TEA: SBEC Rules Update

Texas Education Agency recently issued the following announcement.

Proposed Rules

The following rule action was filed with the Texas Register on Monday, March 9, 2020, for publication in the March 20, 2020 issue:

Proposed Revisions to 19 TAC Chapter 232, General Certification Proposed Revisions to 19 TAC Chapter 232, General Certification Provisions

Summary: The proposed revisions to Title 19 Texas Administrative Code (TAC) Chapter 232, General Certification Provisions would implement the statutory requirements of House Bills (HBs) 18 and 403 and Senate Bills (SBs) 11 and 37, 86th Texas Legislature, 2019. The proposed revisions would provide continuing professional education instruction regarding mental health and substance abuse training; training requirements for superintendents regarding sexual abuse and human trafficking; and the removal of student loan default as grounds to deny the renewal of a certificate. Technical changes would also clarify processes and reorganize current provisions to improve readability and align citations.

Public Comment Period: March 20, 2020-April 20, 2020. The State Board for Educator Certification (SBEC) will take registered oral and written comments on the proposal at the May 1, 2020 meeting in accordance with the SBEC board operating policies and procedures. A form for submitting public comments is available on the proposed SBEC rules web page.

Earliest Possible Date of Adoption by SBEC: May 1, 2020

Earliest Possible Date for Review by State Board of Education: July 2, 2020

Proposed Effective Date: August 6, 2020

Rule Action Taken, Subject to SBOE Review

At its February 21, 2020 meeting, the SBEC took action to adopt, subject to State Board of Education (SBOE) review, the following rule:

Adoption of Proposed Amendments to 19 TAC Chapter 230, Professional Educator Preparation and Certification, Subchapter C, Assessment of Educators, Subchapter D, Types and Classes of Certificates Issued, Subchapter E, Educational Aide Certificate, and Subchapter G, Certificate Issuance Procedures

Summary:  The proposed amendments to 19 TAC Chapter 230, Professional Educator Preparation and Certification, Subchapter C, Assessment of Educators, Subchapter D, Types and Classes of Certificates Issued, Subchapter E, Educational Aide Certificate, and Subchapter G, Certificate Issuance Procedures would implement the statutory requirements of Senate Bill 1839 and House Bills (HBs) 2039 and 3349, 85th Texas Legislature, Regular Session, 2017, and HB 3, 86th Texas Legislature, 2019. The proposed amendment to Subchapter C, Assessment of Educators, would reduce the amount of time for computer- and paper-based examination retakes from 45 to 30 days and would update the figure specifying the required test for issuance of the standard certification, including the removal of the master teacher certification class and the Principal: Early Childhood-Grade 12 certificate and the addition of Early Childhood-Grade 3 (EC-3), Science of Teaching Reading, and Trade and Industrial Workforce Training. The proposed amendment to Subchapter D, Types and Classes of Certificates Issued, would require the English as a Second Language Supplemental assessment for issuance of an intern certificate obtained through the intensive pre-service route. The proposed amendment to Subchapter E, Educational Aide Certificate, would allow the Educational Aide I certificate to be issued to high school students who have completed certain career and technical education courses. Proposed changes to Subchapter G, Certificate Issuance Procedures, would clarify that requests for certificate corrections be submitted to the Texas Education Agency (TEA) within six weeks from the original date of issuance. The proposed changes would also implement the requirement specified in statute that certified classroom teachers must complete training prior to receiving test approval for the Early Childhood: Prekindergarten-Grade 3 Certificate. The SBEC made changes to the proposed text in Figure: 19 TAC §230.21(e) in response to public comment and to revert text for future rulemaking.

SBOE Review Date: April 16-17, 2020

Projected Effective Date: May 24, 2020

Please see the TEA website to view SBEC rules. Unforeseen circumstances may delay publication of the SBEC rules in the Texas Register. The SBEC Rules website will be updated to reflect any changes.

Please contact us if you have any questions. Thank you.

Rulemaking

Texas Education Agency

(512) 475-1497