School Discipline Laws & Regulations by State & Category

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Statesort descending Statute
Texas

LAWS

§ 21.044. Educator preparation.

(c-1) Any minimum academic qualifications for a certificate specified under Subsection (a) that require a person to possess a bachelor's degree must also require that the person receive, as part of the training required to obtain that certificate, instruction regarding mental health, substance abuse, and youth suicide. The instruction required must:

(1) Be provided through a program selected from the list of recommended best practice-based programs and research-based practices established under Section 161.325, Health and Safety Code; and

(2) Include effective strategies for teaching and intervening with students with mental or emotional disorders, including de-escalation techniques and positive behavioral interventions and supports.

§ 21.054. Continuing education.

(d) Continuing education requirements for a classroom teacher must provide that not more than 25 percent of the training required every five years include instruction regarding:

(1) Collecting and analyzing information that will improve effectiveness in the classroom;

(2) Recognizing early warning indicators that a student may be at risk of dropping out of school;

(3) Digital learning, digital teaching, and integrating technology into classroom instruction;

(4) Educating diverse student populations, including:

(A) Students who are eligible to participate in special education programs under Subchapter A, Chapter 29;

(B) Students who are eligible to receive educational services required under Section 504, Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. Section 794);

(C) Students with mental health conditions or who engage in substance abuse;

(D) Students who are educationally disadvantaged;

(E) Students of limited English proficiency; and

(F) Students at risk of dropping out of school; and

(d-2) Continuing education requirements for a classroom teacher may include instruction regarding 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.

(e) Continuing education requirements for a principal must provide that not more than 25 percent of the training required every five years include instruction regarding:

(1) Effective and efficient management, including:

(A) Collecting and analyzing information;

(B) Making decisions and managing time; and

(C) Supervising student discipline and managing behavior;

(2) Recognizing early warning indicators that a student may be at risk of dropping out of school;

(3) Digital learning, digital teaching, and integrating technology into campus curriculum and instruction;

(4) Educating diverse student populations, including:

(A) Students who are eligible to participate in special education programs under Subchapter A, Chapter 29;

(B) Students who are eligible to receive educational services required under Section 504, Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. Section 794);

(C) Students with mental health conditions or who engage in substance abuse;

(D) Students who are educationally disadvantaged;

(E) Students of limited English proficiency; and

(F) Students at risk of dropping out of school; and

(e-2) Continuing education requirements for a principal may include instruction regarding 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

(f) Continuing education requirements for a counselor must provide that not more than 25 percent of training required every five years include instruction regarding:

(1) Assisting students in developing high school graduation plans;

(2) Implementing dropout prevention strategies;

(3) Informing students concerning:

(A) College admissions, including college financial aid resources and application procedures; and

(B) Career opportunities; and

(4) Counseling students concerning mental health conditions and substance abuse.

§ 21.451. Staff development requirements.

(d) The staff development:

(1) May include training in:

(A) Recognizing signs of mental health conditions and substance abuse;

(B) Technology;

(C) Conflict resolution;

(D) Positive behavior intervention and support strategies, including classroom management, district discipline policies, and the student code of conduct adopted under Chapter 37; and

(E) Preventing, identifying, responding to, and reporting incidents of bullying;

(2) subject to Subsection (e) and to Section 21.3541 and rules adopted under that section, must include training that is evidence-based, as defined by Section 8101, Every Student Succeeds Act (20 U.S.C. Section 7801), and that:

(A) Relates to instruction of students with disabilities; and

(B) Is designed for educators, including classroom teachers, who work primarily outside the area of special education; and

(3) Must include suicide prevention training that must be provided:

(A) On an annual basis, as part of a new employee orientation, to all new school district and open-enrollment charter school educators, including classroom teachers; and

(B) To existing school district and open-enrollment charter school educators, including classroom teachers, on a schedule adopted by the agency by rule.

(d-1) The suicide prevention training required by Subsection (d)(3) must use a best practice-based program recommended by the Health and Human Services Commission in coordination with the agency under Section 38.301.

(d-2) The suicide prevention training required by Subsection (d)(3) may be satisfied through independent review of suicide prevention training material that:

(1) Complies with the guidelines developed by the agency; and

(2) Is offered online.

(d-3) The digital learning training provided by Subsection (d)(1)(E) must:

(1) Discuss basic technology proficiency expectations and methods to increase an educator's digital literacy; and

(2) Assist an educator in the use of digital technology in learning activities that improve teaching, assessment, and instructional practices.

(e) A school district is required to provide the training described by Subsection (d)(2) to an educator who works primarily outside the area of special education only if the educator does not possess the knowledge and skills necessary to implement the individualized education program developed for a student receiving instruction from the educator. A district may determine the time and place at which the training is delivered.

(f) In developing or maintaining the training required by Subsection (d)(2), a school district must consult with persons with expertise in research-based practices for students with disabilities. Persons who may be consulted under this subsection include colleges, universities, private and nonprofit organizations, regional education service centers, qualified district personnel, and any other persons identified as qualified by the district. This subsection applies to all training required by Subsection (d)(2), regardless of whether the training is provided at the campus or district level.

(g) The staff development may include instruction as to what is permissible under law, including opinions of the United States Supreme Court, regarding prayer in public school.

§ 30.106. Reading and behavior plan.

(a) Because learning and behavior are inextricably linked and learning and improved behavior correlate with decreased recidivism rates, the Texas Juvenile Justice Department shall not only fulfill the department's duties under state and federal law to provide general and special educational services to students in department educational programs but also shall implement a comprehensive plan to improve the reading skills and behavior of those students.

(c) To increase the positive social behaviors of students in department educational programs and to create an educational environment that facilitates learning, the department shall:

(2) require each teacher and other educational staff member in a department educational program to be trained in implementing the positive behavior support system adopted under Subdivision (1); and

§ 37.0013. Positive behavior program.

(a) Each school district and open-enrollment charter school may develop and implement a program, in consultation with campus behavior coordinators employed by the district or school and representatives of a regional education service center, that provides a disciplinary alternative for a student enrolled in a grade level below grade three who engages in conduct described by Section 37.005(a) and is not subject to Section 37.005(c). The program must:

(1) Be age-appropriate and research-based;

(2) Provide models for positive behavior;

(3) Promote a positive school environment;

(4) Provide alternative disciplinary courses of action that do not rely on the use of in-school suspension, out-of-school suspension, or placement in a disciplinary alternative education program to manage student behavior; and

(5) Provide behavior management strategies, including:

(A) Positive behavioral intervention and support;

(B) Trauma-informed practices;

(C) Social and emotional learning;

(D) A referral for services, as necessary; and

(E) Restorative practices.

(b) Each school district and open-enrollment charter school may annually conduct training for staff employed by the district or school on the program adopted under Subsection (a).

§ 161.325. Mental health promotion and intervention, substance abuse prevention and intervention, and suicide prevention.

(c-1) Except as otherwise provided by this subsection, each school district shall provide training described in the components set forth under Subsection (b) for teachers, counselors, principals, and all other appropriate personnel. A school district is required to provide the training at an elementary school campus only to the extent that sufficient funding and programs are available. A school district may implement a program on the list to satisfy the requirements of this subsection.

(c-2) If a school district provides the training under Subsection (c-1):

(1) A school district employee described under that subsection must participate in the training at least one time; and

(2) The school district shall maintain records that include the name of each district employee who participated in the training.

REGULATIONS

19 TAC 89.1053. Procedures for use of restraint and time-out.

(h) Training on use of time-out. Training for school employees, volunteers, or independent contractors must be provided according to the following requirements.

(1) General or special education personnel who implement time-out based on requirements established in a student's IEP and/or BIP must be trained in the use of time-out.

(2) Newly-identified personnel called upon to implement time-out based on requirements established in a student's IEP and/or BIP must receive training in the use of time-out within 30 school days of being assigned the responsibility for implementing time-out.

(3) Training on the use of time-out must be provided as part of a program which addresses a full continuum of positive behavioral intervention strategies, and must address the impact of time-out on the ability of the student to be involved in and progress in the general curriculum and advance appropriately toward attaining the annual goals specified in the student's IEP.

(4) All trained personnel must receive instruction in current professionally accepted practices and standards regarding behavior management and the use of time-out.