Educators FAQ

For information about how to submit a change or correction of name or date of birth, please click here. Please note that current processing time is 10 business days once all required documents are received. Response times are approximate and may be longer during peak periods.

The virtual certificate maintained on the TEA website is the official record of an educator's certification. TEA no longer mails paper certificates. Log in to your account and continue to the Educator Certification Online System (ECOS). Once you have updated your profile, select View Certificates. You must use Google Chrome to correctly view and print the certificate. The online certificate satisfies Section 21.053(a) of the Texas Education Code, which requires individuals to present their certificate before employment by a school district.

You must contact the district you believe made the error. The TEA does not maintain or have access to your service records. You must contact your previous employing school districts to obtain a copy of your service record. If you have earned service at more than one district, you will need to contact each district for a copy of the service record.

Pursuant to Section 21.003 of the Texas Education Code, school districts must follow the state certification rules when hiring teachers and other professional personnel. The rules governing certification requirements can be found in the 19 TAC Chapters 227 through 245 of the Texas Administrative Code, and the rule governing assignment of public school personnel is 19 TAC 231.1. A school district may employ a teacher under an emergency permit if they have been unable to secure a certified and qualified person for the position. To activate a permit, the district must follow the procedures set forth in 19 TAC Section 230.501 – 230.512 (subchapter Q). However, if an uncertified individual is assigned for a certified teacher that will be absent for more than 30 consecutive instructional days due to documented health related reasons and has expressed the intention to return to the assignment, a permit is not required. 19 TAC 501(g). In any event, if a person who is uncertified or serving under an emergency certificate is assigned to the same classroom for more than 30 days, the superintendent must provide written notice of the assignment to parents of students in the classroom per Section 21.057, Texas Education Code. For more information, contact the State Board for Educator Certification (SBEC).

Under a very narrow set of circumstances, a school district may issue a "school district teaching permit" pursuant to Section 21.055. Although all other certification matters are handled by SBEC, the school district teaching permit is coordinated through the Texas Education Agency (TEA). More information can be obtained through the above link or by emailing sdtp@tea.texas.gov.

There are no state regulations of teacher conduct with students, other than the Educators' Code of Ethics, contained in 19 TAC Chapter 247, and the general ethical standards for educators administered by the State Board for Educator Certifications (SBEC), the licensing (certifying) body for teachers and other educators. See 19 TAC Chapter 249. Teachers are subject to general criminal statutes of assault or child abuse, as limited by Section 22.0512 and Texas Penal Code 9.62, which allow an educator to use the force the educator reasonably believes is necessary to maintain discipline. 

The requirements regarding posting a position for which a certificate or license is required are in TEC § 11.1513(d) and (e). Also, school districts must comply with the state and federal laws that require employers to have nondiscriminatory hiring practices. Employers are prohibited from discrimination against applicants and employees based on race, sex, religion, age, national origin, or disability. The equal employment opportunity (EEO) laws are administered by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) at the federal level. Information about the EEO laws and how to file a complaint can be found at the EEOC web site.

The TEC addresses the authority of superintendents to make recommendations regarding the selection or personnel, in Section 11.201 and 11.1513, and the approval authority of principals in Section 11.202. 

Pursuant to TEC Section 22.082, criminal background checks are made by the State Board for Educator Certification (SBEC) as part of the certification process. In 2007, Sections 22.831 through 22.0836 were enacted, which require all certified educators (by September 1, 2011) and every other person hired by a school district after January 1, 2008 to have a fingerprint-based national criminal history review. All other district employees are required to have a name-based criminal history review. Pursuant to TEC Section 22.083, a school district, private school, regional education service center, or open-enrollment charter school may have access to the criminal history of any employee.

School districts generally make their own policies as to what hiring criteria to use. However, Section 22.085 of the Texas Education Code prohibits district from hiring persons convicted of certain serious offenses (Title 5 felonies), or registered sex offenders against persons under 18. 

According to an Attorney General opinion, JM-481 (1986), a district may not require teacher to remain on campus during their duty-free lunch break. However, pursuant to Section 21.405 and 19 TAC 153.1001, under certain conditions, a district may require a teacher to supervise students during lunch no more than one day in any school week.

The requirements and guidelines for the content and delivery of staff development is more specifically addressed in Section 21.451. Additional requirements are found more generally in Texas Education Code (TEC) Chapter 21, subchapter J and 19 Tex. Admin. Code Ch. 153, subchapter BB.

State law establishes a minimum salary for teachers. Compensation issues other than minimum salaries are determined by local policies and contracts. For further information, a teacher may wish to contact a teacher organization or private attorney to discuss the district's policies or contract provision.

A single planning and preparation period must be at least 45 minutes long. The 450 minute statute was written to allow districts that use block scheduling to have longer periods on fewer days. More information can be found in Section 21.404 of the Texas Education Code.

A classroom teacher, defined in Section 5.001 of the Education Code as an educator who teaches an average of four hours a day, is entitled to 450 minutes in each two-week period for planning and preparation in blocks of not less than 45 minutes. Educators who teach less than an average of four hours a day are not entitled to a planning and preparation period under Section 21.404 of the Education Code. Planning and preparation period are typically 45 minutes every day or 90 minutes every other day. If the district provides more than 450 minutes of planning and preparation time in two weeks, the excess time could be allocated to meetings. However, the district may not require attendance at meeting during the minimum 450 minutes. A Commissioner's decision on that issue is Chaffin v. Los Fresnos I.S.D., Docket No.128-R10-1290 (November 4, 1991). 

Teachers are required to resign a contract no later than 45 days before the first day of instruction. A district may release a teacher voluntarily after that date, but is not compelled to do so. A teacher who is found to have abandoned a contract without good cause may have his/her certificate suspended by the State Board for Educator Certification (SBEC). More information can be found in Section 21.160, Section 21.210, and Section 21.105 in the Texas Education Code and 19 TAC 249.15(b)(5). 

This agency cannot answer the question you present. If you wish to obtain legal advice regarding this matter, please contact your educators association or a private attorney. As matters involving teacher contracts may come before the Commissioner of Education on appeal, the TEA may not provide legal advice or interpretation regarding contracts to either school district or school district employees.

State minimum personal leave is addressed by Texas Education Code Section 22.003(a). School districts have the option of providing additional local leave days beyond the minimum. The provision of and use of local leave days are matters within the discretion of the local school district.

Texas Education Code 22.003 governs personal leave. There are two types of personal leave: the five days per year minimum required by the state, and local leave that a school district can choose to give its employees additionally. While state leave is transferrable among districts and has no limit on accumulation, districts can set accumulation limits for local leave and are not required to honor local leave earned at another district. A school district board of trustees may adopt a policy regarding an employee’s use of personal leave, as long as the policy does not restrict either the purposes for which an employee can use leave, or the order in which an employee can take state minimum leave versus additional local leave provided by the district. Thus, it is up to each local school district to determine whether to adopt a local policy that allows the transfer or donation of leave among its employees. When an employee who received donated state personal days leaves a district, the new district’s policy will determine whether it  chooses to recognize any donated leave.