Title ED, Education Code

Sec. 21.256. CONDUCT OF HEARING. (a) A hearing under this subchapter must be private unless the teacher requests in writing that the hearing be public, except that a hearing examiner may close a hearing if necessary to maintain decorum. (b) The hearing is not subject to Chapter 2…

Sec. 21.257. RECOMMENDATION OF HEARING EXAMINER. (a) Except as provided by Subsection (f), not later than the 60th day after the date on which the commissioner receives a teacher's written request for a hearing, the hearing examiner shall complete the hearing and make a written r…

Sec. 21.258. CONSIDERATION OF RECOMMENDATION BY BOARD OF TRUSTEES OR BOARD SUBCOMMITTEE. (a) The board of trustees or a subcommittee designated by the board shall consider the recommendation and record of the hearing examiner at the first board meeting for which notice can be pos…

Sec. 21.259. DECISION OF BOARD OF TRUSTEES OR BOARD SUBCOMMITTEE. (a) Not later than the 10th day after the date of the board meeting under Section 21.258, the board of trustees or board subcommittee shall announce a decision that: (1) includes findings of fact and conclusions of…

Sec. 21.260. RECORDING OF BOARD MEETING AND ANNOUNCEMENT. A certified shorthand reporter shall record the oral argument under Section 21.258 and the announcement of the decision under Section 21.259. The school district shall bear the cost of the services of the certified shortha…

Sec. 21.301. APPEAL TO COMMISSIONER. (a) Not later than the 20th day after the date the board of trustees or board subcommittee announces its decision under Section 21.259 or the board advises the teacher of its decision not to renew the teacher's contract under Section 21.208, t…

Sec. 21.302. EVIDENTIARY HEARING BEFORE COMMISSIONER. (a) If a party alleges that procedural irregularities that are not reflected in the local record occurred at the hearing before the hearing examiner, the commissioner may hold a hearing for the presentation of evidence on that…

Sec. 21.303. DETERMINATION BY COMMISSIONER. (a) If the board of trustees decided not to renew a teacher's term contract, the commissioner may not substitute the commissioner's judgment for that of the board of trustees unless the decision was arbitrary, capricious, or unlawful or…

Sec. 21.304. DECISION OF COMMISSIONER. (a) The commissioner's decision must be in writing and must include findings of fact and conclusions of law. The commissioner may adopt by reference and incorporate findings of fact or conclusions of law from the local record. (b) The commis…

Sec. 21.3041. REHEARING BY COMMISSIONER. (a) Not later than the 20th day after the date the party or the party's representative receives notice of the commissioner's decision under Section 21.304, the party may file a request for rehearing. (b) A request for rehearing is not requ…

Sec. 21.305. COSTS ON APPEAL TO COMMISSIONER. (a) If a teacher appeals the decision of the board of trustees or board subcommittee, the school district shall bear the cost of preparing the original transcripts of: (1) the hearing before the hearing examiner; and (2) the oral argu…

Sec. 21.306. EX PARTE COMMUNICATIONS PROHIBITED. The commissioner and the staff of the agency may not communicate with any party or any party's representative in connection with any issue of fact or law except on notice and opportunity for each party to participate. Added by Acts…

Sec. 21.307. JUDICIAL APPEALS. (a) Either party may appeal the commissioner's decision to: (1) a district court in the county in which the district's central administrative offices are located; or (2) if agreed by all parties, a district court in Travis County. (b) An appeal unde…

Sec. 21.351. RECOMMENDED APPRAISAL PROCESS AND PERFORMANCE CRITERIA. (a) The commissioner shall adopt a recommended appraisal process and criteria on which to appraise the performance of teachers. The criteria must be based on observable, job-related behavior, including: (1) teac…

Sec. 21.352. LOCAL ROLE. (a) In appraising teachers, each school district shall use: (1) the appraisal process and performance criteria developed by the commissioner; or (2) an appraisal process and performance criteria: (A) developed by the district- and campus-level committees …

Sec. 21.3521. LOCAL OPTIONAL TEACHER DESIGNATION SYSTEM. (a) Subject to Subsection (b), a school district or open-enrollment charter school may designate a classroom teacher as a master, exemplary, recognized, or acknowledged teacher for a five-year period based on the results fr…

Sec. 21.3522. LOCAL OPTIONAL TEACHER DESIGNATION SYSTEM GRANT PROGRAM. (a) From funds appropriated or otherwise available for the purpose, the agency shall establish and administer a grant program to provide money and technical assistance to: (1) expand implementation of local op…

Sec. 21.3523. REVIEW AND AUTHORIZATION OF NATIONALLY BOARD CERTIFIED TEACHER DESIGNATION. (a) The State Board for Educator Certification may periodically review National Board Certifications issued by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards to determine whether to …

Sec. 21.353. APPRAISAL ON BASIS OF CLASSROOM TEACHING PERFORMANCE. A teacher who directs extracurricular activities in addition to performing classroom teaching duties shall be appraised only on the basis of classroom teaching performance and not on performance in connection with…

Sec. 21.354. APPRAISAL OF CERTAIN ADMINISTRATORS. (a) The commissioner shall adopt a recommended appraisal process and criteria on which to appraise the performance of various classifications of school administrators. The criteria must be based on job-related performance. (a-1) T…

Sec. 21.3541. APPRAISAL AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT SYSTEM FOR PRINCIPALS. (a) The commissioner by rule shall establish and shall administer a comprehensive appraisal and professional development system for principals. (b) The commissioner may establish a consortium of nationall…

Sec. 21.355. CONFIDENTIALITY. (a) A document evaluating the performance of a teacher or administrator is confidential and is not subject to disclosure under Chapter 552, Government Code. (b) Subsection (a) applies to a teacher or administrator employed by an open-enrollment chart…

Sec. 21.356. EVALUATION OF SCHOOL COUNSELORS. The commissioner shall develop and periodically update a job description and an evaluation form for use by school districts in evaluating school counselors. The commissioner shall consult with state guidance counselor associations in …

Sec. 21.357. PERFORMANCE INCENTIVES. (a) The commissioner shall design an objective system to evaluate principals that: (1) is based on types of information available as of January 1, 1995, through the Public Education Information Management System (PEIMS) and the state's public …

Sec. 21.401. MINIMUM SERVICE REQUIRED. (a) A contract between a school district and an educator must be for a minimum of 10 months' service. (b) Except as provided by Subsection (c-1), an educator employed under a 10-month contract must provide a minimum of 187 days of service. (…

Sec. 21.402. MINIMUM SALARY SCHEDULE FOR CERTAIN PROFESSIONAL STAFF. (a) Except as provided by Subsection (e-1) or (f), a school district must pay each classroom teacher, full-time librarian, full-time school counselor certified under Subchapter B, or full-time school nurse not l…

Sec. 21.4021. FURLOUGHS. (a) Notwithstanding Section 21.401 and subject to Section 21.4022, the board of trustees of a school district may, in accordance with district policy, implement a furlough program and reduce the number of days of service otherwise required under Section 2…

Sec. 21.4022. REQUIRED PROCESS FOR DEVELOPMENT OF FURLOUGH PROGRAM OR OTHER SALARY REDUCTION PROPOSAL. (a) The board of trustees of a school district may not implement a furlough program under Section 21.4021 or reduce salaries until the district has complied with this section. (…

Sec. 21.403. PLACEMENT ON MINIMUM SALARY SCHEDULE. (a) A teacher, librarian, school counselor, or nurse shall advance one step on the minimum salary schedule under Section 21.402 for each year of experience as a teacher, librarian, school counselor, or nurse until step 20 is reac…

Sec. 21.4031. PROFESSIONAL STAFF SERVICE RECORDS. (a) In this section: (1) "Salary schedule" means the minimum salary schedule under Section 21.402 or a comparable salary schedule used by a school district that specifies salary amounts based on an employee's level of experience. …

Sec. 21.4032. REDUCTIONS IN SALARIES OF CLASSROOM TEACHERS AND ADMINISTRATORS. (a) This section applies only to a widespread reduction in the amount of the annual salaries paid to school district classroom teachers based primarily on district financial conditions rather than on t…

Sec. 21.404. PLANNING AND PREPARATION TIME. Each classroom teacher is entitled to at least 450 minutes within each two-week period for instructional preparation, including parent-teacher conferences, evaluating students' work, and planning. A planning and preparation period under…

Sec. 21.4045. PLANNING AND NONINSTRUCTIONAL DUTIES OF TEACHERS. (a) A school district may enter into a supplemental agreement with a classroom teacher under which the teacher agrees to perform a duty relating to initial lesson plan design or instructional material selection that …

Sec. 21.405. DUTY-FREE LUNCH. (a) Except as provided by Subsection (c), each classroom teacher or full-time librarian is entitled to at least a 30-minute lunch period free from all duties and responsibilities connected with the instruction and supervision of students. Each school…

Sec. 21.406. DENIAL OF COMPENSATION BASED ON ABSENCE FOR RELIGIOUS OBSERVANCE PROHIBITED. A school district may not deny an educator a salary bonus or similar compensation given in whole or in part on the basis of educator attendance because of the educator's absence from school …

Sec. 21.407. REQUIRING OR COERCING TEACHERS TO JOIN GROUPS, CLUBS, COMMITTEES, OR ORGANIZATIONS: POLITICAL AFFAIRS. (a) A school district board of trustees or school district employee may not directly or indirectly require or coerce any teacher to join any group, club, committee,…

Sec. 21.408. RIGHT TO JOIN OR NOT TO JOIN PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATION. This chapter does not abridge the right of an educator to join any professional association or organization or refuse to join any professional association or organization. Added by Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 260, …

Sec. 21.409. LEAVE OF ABSENCE FOR TEMPORARY DISABILITY. (a) Each full-time educator employed by a school district shall be given a leave of absence for temporary disability at any time the educator's condition interferes with the performance of regular duties. The contract or emp…

Sec. 21.414. CLASSROOM SUPPLY REIMBURSEMENT PROGRAM. (a) The commissioner shall establish a reimbursement program under which the commissioner provides funds to a school district for the purpose of reimbursing classroom teachers in the district who expend personal funds on classr…

Sec. 21.415. EMPLOYMENT CONTRACTS. (a) A school district shall provide in employment contracts that qualifying employees may receive an incentive payment under an awards program established under Subchapter O if the district participates in the program. (b) The district shall ind…

Sec. 21.417. RESOURCES, INCLUDING LIABILITY INSURANCE, FOR CLASSROOM TEACHERS. (a) From funds appropriated or otherwise available for the purpose, the agency shall contract with a third party to provide the following services for a classroom teacher employed under a probationary,…

Sec. 21.418. ELECTION BY TEACHER TO USE UNPAID LEAVE. The board of trustees of a school district shall adopt a policy that provides a classroom teacher employed by the district the option to elect not to take the teacher's paid personal leave concurrently with unpaid leave the te…

Sec. 21.451. STAFF DEVELOPMENT REQUIREMENTS. (a) The staff development provided by a school district to an educator other than a principal must be: (1) conducted in accordance with standards developed by the district; and (2) designed to improve education in the district. (a-1) S…

Sec. 21.4511. PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT ACTIVITIES FOR TEACHERS AND ADMINISTRATORS. (a) From funds appropriated for that purpose in an amount not to exceed $2.5 million each year, the commissioner may develop and award grants to school districts, regional education service centers…

Sec. 21.4513. PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT REQUIREMENTS AUDIT. (a) Using only available funds and resources from public or private sources, the agency shall periodically conduct an audit of the professional development requirements applicable to educators in this state, including sta…

Sec. 21.4514. CONTINUING EDUCATION AND TRAINING CLEARINGHOUSE; ADVISORY GROUP. (a) In this section: (1) "Board" means the State Board for Educator Certification. (2) "Clearinghouse advisory group" means the clearinghouse advisory group established under Subsection (d). (b) The bo…