Administration of the OCA

OCA Committee

The affairs of the OCA are managed exclusively by a Committee, elected at the Annual General Meeting. The office-bearers consist of President, Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer, and other Committee members.

Click here to view the current OCA Committee members.

The following are Ex-officio Members (without voting rights):

• The Principal of the College,

• A representative of the College’s Office of Community and Engagement,

• The three immediate past Head Girls of the College

The Role of the President

• Preside at all the AGM and all general meetings of the OCA, ensuring that they;

• run in accordance with the agenda and Constitution (in the event of the absence of the President, the Vice

President shall preside),

• Determines dates and times of committee meetings,

• Prepares meeting agendas with input from the

Office Bearers and Sub Committee Coordinators,

• Receives reports from Sub Committee Coordinators,

• Attend or nominate a representative for OCA functions,

• Regularly meet with the OCA Office Bearers,

• Meets and maintains communication with School

Principal on strategic issues to ensure alignment of

PLC OCA strategic objective and activities with those of the School,

• Regularly meet and work closely with Office of

Communications and Engagement (OCE) to further the objectives of the PLC OCA Committee,

• Attends PLC events such as Easter Service &

Founders Day,

• Nominate attendees for the annual Pleiades meeting, • Prepare the President’s Report and other OCA items as required for publications including Blackwatch

Magazine, Annual Review and OCA Connect,

• Review and approve OCA publication content (OCA

Connect),

• Joint signatory for OCA Accounts.

The Role of the Vice-Presdient

• Provide support to the President, Secretary and Treasurer,

• Serve on at least two Sub Committees,

• Regularly meet with the OCA Office Bearers and the OCE with the president.

• In the event of the absence of the President, the Vice- President shall preside over the AGM and all general meetings.

The Role of the Secretary

• Notify members of meeting dates ideally 10 days prior to each meeting,

• Assist the President in preparing the meeting agenda,

• Distribute meeting agendas at least three days but preferably one week prior to the meeting,

• Receives and manages correspondence and notes apologies,

• Take minutes of meetings and distributes them promptly, for confirmation at the next meeting of the

Committee,

• Be the custodian of and witness instances of the affixing of the Common Seal of the Association,

• Call a Special General Meeting upon receiving the written requisition, at least 14 days’ notice must be given of a General Meeting,

• Regularly meet with the OCA Office Bearers,

• In accordance with the Constitution, calls for nominations for Office Bearer positions prior to the

AGM.

The Role of the Treasurer

• Provides President with relevant financial information for Reports.

• Provide regular written financial reports to the Committee including a balance sheet, statement of receipts and disbursements and the bank account position,

• Prepare an annual budget,

• Organise an annual independent Auditor’s Report,

• Prepare and present a Year End Financial Report at the AGM,

• Receive funds to the OCA, including the Membership Fees, and ensure they are deposited into the Association’s account within 5 working days of receipt,

• Manage investments and terms deposits in accordance with approved motions of the Committee,

• Expend approved funds on behalf of the OCA Committee,

• Joint signatory for OCA Accounts.

The Role of Committee Members

• Attend AGM and Committee meetings,

• Assist to ensure a quorum is achieved at all meetings,

• Serve on at least one Sub Committee,

• Promote, organise and conduct functions for fundraising,

• Support the activity of subcommittees by attending events, where possible, and encouraging engagement of

Old Collegians.

OCA Sub Committees

The OCA Committee has sub-committees and working groups reflecting the areas in which it operates, including, but not exclusive to: Art Exhibition; Inspiring Woman’s Programme; Tartan Legal Breakfast; Tartan Networking Breakfast; Open Garden Day Stall; Mentoring Programme; OCA 100 Year Celebration Soiree, and Bursaries.

OCA Committee Meetings

The OCA Committee and Ex-officio members generally hold approximately six full meetings per annum in addition to the AGM and sub-committee meetings. This full committee meeting is typically held on a Tuesday commencing at 6.15 pm is held in PLC’s Scorgie House Board Room.

Following the election of the Committee at the AGM, a meeting is held in October or November to allocate activities to each Committee member, typically creating work groups of two – three. The activity portfolio requires that you take responsibility for the progress of tasks and report regularly to the committee.

The OCA Office Bearers also meet with some of the School Executive to discuss matters of mutual interest at mutually agreed times.

Annual General Meeting

An Annual General Meeting (AGM) is held no more than six months after the end of the OCA's financial year, which falls on the 30th June. Notification of the AGM is communicated to members via email and post at least four weeks prior to the AGM. This meeting is usually held on a Sunday in August or September.

OCA Income

The primary sources of income for the OCA are membership fees, donations and fundraising activities such as the annual Art Exhibition and Open Garden Day stall. These fund-raising activities and OCA donations are predominantly used to fund bursaries and other donations to the school. This income is to be spent in accordance with the Constitution.

Financial Management

To ensure prudent management and ongoing transparency of all OCA funds:

• Any expenditure by the OCA is to be approved by the OCA Committee,

• Payment of any approved invoice or expense must be authorised by both the President and the

Treasurer,

• The Treasurer together with one other delegated committee member shall manage all financial transactions at fundraising events,

• Every six months the Treasurer presents a report on the current financial position (including a Profit and Loss Statement, Balance Sheet, payments and receipts statements, and all relevant bank account statement and balances,

• At every committee meeting a report on the current financial position is presented,

• At the end of each financial year the Treasurer prepares a Financial Report (including a Profit and

Loss Statement, Balance Sheet and all relevant bank account statements and balances) and presents at the AGM,

• The OCA’s accounts and end of year Financial

Report is independently audited before the AGM,

• All Financial Reports and Bank Statements shall be held by the Treasurer (for the period she is Treasurer) with digital copies held by the PLC Communications and Engagement team.

OCA Records

Electornic and Hard Copy

In 2019, the OCA paid for a digitised record of all the OCA files and minute books.

The digitised minutes are held with the PLC Communications and Engagement team and are on a thumb drive. Additional documents including a chronological summary of OCA documents is also located in the OCA drive in the Office of Communications and Engagement.

Hard copy archive documents including Committee meeting minutes, finance and events are stored in the PLC Archives Room. Files and folders are held in boxes and are catalogued in chronological order from 1957 – 2011. More recent files are stored in the Office of Communications and Engagement.

PLEIADES Representative

The Pleiades Club, a club formed 88 years ago as an avenue for meetings of ex-students of the then, seven Perth’s independent girls’ schools: Loreto, MLC, PLC, Perth College, St. Hilda’s, St. Mary’s and Kobeelya (and later Penrhos).

The name comes from the ‘Seven Sisters’ in Greek Mythology and now includes the following schools;

PLC, St Hilda’s, St Mary’s, Perth College, Penrhos College, Santa Maria College, MLC and Iona.

Meetings are held annually and hosted by each School’s Alumni Association, on a rotating basis. Each meeting focuses on a theme selected by the host school, and is a forum of networking, sharing ideas and challenges. In 2019, St Hilda’s was the host school.

All Members of the OCA are invited to attend each meeting and usually two or three members attend.

PLC Council Representatives

In accordance with the OCA Constitution, the OCA shall put forward for nomination to Council of the College at least one financial member of at least two years standing when a vacancy occurs (the Council is to have at least one member who is an Old Collegian). The Committee shall determine which members shall be put forward for consideration by Council

Appointments to Council are subject to the rules of the Constitution of Presbyterian Ladies’ College and the PLC Governance Charter and endorsement by the WA Synod of the Uniting Church in Australia.

Members of Council are chosen based on a number of criteria including skills and experience required by Council as per its skills matrix and in accordance with its Constitution and other governance requirements. All Council members must act in accordance with the Constitution of Presbyterian Ladies’ College, the PLC Governance Charter and the PLC Code of Conduct.

OCA IT Equipment

The PLC OCA Laptop, which is predominantly used for the Art Exhibition, is used by the OCA Office Bearers, as well as, the Art Exhibition Co-ordinator and stored by the Communications and Engagement team when not being used by the approved OCA Committee Member. The Laptop is owned by the School, maintained by the PLC IT department and subject to the School’s Acceptable Use Policy .