The State Board for Educator Certification (SBEC), a Texas Education Agency (TEA) division, licenses and regulates teachers and other education professionals. SBEC receives and investigates complaints about its licensees as part of its duties. The SBEC may also bring formal disciplinary action against those professionals if there is sufficient evidence to believe they violated a rule or law that governs teachers or other education professionals.
Obtaining experienced legal counsel to represent your interests in disciplinary proceedings before SBEC can be a substantial step in reaching a positive outcome in your case. Therefore, if you are facing disciplinary investigations, complaints, or formal proceedings, you should consult a teaching license defense lawyer for help.
How the Do Not Hire Registry Works
One function of the State Board for Educator Certification (SBEC) is to maintain the TEA Registry of Persons Not Eligible for Employment in Public Schools, or the “Do Not Hire Registry,” a database of individuals ineligible to work at public schools for various reasons. The Do Not Hire Registry became operational in January 2020 after the Texas legislature passed a bill to create it as a program of the Texas Education Agency (TEA).
For the purposes of the Do Not Hire Registry, public schools include state public school districts, districts of innovation, charter schools, regional education service centers, and shared service arrangements. These schools all must submit persons for inclusion in the Do Not Hire Registry if they have engaged in certain forms of misconduct or have a criminal history that makes them ineligible to hold teaching or any education-related certificates.
More specifically, Tex. Edu. Code §22.092 requires the following individuals to be listed on the Do Not Hire Registry:
- Open-enrollment charter school employees ineligible for educator certification based on their criminal history;
- Non-certified employees ineligible for employment based on their criminal history record;
- Persons who are ineligible for employment based on a conviction or placement on deferred adjudication community supervision for some criminal offenses; and
- Persons who were terminated and some evidence exists that they engaged in misconduct involving an inappropriate relationship, abuse, or the commission of an unlawful action with a student or minor.
Each Do Not Hire Registry entry is designated as either “under investigation” or “not eligible for hire.” The designation remains “under investigation” until SBEC completes its investigation into the matter. If SBEC finds that the individual committed no misconduct that would disqualify them from public school employment, then SBEC removes the individual from the Registry. Otherwise, the individual’s name will remain on the Registry, with the designation changed to “not eligible for hire.”
Duties of Schools to Report Individuals for the Do not Hire Registry
Under Tex. Edu. Code §22.093, superintendents or directors of school districts, districts of innovation, open-enrollment charter schools, other charter entities, regional education service centers, or shared services arrangements must report certain individuals for inclusion on the Registry. This reporting requirement is mandatory and includes the following:
- The school has terminated an individual’s employment, and there is evidence that the individual:
- Abused or otherwise committed an unlawful act with a student or minor; or
- Was involved in a romantic relationship with or solicited or engaged in sexual contact with a student or minor; or
- The individual resigned, and there is evidence that they engaged in the type of misconduct described above when employed by the school.
Evidence that individuals have committed certain criminal offenses also requires schools to terminate or refuse their employment, placing their names on the Registry as “not eligible for hire.” Tex. Edu. Code §22.085 outlines the criminal offenses that disqualify individuals from public school employment and require inclusion on the Registry, as follows:
- A conviction or placement on deferred adjudication for any criminal offense that requires registration as a sex offender;
- A conviction for any felony offense if the victim was under the age of 18 at the time that the offense was committed; or
- Any offense under federal law or the law of another state equivalent to a Texas criminal offense requiring sex offender registration or a felony offense involving a victim under 18.
The only exception to this section is if the individual committed the offense under Title 5 of the Texas Penal Code and was more than 30 years before the law’s effective date of 2007 or when the individual’s employment will begin. The individual must also have satisfied all court-ordered terms and requirements upon conviction.
We Can Advocate for Your Interests in SBEC Disciplinary Proceedings
The teaching license defense lawyers of Bertolino LLP can help guide you through the disciplinary complaint process. Regardless of the allegations you face, we are here to represent your interests and work to minimize the negative effects of a complaint on your educational license and career. We can help resolve the case against you and maintain your licensure or certification. Call us today at (512) 980-3751 to reach the offices of Bertolino LLP or contact us online.
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