| (a) Training required. Unless exempted under subsection
(g) or (h) of this section, a member of the governing body of a charter
holder or a member of the governing body of a charter school must
complete a training course consisting of 12 instructional hours, excluding
breaks, administrative tasks, and other non-instructional time, delivered
by a course provider registered under §100.1107 of this title
(relating to Course Providers). The training course may not use self-instructional
materials, unless as otherwise provided.
(b) Timeline for completing training. Except as provided
in subsection (c) of this section, a member of the governing body
of a charter holder or a member of the governing body of a charter
school must complete the training course required by this section
within one calendar year of appointment or election to such governing
body.
(c) Transition timeline. A member serving on the governing
body of a charter holder or the governing body of a charter school
on the effective date of this section must complete at least the first
six hours of the training course required by this section within six
months of the effective date of the curriculum outline approved under
subsection (e) of this section, and must complete the remaining six
hours of such training within one year of the effective date of the
approved curriculum outline. Training completed prior to the effective
date of this section and after September 1, 2001, may be counted toward
the first six hours of the training course required by this section
if it meets the requirements of the curriculum outline approved under
subsection (e) of this section.
(d) Course content. The training course required by
this section shall include the following modules, which accounts for
540 minutes (nine hours) of the required 12 hours. The remaining 180
minutes (three hours) of the required 12 hours may be selected from
any of these modules:
(1) a module consisting of at least 150 minutes of
instruction in basic school law, with special emphasis on corporate
director duties and liabilities, non-delegable duties, nepotism, conflicts
of interest, management companies, appropriate roles concerning internal
and external audits, and the legal requirements specific to members
of the governing body of a charter holder;
(2) a module consisting of at least 60 minutes of instruction
in basic school finance, with special emphasis on accounting for public
funds and property, student attendance accounting, fiduciary duties
related to state and federal funding, federal funds and property management,
grant administration, audit requirements, and the financial duties
specific to the members of the governing body of a charter holder;
(3) a module consisting of at least 30 minutes of instruction
in health and safety issues, with special emphasis on health and safety
codes, ordinances, and other laws applicable to operating a Texas
public school; student discipline; safe schools; required reporting
of child abuse; and criminal background checks;
(4) a module consisting of at least 120 minutes of
instruction in accountability requirements related to the use of public
funds, with special emphasis on the duties and liabilities of a trustee
under Texas law, the shared use of real property for charter and non-charter
business, bank depository contracts, capital financing, incidental
use of public property by charter holder personnel, and recovery by
the commissioner of education of the public property held by a former
charter holder;
(5) a module consisting of at least 60 minutes of instruction
in other requirements relating to accountability to the public, with
special emphasis on the administration of statewide assessments; student,
staff, financial, and organizational data reporting; dropout reporting;
statewide standards for acceptable student performance; charter-specific
standards for acceptable student performance; accountability ratings
and sanctions under Texas Education Code (TEC), Chapter 39; and the
role of student performance in actions under TEC, §12.116 and §12.1162;
(6) a module consisting of at least 60 minutes of instruction
in open meetings requirements under Government Code, Chapter 551,
with special emphasis on posting the agenda, executive sessions, accessibility
of the meeting location to the public, employee board members, and
civil and criminal sanctions; and
(7) a module consisting of at least 60 minutes of instruction
in requirements relating to public records, with special emphasis
on the Public Information Act, the Records Retention Act, confidential
student records, records in the possession of a management company,
and other duties respecting public records.
(e) Required course curriculum outline. The commissioner
shall approve and disseminate a curriculum outline that is consistent
with the module topics and minimum durations identified in subsection
(d) of this section. Training that does not conform to the curriculum
outline does not satisfy the training requirements of this section.
The entire duration of the training course must be dedicated to topics
identified in the curriculum outline. The curriculum outline will
be available on the Texas Education Agency (TEA) website. The process
for the development and/or revision of a curriculum outline under
this section must include an opportunity for stakeholder comment.
(f) Continuing training. A member serving on the governing
body of a charter holder or the governing body of a charter school
who has completed the 12-hour training course required by this section
must annually thereafter receive six hours of training, excluding
breaks, administrative tasks, and other non-instructional time, delivered
by a course provider registered under §100.1107 of this title.
However, a member of the governing body of a charter holder whose
organization has operated charters that are all rated with an "academically
acceptable" rating or higher, as defined in §100.1001(26) of
this title (relating to Definitions), for at least two out of three
of the most recent ratings or a member of the governing body of a
charter school whose school has been rated with an "academically acceptable"
rating or higher for at least two out of three of the most recent
ratings may take any training that is documented by the provider and
that applies to the achievement of the charter's academic mission
and/or fulfillment of its responsibilities and/or accountabilities
under the law. Furthermore, a board chair or vice chair may opt to
train the remaining board members in such subjects as best fits the
needs of the school or schools, provided the chair or vice chair has
taken the initial 12 hours otherwise required under these rules. Continuing
training under this subsection shall fulfill assessed training needs,
including any training needs identified by TEA monitoring, and address
update items identified in the curriculum outline approved under subsection
(e) of this section as well as additional topics selected from the
curriculum outline. Selected topics must be covered in greater depth
than the curriculum outline indicates for initial training on those
topics. With the exception of members of the governing body of a charter
holder whose organization has operated campuses that are all rated
with an "academically acceptable" rating or higher for at least two
out of three of the most recent ratings, or a member of the governing
body of a charter school whose school has been rated with an "academically
acceptable" rating or higher for at least two out of three of the
most recent ratings, no individual may use self-instructional materials
for more than one hour of continuing training. Twenty-five percent
of hours earned in excess of the requirements set forth in this subsection
by a member serving on the governing body of a charter holder or the
governing body of a charter school may be carried over to meet the
following year's requirement under this section.
(g) Exemptions. A member of the governing body of a
charter holder who serves on the governing body of a governmental
entity or an institution of higher education as defined under TEC, §61.003,
is exempt from the training required by this section if, by virtue
of such service, the member is subject to other mandatory training
and the members of the governing body of the charter school operated
by the charter holder comply with this section.
(h) Limited exemptions. A member of the governing body
of a charter holder whose organization has operated campuses that
are all rated the highest or second highest ratings for at least two
out of three of the most recent ratings, or a member of the governing
body of a charter school whose campuses have all been rated the highest
or second highest ratings for at least two out of three of the most
recent ratings shall be subject to the requirements in paragraphs
(1)-(5) of this subsection in lieu of those specified in subsections
(a) and (d) of this section. A rating that does not meet the criteria
for "academically acceptable" as defined by §100.1001(26) of
this title shall not be considered the highest or second highest academic
performance rating for purposes of this section. For organizations
that meet the requirements for this exception, the required amount
of training is eight hours. The training courses required by this
section shall include the following modules as Cont'd... |
