Teacher contracts

ACCEPTABLE CPE ACTIVITIES FOR CERTIFICATE RENEWAL

If you have a standard renewable certificate or you have voluntarily opted into the certificate renewal system, you must obtain CPE from an SBEC-approved provider to renew your certificate. Existing school district-provided in-service should count toward the CPE requirement, as may other activities such as college coursework, professional seminars, mentoring and self-directed study. TCTA

is an SBEC-approved provider. Members can earn CPE hours through TCTA’s free online seminars at tcta.org/seminars.

One semester credit hour earned at an accredited institution of higher education is equivalent to 15 CPE clock hours. Continuing education requirements for educators must include training regarding educating students with disabilities. Additionally, other than hours needed to comply with required topics for CPE (see below), CPE activities must be related to the certificate(s) being renewed and focus on the standards required for issuance of the certificate(s), including: 1. content area knowledge and skills; and 2. professional ethics and standards of conduct. A classroom teacher must attain no more than 25% of CPE hours that include training directly related to each of the following topics and may include two or more listed topics combined: (A) collecting and analyzing information that will improve effectiveness in the classroom; (B) recognizing early warning indicators that a student may be at risk of dropping out of school; (C) digital learning, digital teaching, and integrating technology into classroom instruction; (D) educating diverse student populations, including: (i) students who are educationally disadvantaged; and (ii) students at risk of dropping out of school; and (E) understanding appropriate relationships, boundaries, and

communications between educators and students. A school counselor must attain no more than 25% of CPE hours that include training directly related to each of the following topics: (A) assisting students in developing high school graduation plans; (B) implementing dropout prevention strategies; (C) informing students concerning: (i) college admissions, including college financial aid resources and application procedures; and (ii) career opportunities; (D) counseling students concerning mental health conditions and substance abuse, including through the use of grief-informed and trauma-informed interventions and crisis management and suicide prevention strategies; and (E) effective implementation of the

Texas Model for Comprehensive School

Counseling Programs under TEC §33.005. An educator may fulfill up to 16 clock hours of required CPE activities by participating in an evidence-based mental health first aid training program or an evidence-based grief-informed and trauma-informed care program that is offered through a classroom instruction format that requires in-person attendance. A person receiving this training will receive credit for twice the number of hours of instruction provided under that program, not to exceed 16 hours. An educator may receive credit toward CPE requirements for: • suicide prevention training that meets the guidelines for suicide prevention training approved under TEC §21.451; • an instructional course on the use of an automated external defibrillator that meets the guidelines for AED training approved under Texas Health and

Safety Code §779.002, in accordance with TEC §21.0541; • education courses that: (A) use technology to increase the educator’s digital literacy; and (B) assist the educator in the use of digital technology in learning activities that improve teaching, assessment, and instructional practices. State law provides that continuing education requirements for educators teaching students with dyslexia must include training on new research and practices in the area. Completion of a literacy achievement academy meets this requirement. For more information on CPE requirements and a list of SBEC-approved providers, click on the Texas Educators link at www.tea.texas.gov. Some districts also require professional development as a condition of employment. While each district can decide what it will count for local employment purposes, it cannot decide what will count for CPE purposes.

Charter school employees

For more information on Texas charter schools, including their state evaluations, visit www.tea.texas.gov/Texas_Schools/ Charter_Schools.

Protections

Although charter school employees are public employees, they are not entitled to all of the same legal protections as employees of Texas public school districts. These include contracts, state leave and class-size limits. However, charter school employees are protected by state immunity laws and limitations on liability, and they are required to participate in the Teacher Retirement System. REMINDER: In Districts of

Innovation, depending on the district’s specific plan, teachers may be limited to the same rights and benefits as charter school employees.

Recent changes in law specify that open-enrollment charter school employees are considered public employees with regard to the law that prohibits public employees from striking or entering into a collective bargaining agreement. This change also would encompass the statute allowing public employees to file a grievance regarding wages, hours and conditions of work.

Qualifications

State law does not require charter school teachers and principals to be certified, except in the case of teachers assigned to teach in special education or bilingual programs, in which case the appropriate state certification is required by federal law. State law also requires open-enrollment charter school teachers and principals to have a baccalaureate degree. Charter schools must perform criminal history checks on prospective employees and volunteers. HB 3, passed in 2019, included a provision subjecting open-enrollment charters to the Whistleblower Act and makes them subject to the do-not-hire registry.

Assessment and accountability

All charter schools are required to administer the state assessments and are part of the state accountability system, though many are part of the alternative accountability system.

Pledge requirement

Charter schools are required to, once during each school day, recite the Pledges of Allegiance to the U.S. and Texas flags. This must be followed by a moment of silence.

Teacher Incentive Allotment

Changes made in the 2021 legislative session clarified that uncertified teachers, including charter school teachers, are eligible to earn designations under the teacher incentive allotment and charters can earn allotment funding for employing teachers with TIA designations. an open-enrollment charter school to an eligible entity: an institution of higher education, a private or independent institution of higher education, a 501(c)(3) organization, or a governmental entity. The initial term of a charter is five years. The commissioner has authority over monitoring and revoking charters.

Currently, the total number of charters that may be granted in Texas is 305. (There is no limit on the number of charter campuses that can be approved under a granted charter.) Also, an unlimited number of charters can be granted to institutions of higher learning, including junior or community colleges; dropout recovery schools; or detention, correctional or residential facilities established for juvenile offenders. SB 11, passed in 2019, provides that open-enrollment charter schools are subject to the provisions of the omnibus school safety bill.

District-charter partnerships

Under a 2017 law, districts can form a partnership with a charter school to provide services to or operate a campus, including as an alternative to intervention under the state accountability statutes. Campus employees must be consulted regarding provisions to be included in the contract between the district and the charter school. See page 34 for more information. If you have any questions or want more information about these partnerships, please call the TCTA Legal Department.