(a) Under the Texas Education Code, §11.159, the State Board
of Education (SBOE) shall adopt a framework for governance leadership
to be used in structuring continuing education for school board
members. Copies of the framework shall be sent annually to the
president of each board of trustees to be distributed to all current
board members and the superintendent.
(b) The continuing education required under the Texas Education
Code, §11.159, applies to each member of an independent school
district board of trustees. The continuing education requirement
consists of orientation sessions, an annual team building session
with the local board and the superintendent, and specified hours
of continuing education based on identified needs. The superintendent's
participation in team building sessions as part of the continuing
education for board members shall represent one component of the
superintendent's ongoing professional development.
(1) Each school board member of an independent school district
shall receive a local district orientation and an orientation
to the Texas Education Code.
(A) Each new board member shall participate in a local district
orientation session within 60 days before or after the board
member's election or appointment. The purpose of the local
orientation is to familiarize new board members with local
board policies and procedures and district goals and priorities.
(B) A sitting board member shall receive a basic orientation
to the Texas Education Code and relevant legal obligations.
The orientation shall have special but not exclusive emphasis
on statutory provisions related to governing Texas school
districts. The orientation shall be delivered by regional
education service centers (ESCs) and shall be three hours
in length. Topics shall include, but not be limited to, Texas
Education Code, Chapter 26 (Parental Rights and Responsibilities),
and Texas Education Code, §28.004 (Local School Health
Education Advisory Council and Health Education Instruction).
(C) A newly elected board member of an independent school
district shall receive the orientation to the Texas Education
Code within the first year of service. The orientation shall
be delivered by ESCs and shall be three hours in length.
(D) After each session of the Texas Legislature, including
each regular session and called session related to education,
each school board member shall receive an update from an ESC
or any registered provider to the basic orientation to the
Texas Education Code. The update session shall be of sufficient
length to familiarize board members with major changes in
the code and other relevant legal developments related to
school governance. A board member who has attended an ESC
basic orientation session that incorporates the most recent
legislative changes is not required to attend an update.
(2) The entire board, including all board members, shall annually
participate with their superintendent in a team building session
facilitated by the ESC or any registered provider. The team
building session shall be of a length deemed appropriate by
the board, but generally at least three hours. The purpose of
the team building session is to enhance the effectiveness of
the board-superintendent team and to assess the continuing education
needs of the board-superintendent team. The assessment of needs
shall be based on the framework for governance leadership and
shall be used to plan continuing education activities for the
year for the governance leadership team.
(3) In addition to the continuing education requirements in
paragraph (1) and paragraph (2) of this subsection, each board
member shall receive additional continuing education on an annual
basis in fulfillment of assessed needs and based on the framework
for governance leadership. The continuing education sessions
may be provided by ESCs or other registered providers.
(A) In a board member's first year of service, he or she
shall receive at least ten hours of continuing education in
fulfillment of assessed needs. Up to five of the required
ten hours may be fulfilled through online instruction, provided
that the training is designed and offered by a registered
provider, incorporates interactive activities that assess
learning and provide feedback to the learner, and offers an
opportunity for interaction with the instructor. The registered
provider shall determine the clock hours of training credit
to be awarded for successful completion of an online course
and shall provide verification of completion as required in
subsection (g) of this section.
(B) Following a board member's first year of service, he
or she shall receive at least five hours of continuing education
annually in fulfillment of assessed needs. A board member
may fulfill the five hours of continuing education through
online instruction, provided that the training is designed
and offered by a registered provider, incorporates interactive
activities that assess learning and provide feedback to the
learner, and offers an opportunity for interaction with the
instructor. The registered provider shall determine the clock
hours of training credit to be awarded for successful completion
of an online course and shall provide verification of completion
as required in subsection (g) of this section.
(C) A board president shall receive continuing education
related to leadership duties of a board president as some
portion of the annual requirement.
(c) No continuing education shall take place during a school
board meeting unless that meeting is called expressly for the
delivery of board member continuing education. However, continuing
education may take place prior to or after a legally called board
meeting in accordance with the provisions of the Government Code,
§551.001(4).
(d) An ESC board member continuing education program shall be
open to any interested person, including a current or prospective
board member.
(e) A registration fee shall be determined by ESCs to cover the
costs of providing continuing education programs offered by ESCs.
(f) A private or professional organization, school district,
government agency, college/university, or private consultant shall
register with the Texas Education Agency (TEA) to provide the
board member continuing education required in subsections (b)(1)(D),
(b)(2), and (b)(3) of this section.
(1) The registration process shall include documentation of
the provider's training and/or expertise in the activities and
areas covered in the framework for governance leadership.
(2) An updated registration shall be required of a provider
of continuing education every three years.
(3) A school district that provides continuing education exclusively
for its own board members is not required to register.
(g) The provider of continuing education shall provide verification
of completion of board member continuing education to the individual
participant and to the participant's school district. The verification
must include the provider's registration number.
(h) At least 50% of the continuing education required in subsection
(b)(3) of this section shall be designed and delivered by persons
not employed or affiliated with the board member's local school
district. No more than one hour of the required continuing education
that is delivered by the local district may utilize self-instructional
materials.
(i) To the extent possible, the entire board shall participate
in continuing education programs together.
(j) Annually, at the meeting at which the call for election of
board members is normally scheduled, the current president of
each local board of trustees shall announce the name of each board
member who has completed the required continuing education, who
has exceeded the required hours of continuing education, and who
is deficient in the required continuing education. The president
shall cause the minutes of the local board to reflect the information
and shall make this information available to the local media.
(k) Annually, SBOE shall commend those local board-superintendent
teams that receive at least eight hours of the continuing education
specified in subsection (b)(2) and subsection (b)(3) of this section
as an entire board-superintendent team.
Statutory Authority: The provisions of this
§61.1 issued under the Texas Education Code, §11.159.
Source: The provisions of this §61.1
adopted to be effective March 1, 1996, 21 TexReg 875; amended
to be effective May 7, 2003, 28 TexReg 3718.
(a) In nominating trustee candidates for military reservation
school districts, the commanding officer of the military reservation
shall do the following:
(1) submit a list to the commissioner of education with at
least three nominees for each vacancy. A majority of the trustees
appointed to the school board must be civilian, and all may
be civilian. When two or more vacancies occur simultaneously,
a list of three different nominees for each vacancy shall be
submitted. In cases when the commanding officer wishes to reappoint
existing board members, a list of three nominees for each vacancy
must still be submitted. Nominees not selected for existing
vacancies may be resubmitted as candidates for subsequent vacancies.
The commanding officer may rank in the order of preference the
nominees submitted for each vacancy;
(2) submit a statement that verifies that each of the nominees
is qualified under the general school laws of Texas and lives
or is employed on the military reservation;
(3) submit a copy of a current biographical vita (resume) for
each of the nominees, with a signature by the nominee attesting
truth to the contents of the biographical vita;
(4) submit a statement from each of the nominees which expresses
the nominee's willingness to accept appointment and to serve
in such a capacity with full adherence to the state established
standards on the duties and responsibilities of school board
members;
(5) submit a signed statement which expresses recognition of
the powers of the board of trustees to govern and manage the
operations of the military reservation school districts;
(6) submit a signed statement regarding the governance and
management operations of the district which expresses recognition
that the role of the commanding officer of the military reservation
is limited only to the duty defined by statute in the process
for appointing members of the board of trustees; and
(7) submit a statement that the membership composition of the
entire board of trustees is in full compliance with the provisions
of the Texas Education Code, §11.352.
(b) A member of the board of trustees, who during the period
of the term of office experiences a change of status which disqualifies
such member for appointment under the provisions of the Texas
Education Code, shall become ineligible to serve at the time of
the change of status.
Statutory Authority: The provisions
of this §61.2 issued under the Texas Education Code, §11.352.
Source: The provisions of this
§61.1 adopted to be effective September 1, 1996, 21 TexReg
3705.
