What Disqualifies You From Being a Teacher in Texas?

What disqualifies you from being a teacher in Texas runs well beyond the felonies most applicants worry about. Certain criminal convictions permanently bar you from holding a Texas educator certificate, but so do ethics violations, walking out on a signed contract, unpaid child support, discipline on a license in another state, and even failing a certification exam too many times. The State Board for Educator Certification (SBEC) decides who gets a certificate and who keeps one, and its authority to deny, suspend, or permanently revoke is broad.

Criminal Convictions That Automatically End Your Certificate

Texas Education Code § 21.058 gives the SBEC no discretion on three categories of offenses. A conviction or deferred adjudication for any of them forces the board to revoke your certificate within five days of receiving notice. No hearing. No case-by-case review.¹

Any offense, felony or misdemeanor, that requires registration as a sex offender under Chapter 62 of the Code of Criminal Procedure.
A Title 5 felony (crimes like homicide, kidnapping, and aggravated assault) where the victim was under 18 at the time of the offense.
Selling, displaying, or distributing material harmful to a minor under Penal Code § 43.24.

The age of the victim in that second category does the work. A Title 5 felony against an adult victim doesn’t trigger the automatic process, though the board can still act on it through the moral turpitude review below.

Registered sex offenders face a separate bar as well. Chapter 62 of the Code of Criminal Procedure prohibits anyone on the registry from working at any public or private school, or from coaching, tutoring, or mentoring anyone under 18.²

Deferred adjudication does not save you. For all three § 21.058 categories, completing deferred adjudication triggers the same immediate revocation as a guilty verdict.¹

Other Criminal History and the Moral Turpitude Review

Every applicant submits fingerprints for a national criminal history review, and the SBEC pulls both FBI and state records before issuing any certificate under Texas Education Code § 22.0831.³ Anything the check turns up that isn’t on the automatic-revocation list goes through a discretionary review focused on “moral turpitude.”

Under 19 TAC § 249.3, moral turpitude covers dishonesty, fraud, deceit, theft, misrepresentation, deliberate violence, sexual acts intended to arouse or gratify, drug and alcohol offenses, and acts of abuse or neglect under the Texas Family Code.⁴ That definition is where most non-automatic cases live.

DWI and Substance Offenses

A single DWI won’t automatically cost you your certificate, but alcohol offenses fall inside the moral turpitude definition, so the board has grounds to open a case. Two or more DWIs within a 12-month period are treated as directly related to an educator’s duties, and discipline becomes far more likely.

Anything involving substances at school raises the floor. Testing positive for drugs or alcohol on campus, being under the influence on campus, or possessing controlled substances on campus carries a mandatory minimum one-year suspension with required treatment.⁵ Drug felonies, especially manufacturing or delivery, can result in permanent revocation.

Deferred Adjudication on Non-Automatic Felonies

For felonies outside the § 21.058 three, deferred adjudication still means a mandatory minimum sanction. Under 19 TAC § 249.17, the SBEC must impose a suspension of at least half the court-ordered supervision period if the case is resolved by agreed order after supervision is complete. A contested hearing at the State Office of Administrative Hearings pushes the minimum suspension up to the full original supervision term.⁵ Successful completion shortens the sanction, but never eliminates it.

Patterns of Behavior

Even when no single item on your record is disqualifying, the board looks at the whole picture. Multiple arrests, recurring alcohol incidents, or a pattern of dishonesty can support a denial on their own if TEA staff conclude you lack the fitness to serve as an educator.

Professional Misconduct and Ethics Violations

The Educators’ Code of Ethics in 19 TAC § 247.2 governs professional conduct for every certificate holder, and a violation can end a career even when no criminal charge is filed.

Boundaries With Students

The code requires educators to maintain appropriate boundaries based on what a reasonably prudent educator would consider proper. Standard 3.9 prohibits inappropriate communication with students or minors through any channel, including texts, social media, email, and messaging apps. When evaluating a case, the SBEC considers the nature and timing of messages, whether the educator tried to hide the contact, and whether the exchange could reasonably be read as soliciting a romantic or sexual relationship.⁶ Physical or sexual misconduct with a student results in permanent revocation whether or not criminal charges follow.

Financial Dishonesty and False Records

Misusing school funds or property for personal gain sits squarely inside the moral turpitude definition and draws severe sanctions.⁴ Embezzlement of campus resources, diverting grant money, or using school equipment for a personal business are the kinds of cases that produce permanent revocations.

Lying on certification paperwork is treated the same way. Omitting criminal history or misrepresenting your educational credentials gives the SBEC independent grounds to deny or revoke, and the board treats deception as a fundamental breach of trust.

Abandoning a Teaching Contract

Leaving a signed teaching contract outside the allowed window can suspend your certificate for a year. Under Texas Education Code § 21.160, a teacher on a continuing contract must submit a written resignation at least 45 days before the first day of instruction to leave without penalty.⁷ Similar deadlines apply under §§ 21.105 and 21.210 for probationary and term contracts.

If you leave after that deadline without your board’s written consent, the district has 30 calendar days to file a complaint with TEA staff. The standard result is a one-year suspension of your certificate, running from the first day you failed to show up for work.⁸ For that year, you cannot legally teach in any Texas public school.

The SBEC recognizes narrow hardship exceptions, such as a serious medical condition or a spouse’s involuntary job relocation, and reads them strictly. Better pay or a shorter commute does not qualify. If you’re thinking about breaking a contract, get the district’s written release first.

Discipline on a License in Another State

Texas participates in the NASDTEC Educator Identification Clearinghouse, a national database of disciplinary actions across every state and U.S. territory.⁹ Revocation, suspension, or surrender of your credentials in another state acts as a direct disqualifier in Texas.

A pending investigation elsewhere can freeze your Texas application. The SBEC generally will not issue a credential while another state has an open case against you, and unsatisfied sanctions from other jurisdictions, such as unpaid fines or incomplete rehabilitation programs, keep you ineligible until resolved. The board expects complete disclosure of your disciplinary history across all states and territories, and the clearinghouse makes omissions easy to catch.

Unpaid Child Support

Child support arrears can cost you a teaching certificate through a route many educators never see coming. Under Texas Family Code Chapter 232, a court can order suspension of any professional license, including an educator certificate, if you owe overdue support equal to three or more months, were given a chance to set up a repayment plan, and failed to follow through.¹⁰

A separate provision lets a child support agency ask the SBEC to refuse to issue or renew your certificate if you’ve failed to pay for six or more months.¹⁰ Getting current and putting a court-approved repayment schedule in place is the most direct way to clear the hold.

Exam Failures and English Proficiency

Not every disqualifier involves conduct. Some are gates at the front of the process.

Five Attempts on Any Certification Exam

Under Texas Education Code § 21.048(a-1), you get five attempts at any certification test. After five failures, you cannot retake that exam unless the SBEC grants a waiver.¹¹ The waiver process is set out in 19 TAC Chapter 230, Subchapter C, and approval is not automatic. Treat your fifth attempt as your last realistic shot.

English Language Proficiency

Applicants who earned their degrees outside the United States must demonstrate English proficiency before the SBEC will process a certification application. As of January 21, 2026, applicants taking the TOEFL-iBT must score at the B2 (High-Intermediate) level, a minimum score of 4, in reading, listening, speaking, and writing.¹² Regardless of how you satisfy the language requirement, you still have to complete an approved educator preparation program or the out-of-country credentials review process.

If Your Application Is Denied

You have 30 calendar days from receiving a written denial to petition for a hearing at the State Office of Administrative Hearings. That deadline is firm, and trying to resolve the matter informally with TEA staff does not pause the clock.⁸ The notice is considered received no later than five days after mailing, so your window may be shorter than the calendar suggests.

Not every denial goes to SOAH. If you were rejected for not completing an educator preparation program or for missing a specific requirement, the appeals process doesn’t apply and you simply need to satisfy the missing requirement and reapply. The SOAH route exists for denials based on criminal history, misconduct findings, or other discretionary calls where you believe the SBEC got the facts or the law wrong.

1
Texas State Board of Education. Texas Education Code 21.058 – Revocation of Certificate and Termination of Employment
2
State of Texas. Texas Code of Criminal Procedure Chapter 62 – Sex Offender Registration Program
3
Texas Education Agency. National Criminal History Checks FAQs
4
Texas Education Agency. 19 TAC Chapter 249 Subchapter A – General Provisions
5
Legal Information Institute. 19 Texas Administrative Code 249.17 – Decision-Making Guidelines
6
Legal Information Institute. 19 Texas Administrative Code 247.2 – Code of Ethics and Standard Practices for Texas Educators
7
Texas Education Agency. Texas Education Code 21.160 – Resignation Under Continuing Contract
8
Texas Education Agency. 19 TAC Chapter 249 Subchapter B – Enforcement Actions and Guidelines
9
Texas Education Agency. Continuing Education and Training Clearinghouse
10
State of Texas. Texas Family Code Chapter 232 – Suspension of License
11
Texas Education Agency. Test-Limit Waiver Information
12
Texas Education Agency. English Language Proficiency