SECTION 232.11. Number and Content of Required Continuing Professional Education Hours

(a) The appropriate number of clock-hours of continuing professional education (CPE) must be completed during each five-year renewal period.

(b) One semester credit hour earned at an accredited institution of higher education is equivalent to 15 CPE clock-hours.

(c) Required Content.

(1) All educators must receive CPE training regarding educating students with disabilities. This training must include information particular to educating students with dyslexia.

(2) Other than hours earned to comply with subsections (d), (e), (f), (g), and (k) of this section, professional development activities shall be related to the certificate(s) being renewed and focus on the standards required for issuance of the certificate(s), including:

(A) content area knowledge and skills; and

(B) professional ethics and standards of conduct.

(d) Classroom Teacher.

(1) Classroom teacher certificate holders shall complete 150 clock-hours.

(2) A classroom teacher who renews a certificate prior to September 1, 2023, must attain some hours of CPE that includes 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.

(3) Subject to paragraph (4) of this subsection, a classroom teacher who renews a certificate on or after September 1, 2023, may not be required to obtain more than 25 percent of CPE training hours, including e-instruction in and directly related to, each of the following topics, which 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.

(4) Training in a topic of instruction described by paragraph (3) of this subsection obtained by a classroom teacher in excess of an amount of hours equal to 25 percent of CPE training hours shall be counted toward the teacher's overall training requirements.

(e) Principal and Principal as Instructional Leader.

(1) Principal and Principal as Instructional Leader certificate holders shall complete 200 clock-hours.

(2) A principal and principal as instructional leader who renews a certificate prior to September 1, 2023, must attain some hours of CPE that include training directly related to each of the following topics:

(A) effective and efficient management, including:

(i) collecting and analyzing information;

(ii) making decisions and managing time; and

(iii) supervising student discipline and managing behavior;

(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 campus curriculum and instruction;

(D) effective implementation of the Texas Model for Comprehensive School Counseling Programs under Texas Education Code (TEC), §33.005;

(E) mental health programs addressing a mental health condition;

(F) educating diverse student populations, including:

(i) students who are educationally disadvantaged;

(ii) emergent bilingual students; and

(iii) students at risk of dropping out of school; and

(G) preventing, recognizing, and reporting any sexual conduct between an educator and student that is prohibited under Texas Penal Code, §21.12, or for which reporting is required under TEC, §21.006.

(3) For a principal and principal as instructional leader who renews a certificate on or after September 1, 2023, not more than 50 hours of CPE training shall include instruction in, and must be directly related to, each of the following topics and may include two or more listed topics combined:

(A) effective and efficient management, including:

(i) collecting and analyzing information;

(ii) making decisions and managing time; and

(iii) supervising student discipline and managing behavior;

(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 campus curriculum and instruction;

(D) effective implementation of the Texas Model for Comprehensive School Counseling Programs under TEC, §33.005;

(E) mental health programs addressing a mental health condition;

(F) educating diverse student populations, including:

(i) students who are educationally disadvantaged;

(ii) emergent bilingual students; and

(iii) students at risk of dropping out of school; and

(G) preventing, recognizing, and reporting any sexual conduct between an educator and student that is prohibited under Texas Penal Code, §21.12, or for which reporting is required under TEC, §21.006.

(f) School Counselor.

(1) School Counselor certificate holders shall complete 200 clock-hours.

(2) A school counselor who renews a certificate on or after September 1, 2023, must attain at least 25 percent of CPE hours that includes training directly related to each of the following five 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.

(g) Superintendent.

(1) Superintendent certificate holders shall complete 200 clock-hours.

(2) An individual who holds a superintendent certificate that is renewed on or after January 1, 2021, must complete at least 2.5 hours of training every five years on identifying and reporting potential victims of sexual abuse, human trafficking, and other maltreatment of children, in accordance with TEC, §21.054(h). For purposes of this subsection, "other maltreatment" has the meaning assigned by Human Resources Code, §42.002.

(h) School Librarian and Learning Resources Specialist certificate holders shall complete 200 clock-hours.

(i) Educational Diagnostician certificate holders shall complete 200 clock-hours.

(j) Reading Specialist certificate holders shall complete 200 clock-hours.

(k) The required CPE for educators who teach students with dyslexia must include training regarding new research and practices in educating students with dyslexia. The required training may be satisfied through an online course approved by Texas Education Agency staff.

(l) Professional development activities may include:

(1) 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 twice the number of hours of instruction provided under that program, not to exceed 16 hours;

(2) suicide prevention training that meets the guidelines for suicide prevention training approved under the TEC, §21.451;

(3) an instructional course on the use of an automated external defibrillator in accordance with the guidelines established by the device's manufacturer and approved by the American Heart Association, the American Red Cross, other nationally recognized associations, or the medical director of a local emergency medical services provider, in accordance with the TEC, §21.0541;

(4) 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;

(5) educating students with mental health conditions, including how grief and trauma affect student learning and behavior and how evidence-based, grief-informed, and trauma-informed strategies support the academic success of students affected by grief and trauma;

(6) for classroom teachers, educating emergent bilingual students; and

(7) educating students who engage in substance abuse.

(m) An educator holding multiple classes of certificates shall complete the higher number of required CPE clock-hours in the classes held during each five-year renewal period unless otherwise specified in applicable State Board for Educator Certification rules codified in the Texas Administrative Code, Title 19, Part 7.

(n) An educator eligible to renew multiple classes of certificates issued during the same renewal period may satisfy the requirements for any class of certificate issued for less than the full five-year period by completing a prorated number of the required CPE clock-hours. Educators must complete a minimum of one-fifth of the additional CPE clock-hours for each full calendar year that the additional class of certificate is valid.

Source Note: The provisions of this §232.11 adopted to be effective August 6, 2020, 45 TexReg 5345; amended to be effective May 12, 2022, 47 TexReg 2754; amended to be effective March 7, 2024, 49 TexReg 1276