Sec. 21.3521.  LOCAL OPTIONAL TEACHER DESIGNATION SYSTEM.  (a)  Subject to Subsection (b), a school district or open-enrollment charter school may designate a classroom teacher as a master, exemplary, or recognized teacher for a five-year period based on the results from single year or multiyear appraisals that comply with Section 21.351 or 21.352.
(b)  The commissioner shall establish performance and validity standards for each local optional teacher designation system. The performance standards:
(1)  must provide a mathematical possibility that all teachers eligible for a designation may earn the designation; and
(2)  may not require a district to use an assessment instrument adopted under Section 39.023 to evaluate teacher performance.
(c)  Notwithstanding performance standards established under Subsection (b), a classroom teacher that holds a National Board Certification issued by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards may be designated as recognized.
(d)  The commissioner shall:
(1)  ensure that local optional teacher designation systems:
(A)  meet the requirements of this section; and
(B)  prioritize high needs campuses; and
(2)  enter into a memorandum of understanding with Texas Tech University to monitor the quality and fairness of local optional teacher designation systems.
(e)  The agency shall develop and provide technical assistance for school districts and open-enrollment charter schools that request assistance in implementing a local optional teacher designation system, including assistance in prioritizing high needs campuses.
(f)  A teacher has no vested property right in a teacher designation assigned to the teacher under this section. A teacher designation issued under this section is void in the determination that the designation was issued improperly. Subchapters C through H, Chapter 2001, Government Code, do not apply to the voiding of a teacher designation under this subsection.
(g)  The agency shall periodically conduct evaluations of the effectiveness of the local optional teacher designation systems under this section and the teacher incentive allotment under Section 48.112 and report the results of the evaluations to the legislature. A school district or open-enrollment charter school that has implemented a local optional teacher designation system or received funds under the teacher incentive allotment shall participate in the evaluations.
(h)  The agency shall collect information necessary to implement this section. Information otherwise confidential remains confidential and is not subject to Chapter 552, Government Code.
(i)  The commissioner may adopt fees to implement this section. A fee adopted by the agency under this section is not subject to Sections 2001.0045 and 2001.0221, Government Code.
(j)  The commissioner may adopt rules to implement this section. A decision made by the commissioner under this section is final and may not be appealed.
Added by Acts 2019, 86th Leg., R.S., Ch. 943 (H.B. 3), Sec. 2.008, eff. June 12, 2019.
Amended by: 
Acts 2021, 87th Leg., R.S., Ch. 806 (H.B. 1525), Sec. 5, eff. September 1, 2021.