The members of the committee selecting the scholarship recipients should not be related to any of the potential recipients. Funds should be sent directly to the student’s University Registrar made payable to the University with the student’s name in the memo. Boosters must ensure all UIL eligibility requirements have concluded. Boosters should define in their bylaws what happens if a student declines to attend a University and receives a scholarship. Please outline whether the money is forfeited or held for a period of time until the student decides on a post-secondary school.

The booster club must obtain approval from the IRS to award a scholarship. Depending on how your booster set up the 501 (c)(3) you may or may not be eligible to award scholarships. Please call the IRS to verify. If needed, the IRS can help walk you through the steps to get approval. Additional information can be viewed on the Parent Booster USA's website.

Requirements include:

• All qualifying seniors must have the opportunity to apply for the scholarship(s).
• The application process should be reviewed and approved by the campus principal or designee to ensure that implemented processes are consistent with other scholarship programs on the campus.
• The application process must be clearly communicated, and the application forms must be readily available to all potential applicants and their parents and/or guardians before the end of the first grading period of the academic year.
• The Scholarship Review Committee must be appointed by the President of the Booster Club before the first day of the academic year.
• The Scholarship Review Committee must be made up of an odd number (5‐7) of members (parents of the Booster Club who do not have children eligible for consideration for the scholarship, interested teachers, campus administrators, and/or the sponsor). Many times the sponsor is an ex‐officio member of the Scholarship Review Committee and not an actual voting member so the sponsor is a source for additional information/input to the Scholarship Review Committee and a final review resource for the Scholarship Review Committee decisions.
• The Scholarship Review Committee must consider all qualifying applicants.
• The qualification criteria for selection for scholarship winners (if any) must be communicated in writing to all potential applicants before the end of the first grading period of the academic year and may not be changed during the scholarship award period. Any changes to the scholarship qualification criteria must be recommended by the sponsor and voted on by the Booster Club membership no later than the May Booster Club meeting for changes effective in the upcoming academic year.
• The application, scoring, decision materials, tabulation, notes, certified recordings, and/or any other documentation used by the Scholarship Review Committee in connection with a given application shall be made available upon written request to that applicant. An open records request fee may be charged for this service. Scholarship Review Committee must retain the original materials for a minimum of seven years.
• Scholarship applicants shall be full‐time PISD senior students for a minimum of one full semester prior to the application deadline.
• All completed applications must be turned in to the PISD Senior Counselor no later than the deadline set for local scholarship applications.
• All scholarship applications which do not have the required information will be considered incomplete and returned to the applicant.
• The applicant's intended major may or may not be made a factor in scholarship consideration.
• The applicant's enrollment in an accredited institution (college, university, trade school, military academy, etc.) is a requirement for receiving scholarship funds.

The Booster Club may or may not require interviews with applicants in the decision process. If an interview is part of the process, it must be communicated no later than the end of the first grading period of the academic year. The applicant's parent or guardian must be permitted to be present at any interview. Interview topics must be communicated to the applicant not less than seventy‐two hours prior to the interview.

The scholarship committee may require an essay for judging purposes. Essay topics may be selected each year and given to all applicants, or the Scholarship Review Committee may allow each applicant to select their own topic upon the sponsor's approval.

Booster Club Guidelines for Financial Support

In addition to supporting the program as a whole, booster clubs often use funds to provide uniforms or supplies to underprivileged students. This may be an excellent use of funds; but club officers should consider appropriate district policy and/or law and plan carefully to avoid the appearance of inurement, or personal benefit to individual students. 

The district recommends that programs like this have a very clear application process that is communicated to all students, convene a committee to process the applications, and select the students who will be receiving financial assistance. Obviously student confidentiality must be a top priority. Supplies, uniforms, and private lessons are all appropriate options for this type of support. However, optional trips would not be appropriate use of scholarship, because of the optional nature of these trips.

Scholarship Budget:

Any booster funds allocated for scholarship should be approved by the members of the committee. The process for awarding a scholarship should also be approved.   

Scholarship Committee:

Students who apply for a scholarship should be approved by a committee whose members consist of parents who have not applied for scholarship. It is highly recommended that student names be redacted to ensure anonymity. The scholarship committee should ensure that based on a set criteria, students that apply are treated equally.  

FAQ’s

All FAQ’s apply to any booster club. These are merely examples to follow.

1. Our choir has advanced to the state UIL competition. Can a scholarship be awarded? Travel for UIL competitions are provided by the district.  No scholarship is needed. 
2. Our band is going to march at Disney World. Can a scholarship be awarded? This is an optional trip and scholarship/booster funds should not be used. 
3. The upcoming play requires a $100 show fee for production costs, show shirt, and script fees. Can a scholarship be applied? Yes, this would be an excellent example of providing a scholarship for students in need. 
4. All new or returning cheerleaders are required to attend camp over the summer. Can we provide a scholarship since this is required? Yes, a scholarship can be provided.
5. At the end of the year, all seniors have the opportunity to receive a scholarship to the school of their choice. Can we provide a scholarship? Yes, however, please ensure the check is made directly to the college or university.  
6. My club has an end of year banquet. Can we help cover the expense/tickets for students who are disadvantaged? Since this is an optional event, a scholarship would not be appropriate.  However,  some booster clubs pay for the ticket of all members of the organization to attend the banquet.

For any additional questions, please consider and review the UIL’s guidelines regarding booster clubs. For more information, please review District Policy GE (Legal) and GE (Local).

Donations must always be approved by the district. Talk with your activity sponsor before making any purchases. This is particularly important because donations that have an impact on Plano ISD property must be approved by the Facility Services department, and donations of technology (including things like scoreboards, cameras, computers, etc.) must be approved by Technology Services to ensure its compatibility with the existing network.

Plano ISD wants booster club donations, but we also want to ensure that the donations work for the departments that will be required to support and maintain the equipment.

Judges, clinicians, choreographers, accompanists, etc. must be on the Security Approved list BEFORE they’re hired to work. This rule is still in effect even if a clinician isn’t expected to be alone with students. District employees can see Security’s approved list.