Sometimes a homeschool groups gets large enough that they want to hire or pay their Director. In nonprofits that position is usually called the Executive Director or even Chief Executive Officer (CEO).
It is usually the first paid position in a nonprofit.
The Executive Director is similar to a pastor at a church. He (or she, depending on your denomination) is hired by the board of the church and does a lot of the day-to-day running of the church.
It’s similar in a homeschool nonprofit: the paid director is hired by the board to manage the day-to-day operations of the organization.
But should that hired Director serve on your board?
BoardSource (an excellent website for help in running your nonprofit board) says., ”
BoardSource also recommends nonvoting status for chief executives, unless not permitted by law. We embrace nonvoting status in recognition of the fact that actual or perceived conflicts of interest may naturally come along with the pairing of this position with board member status.
I, too, like the idea of a paid Director serving as a nonvoting board member.
I’ve seen it work well on some boards to have the Director attend meetings, give a report, share her opinion, etc, but not be allowed a vote.
When I served on my church’s board of trustees, the pastor came to the meeting, gave a report, was free to voice an opinion, but had no vote. That way he avoided a conflict of interest.
The paid Director should not vote because she has a conflict of interest: Is she thinking of the good of the group first and foremost or is she thinking about her job and her paycheck?
The volunteer Director does not have that conflict of interest, so he or she is usually still given voting rights.
If you decide to pay your Director:
- Make sure you update your bylaws
- Adopt a Conflict of Interest policy.
- Read about paying people in your homeschool organization.
Need help with those issues?
My book, Homeschool Organization Board Manual can help with:
- Sample Conflict of Interest policies
- Sample Bylaws
- Board descriptions
- Compensation and Benefits for Board Members
Carol Topp, CPA
HomeschoolCPA.com
