School District Teaching Permit Guidelines

I. Background The 74th Legislature enacted into law, Texas Education Code § 21.055, School District Teaching Permit. This section allows school districts to issue a district teaching permit to an individual who does not hold a teaching certificate. The statute grants the Commissioner of Education the authority to determine whether a person is eligible for a School District Teaching Permit. The person may not teach if the Commissioner finds the person is not qualified to teach.

I. Individual Eligibility Legislative intent was clarified regarding the kind of person the sponsors envisioned when drafting this section of the Code. Legislative leadership clearly stated that the district teaching permit was not designed to circumvent the professional certification system. With that direction clearly stated, the persons in the following situations are not eligible for a district teaching permit under § 21.055: 1. persons serving on emergency permits to teach in the state of Texas; 2. persons who hold a Texas teaching certificate; 3. persons who have their credentials sanctioned or persons who have had their applications for credentials denied; or 4. persons who have been unable to pass appropriate Examinations for the Certification of Educators in Texas (ExCET) for certification.

II. Assignment Eligibility A School District Teaching Permit is valid for classroom teaching assignments only. A School District Teaching Permit is not applicable for the following: 5. counselor; 6. school librarian; 7. administrator; and 8. any other professional assignment outside of classroom teaching duties.

Because of federal requirements for professional standards in special education, no permit for a special education assignment will be approved pending clarification of federal law. A permit for a bilingual assignment may in some cases be approved; however, if the request involves a program for which an application for an exception under § 29.054 is required, that process must be used.

III. Criteria Considered for Approval/Denial Four criteria are considered when determining whether or not a candidate may be approved for a School District Teaching Permit. The candidate must have: 9. a baccalaureate degree. This requirement does not apply to a person who will teach only career and technology education; 10. relevant college/university course-work in the subject area to be taught; 11. relevant experiences related to the subject area to be taught; Examples would include: teaching experience, industrial/business experience where the skills in the subject area to be taught are utilized and applied, volunteer work with youth, performances/presentations, and listing of published works by the candidate; and 12. an official criminal history inquiry (obtained from an appropriate law enforcement agency or the Texas Department of Public Safety) that indicates the candidate is free from prior or current criminal activity involving crimes of moral turpitude.

IV. Application Requirements If the candidate meets the criteria outlined in section IV, a district may employ the individual and submit the following documents to the Commissioner of Education: 13. Texas Education Agency Form ED-001/School District Teaching Permit Application; 14. all official college/university transcripts indicating date of graduation; 15. a list of relevant college courses as related to the teaching assignment; 16. a list of relevant experiences as related to the teaching assignment (resume format); and 17. a criminal history inquiry from any law enforcement or criminal justice agency. (criminal history inquiry should reflect a nationwide search of law enforcement data bases)

Applications/documentation are submitted to: Texas Education Agency Division of Educator Development Projects 1701 North Congress Avenue Austin, Texas 78701 June, 2001