How Long Do Career School Need to Keep Student Information

General Requirements

In addition to meeting all requirements for initial licensure and annual renewal, your school and school staff must:

• Know the related law and rule: Career Schools and Colleges Law - Texas Education Code, Chapter 132 and Career Schools and Colleges Rules - Texas Administrative Code, Chapter 807.
• Stay up-to-date with changes in requirements.
• Be prepared for TWC survey site visits which may be unannounced or planned, such as annual visits.
• Be financially sound and capable of fulfilling obligations for training.
• Implement your school policies and procedures described in the school catalog.
• Offer only programs or seminars that have been submitted to and appropriately approved by TWC.
• Maintain adequate facilities, equipment, instructional materials, instructional personnel and other staff to provide the educational services that are offered.
• Employ directors, instructors and registered representatives who are of good reputation and character.
• Prior to their attendance in a school program, provide each student with a copy of:
  • Program outline
  • Schedule of tuition, fees and other charges
  • Current official rates of completion and employment in the field trained for
  • Policies pertaining to absences, conduct, grading, satisfactory progress, refunds and rules of operation
  • Complaint procedures for the school and TWC
• Notify TWC when your Small School or College no longer qualifies to be a Small School or College.
• Notify TWC prior to changes in any information in the initial application, the catalog, any supplements and addenda to the catalog, the enrollment agreement, programs or seminars, and tuition.
• Wait for TWC approval or acknowledgement of any new programs or seminars before advertising or implementing them.
• Respond to student complaints in a timely manner.
• Submit the annual report of your school's student enrollment and outcome information due to TWC by December 1.
• Monitor your school website for required posted information and compliant advertising.

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Continuing Education and In-Service Requirements

Continuing Education

Each school director, full-time instructor and director of admissions must complete a minimum of six hours of continuing education applicable to the position held within 12 months of employment and each calendar year thereafter. A staff member who fills more than one of those roles must complete the continuing education requirement for each position.

Your school must implement a written plan for staff development which includes continuing education, staff meetings, attendance at trade and professional conferences, and observation of, or participation in, on-the job activities. You must maintain your written staff development plan and update it annually.

The list of Continuing Education Providers for Career Schools and Colleges is offered to assist you in finding options for appropriate training for your staff.

Contact the Career Schools and Colleges department at the Texas Workforce Commission if you have questions or suggestions regarding other continuing education providers.

In-Service Training

Your school also must deliver and document in-service training that provides updates on skills, knowledge and technology required by business and industry for instructors who have taught for two years but have not gained relevant work experience during the two-year period.

You must maintain an outline and schedule of in-service training provided for instructors without prior teaching experience. The training must begin within their first three months of teaching and be constructed to assist them in learning and developing effective teaching strategies such as competency-based training, instructional methods, adult learning styles, student learning, and skills assessment.

Director and Representative Training for Career Schools and Colleges

All directors and representatives must take and pass our free online training course, Director and Representative Training for Career Schools and Colleges, in order to recruit or enroll students into a career school or college. Other school staff may wish to complete the course to enhance their professional development.

If you are having an issue printing your certificate, the issue may be related to missing software on your computer. Our new and updated CBTs require Adobe Flash Player software to view and print the course certificates.

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Advisory Committee Requirement

For each program offered by your school that is longer than 200 hours, your school must have an advisory committee of at least five members.

At least annually, the committee must evaluate the curriculum, instructional materials and media, equipment and facilities to ensure that they meet the needs of the job market. You must maintain for review by TWC written documentation of the advisory committee evaluation. The documentation must include written justification for any advisory committee recommendation that is not followed.

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Required Record Keeping

Your records must be current and ready for review by TWC at any time. Refer to the Survey Checklist for records we will review in an on-site survey visit at your school. For complete details on all records you must maintain for your school's students and the school, read the law and rules on career schools and colleges.

Master Student Registration List & Student Transcripts

Your school must permanently maintain a Master Student Registration List that includes the information in our Sample Master Student Registration List.

You also must permanently maintain student transcripts of academic records.

If your school closes, you are still responsible for making arrangements for the continued preservation and accessibility of these records.

Student Financial Records

Keep your student financial records in accordance with federal retention requirements. Retain all other student records for at least five years from the student's last date of attendance.

Student Files

For each student, maintain an individual student file with documents from the student's school career, including:

Student Attendance Records

You must have a written narrative description of the school's system for maintaining a positive record of attendance, and you must maintain a master record of attendance for each student showing the number of hours scheduled each day and the hours of absence.

There are special student attendance record keeping rules for Title IV schools, synchronous distance education schools, and seminar classes.

School Records

Retain your school records for at least five years.

You must have the following documents ready for TWC on-site survey visits:

• Copies of all advertising, sales and enrollment materials
• Fire inspection records
• Staff approvals
• Instructor evaluations from supervisor as well as students
• Staff development/continuing education documentation
• Lesson plans

Unless yours is a seminar school, you must also keep and have ready for our survey visits:

Lists of advisory committee members and minutes of advisory committee meetings, if applicable.

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Student Access to Educational Records

You must provide copies of transcripts to students and, with their written permission, to prospective employers without charge for the first copy and at a reasonable cost for additional copies.

You do not have to provide transcript copies if the student has not fulfilled the financial obligation to the school or is in default or owes a refund on a federal or state student loan.

If your school is a Title IV school or receives any other funds from the U.S. Department of Education, you must follow the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) including providing students access to any of their educational records within 45 days of receipt of a request.

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Student Refunds

You must pay any refund owed to a student within 60 days of a student's effective date of termination. Beginning with the 61st day after a student leaves the school, you must pay a penalty for each day the refund is late. TWC sets the annual rate of interest on the late payment of refunds each year. The 2014 late refund penalty rate is 250%. Schools can avoid this penalty by correct calculation and timely payment of refunds.

• Late Refund Penalty Rate Notice

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Student Complaint Policy & Notice

All licensed schools must post a notice about how students can file complaints about their school. The notice has to include specific content shown in the Notice of Student Complaint Policy, Instructions and Sample Template.

You must post your complaint policy notice on the school's website and on the school premises in a central location or near the main entrance, in at least one of the student common areas such as a break room and in places where student solicitation, financial aid advising, and enrollment activities take place.TWC may require posting in other areas of the school to respond to problems with school compliance. The notice must be displayed where it is easy to see and be printed in a large enough font to be easily read.

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Directory of Licensed Career Schools and Colleges

Check your school's listings in our Directory of Licensed Career Schools and Colleges on a regular basis and provide information updates as needed.

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How Long Do Career School Need to Keep Student Information

Source: https://twc.texas.gov/partners/ongoing-requirements-licensed-career-schools#:~:text=Retain%20all%20other%20student%20records,student's%20last%20date%20of%20attendance.

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