(a) Juvenile Probation Officer.
  (1) To be eligible for certification as a juvenile probation officer, an individual must meet the following educational requirements:
    (A) have acquired a bachelor's degree conferred by a college or university accredited by an organization recognized by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board; and
    (B) have either:
      (i) one year of graduate study at a college or university accredited by an organization recognized by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board in criminology, corrections, counseling, law, social work, psychology, sociology, or other field of instruction approved by TJJD; or
      (ii) qualifying work experience as specified in §344.210 of this title.
  (2) For purposes of this section, one year of graduate study means successful completion of at least 18 post-graduate credit hours.
(b) Juvenile Supervision Officer and Community Activities Officer.
  (1) To be eligible for certification as a juvenile supervision officer or community activities officer, an individual must meet one of the following educational requirements:
    (A) a diploma from a high school accredited by a generally recognized accrediting organization or from a high school operated by the United States Department of Defense. TJJD considers the following entities as generally recognized accrediting organizations:
      (i) the Texas Education Agency or the equivalent agency in another state;
      (ii) an entity approved by the Texas Private School Accreditation Commission; and
      (iii) regional accreditation organizations such as:
        (I) Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools;
        (II) New England Association of Schools and Colleges;
        (III) North Central Association of Colleges and Schools;
        (IV) Northwest Accreditation Commission;
        (V) Southern Association of Colleges and Schools; and
        (VI) Western Association of Schools and Colleges;
    (B) a high school equivalency certificate (e.g., GED) issued by the Texas Education Agency or equivalent agency in another state;
    (C) a diploma or certificate of completion issued in a homeschool setting;
    (D) a United States military record that indicates the education level received is equivalent to a United States high school diploma or high school equivalency certificate;
    (E) a foreign high school diploma that meets the validation requirements established in §344.206 of this title; or
    (F) unconditional acceptance into a college or university accredited by an organization recognized by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board.
  (2) A department or facility may attempt to establish that an entity not listed in paragraph (1)(A) of this subsection is a generally recognized accrediting organization by submitting supporting documentation to the TJJD certification office. Based on the documentation, TJJD will determine whether the entity is a generally recognized accrediting organization.

Source Note: The provisions of this §344.204 adopted to be effective February 1, 2018, 42 TexReg 5688