(a) Responsibility of Providers.
(1) A provider is responsible
for:
(A) the administration
of each course, including, but not limited to, compliance with any
prescribed period of time for any required course topics required
by the Act, Chapter 1102, and Commission rules;
(B) maintaining student
attendance records;
(C) verifying instructor
qualification, performance and attendance;
(D) proper examination
administration;
(E) validation of student
identity acceptable to the Commission;
(F) maintaining student
course completion records;
(G) ensuring all advertising
complies with subsection (c);
(H) ensuring that instructors
or other persons do not recruit or solicit prospective sales agents,
brokers or inspectors during course presentation; and
(I) ensuring staff is
reasonably available for public inquiry and assistance.
(2) A provider may not
promote the sale of goods or services during the presentation of a
course.
(3) A provider may remove
a student and not award credit if a student does not participate in
class, or disrupts the orderly conduct of a class, after being warned
by the provider or the instructor.
(4) If a provider approved
by the Commission does not maintain a fixed office in Texas for the
duration of the provider's approval to offer courses, the provider
shall designate a resident of this state as attorney-in-fact to accept
service of process and act as custodian of any records in Texas that
the provider is required to maintain by this section. A power-of-attorney
designating the resident must be filed with the Commission in a form
acceptable to the Commission.
(b) Use of approved Instructor.
(1) Except as provided
by this subsection, a provider must use an instructor that is currently
approved by the Commission to teach the specified course;
(2) Each instructor shall
be selected on the basis of expertise in the subject area of instruction
and ability as an instructor;
(3) A provider shall
require specialized training or work experience for instructors teaching
specialized subjects such as law, appraisal, investments, taxation
or home inspection;
(4) An instructor shall
teach a course in substantially the same manner represented to the
Commission in the instructor's manual or other documents filed with
the application for course approval form; and
(5) A provider may use
the services of a guest instructor who is not approved as an instructor
by the Commission for qualifying real estate or inspector courses
provided that person instructs for no more than 10% of the total course
time.
(c) Advertising.
(1) The following practices
are prohibited:
(A) using any advertising
which does not clearly and conspicuously contain the provider's name
on the first page or screen of the advertising;
(B) representing that
the provider's program is the only vehicle by which a person may satisfy
educational requirements;
(C) conveying a false
impression of the provider's size, superiority, importance, location,
equipment or facilities, except that a provider may use objective
information published by the Commission regarding pass rates;
(D) promoting the provider
directly or indirectly as a job placement agency, unless the provider
is participating in a program recognized by federal, state, or local
government and is providing job placement services to the extent the
services are required by the program;
(E) making any statement
which is misleading, likely to deceive the public, or which in any
manner tends to create a misleading impression;
(F) advertising a course
under a course name other than the course name approved by the Commission;
or
(G) advertising using
a name that implies the course provider is the Texas Real Estate Commission,
including use of the acronym "TREC", in all or part of the
course provider's name.
(2) Any written advertisement
by a provider that includes a fee that the provider charges for a
course must display all fees that the provider charges for the course
in the same place in the advertisement and with the same degree of
prominence.
(3) The provider shall
advertise a course for the full clock hours of time for which credit
is awarded.
(4) The provider is responsible
for and subject to sanctions for any violation of this subsection
by any affiliate or other third party marketer or web hosting site
associated with or used by the provider.
(d) Pre-enrollment agreements for
approved providers.
(1) Prior to a student
enrolling in a course, a provider approved by the Commission shall
provide the student with a pre-enrollment agreement that includes
all of the following information:
(A) the tuition for the
course;
(B) an itemized list
of any fees charged by the provider for supplies, materials, or books
needed in course work;
(C) the provider's policy
regarding the refund of tuition and other fees, including a statement
addressing refund policy when a student is dismissed or withdraws
voluntarily;
(D) the attendance requirements;
(E) the acceptable makeup
procedures, including any applicable time limits and any fees that
may be charged for makeup sessions; and
(F) the procedure and
fees for taking any permitted makeup final examination or any permitted
re-examination, including any applicable time limits.
(2) A pre-enrollment
agreement must be signed by a representative of the provider.
(e) Refund of fees by approved
provider.
(1) A provider shall
establish written policies governing refunds and contingency plans
in the event of course cancellation.
(2) If a provider approved
by the Commission cancels a course, the provider shall:
(A) fully refund all
fees collected from students within a reasonable time; or
(B) at the student's
option, credit the student for another course.
(3) The provider shall
inform the Commission when a student requests a refund because of
a withdrawal due to the student's dissatisfaction with the quality
of the course.
(f) Course materials.
(1) Before the course
starts, a provider shall give each student copies of or, if a student
has online access, provide online access to any materials to be used
for the course.
(2) A provider shall
update course materials to ensure that current and accurate information
is provided to students as provided for under §535.62 of this
subchapter.
(g) Presentation of courses.
(1) Classroom Delivery:
(A) The location for
the course must be:
(i) conducive to instruction,
such as a classroom, training room, conference room, or assembly hall
that is separate and apart from work areas;
(ii) adequate for the
class size;
(iii) pose no threat
to the health or safety of students; and
(iv) allow the instructor
to see and hear each student and the students to see and hear the
instructor, including when offered through the use of technology.
(B) The provider must:
(i) check the photo identification
of each student at class sign up and when signing in for each subsequent
meeting of the class;
(ii) ensure the student
is present for the course for the hours of time for which credit is
awarded;
(iii) provide a 10 minute
break per hour at least every two hours; and
(iv) not have daily course
segments that exceed 12 hours.
(C) If the course is
a qualifying or non-elective continuing education course delivered
through the use of technology and there are more than 20 students
registered for the course, the provider will also use:
(i) a monitor at the
broadcast origination site to verify identification of each student,
monitor active participation of each student and facilitate questions
for the instructor; and
(ii) a proctor at each
remote site with more than 20 students to verify identification of
each student, monitor active participation of each student and proctor
any on-site examination.
(D) Makeup Session for
Classroom Courses.
(i) A provider may permit
a student who attends at least two-thirds of an originally scheduled
qualifying course to complete a makeup session to satisfy attendance
requirements.
(ii) A member of the
provider's staff must approve the makeup procedure to be followed.
Acceptable makeup procedures are:
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