Campus and District Handbooks and Policies

As a parent, you are the most important voice in your child’s education. Texas law recognizes that students 
do best when families are informed, involved, and respected. Parents are partners with educators, 
administrators, and school boards of trustees in their children’s education. Parents have specific rights 
outlined in the Texas Education Code including Chapter 26: Parental Rights and Responsibilities. 

This form provides information about many of the parental rights and options described in the Texas 
Education Code, including the right to refuse or remove your child from certain activities and instruction. 
It is not a complete description of all parental rights. Parents should review this form along with their 
district’s student handbook and the Parental Rights Handbook posted on the Texas Education Agency’s 
website.

Parents are entitled to choose the educational setting that best fits their child including public school 
options or private schools (including home school programs). Parents may be eligible for funding to 
support their choice through educational savings accounts. If parents choose public schools, there are a 
variety of options within that category including options within and outside of your current school district
like public charter schools and virtual/hybrid programs and campuses. 

A parent has the right to petition the district school board if the parent would like to request the assignment or transfer of their child to a different school in the district. Parents can also request transfers when their children are victims of certain offenses such as sexual assault or bullying. 

Children of peace officers and military personnel also have certain rights related to where they can attend 
school. 

Parents have the right to access public education grants to request assignment at a different school or 
district when their child’s current school scores an unacceptable rating according to Texas’ academic 
accountability system.

Parents have a right to participate and direct their child’s academic career. They are allowed to request 
changes to their child’s course assignments including the addition of specific classes to the overall 
offerings of their child’s school and placing their child in a more advanced class. There are also additional 
services available for students who are struggling with their coursework or who do not meet satisfactory 
performance on state assessments. Parents have the right to be informed of and reject these services. 

Districts must inform parents when their child is assigned an uncertified teacher or an inappropriately 
certified teacher (as this term is defined by law) for more than thirty consecutive instructional days during 
a school year. 

Additionally, a parent typically must be notified if they have a child in prekindergarten through grade 4 and 
the class exceeds twenty-two students.

Once in ninth grade, a district must notify a parent each year of opportunities for their child to earn college 
credit and work-based education programs, and parents will be part of the development of students’ 
personal graduation plans. 

Public schools are required to follow the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) when adopting their 
curriculum. Parents have certain rights to participate in the development and updating of these standards
through the State Board of Education’s processes.

To increase and sustain parental involvement in children’s education, parents have many rights of access 
and oversight of instructional materials used in their children’s classrooms. A parent is entitled to review 
all teaching materials, instructional materials, and other teaching aids used in their child’s classroom.
Similarly, parents are entitled to access and review available library materials. Parents may submit lists of 
library materials that their child is not permitted to access which the school must enforce. Parents must 
also be able to access their student’s library records. Parents may request formal reviews of both 
instructional materials and library materials.

Before each school year, a district must adopt a grading policy that describes how grades for class 
assignments and examinations will be awarded. Additionally, your district or school will post on their 
website an instructional plan or course syllabus for each class offered each semester. Each child’s teacher 
must also give this to a parent as well, and a parent can ask for another copy at any time.

Texas has a law that requires children of specific ages to attend school, typically referred to as the 
compulsory attendance law. Parents have certain rights that exempt their child from compulsory 
attendance or authorize excused absences. The state requires a student to be present for 90 percent of 
the days a class is offered in order to receive credit for a course or a final grade. A parent can, however, 
petition a district’s attendance committee for their child to regain credit for a course or a final grade in 
certain cases if the child’s attendance is below 90 percent. While students are still responsible for missed 
work, parents may request that their child be excused for 1 to 5 hours per week to attend religious 
instruction. Parents may also remove their child from a class or activity that conflicts with their religious or 
moral beliefs by submitting a written request to their child’s teacher. 

State law now requires the commissioner of education to develop a standard way of calculating grade point average (GPA) that districts must use. A GPA is used to help develop students’ class ranking. School 
districts have certain obligations to provide information to parents and students informing them of 
automatic admission into state teaching institutions for students who reach certain levels of class ranking. 

Parents are also encouraged to find out more about each school district board’s plan for parental 
participation, which is required to improve parent and teacher cooperation, including in the areas of 
homework, school attendance, and discipline.

Parents have certain rights to request that their child progress in their educational career more slowly or 
quickly depending on their abilities and progress. A parent may request that their child repeat certain 
grades or courses. 

Districts are required to notify parents about halfway through each grading period if their child’s 
performance in reading/language arts, math, science, or social studies is unsatisfactory. Additionally, a 
district must offer at least two opportunities each yearfor in-person conferences between each parent and 
their child’s teachers. 

School districts must provide parents with certain information about graduation requirements and involve 
them in developing personal graduation plans.

To tailor a student’s educational experience to their parents’ values and beliefs as well as those of their 
communities, there are certain parental rights associated with the health education provided to students. 
Each district must have a local school health advisory council (SHAC), which must be composed of mostly 
parents of enrolled students, to help make certain decisions around the district’s health education and 
other health-related decisions. 

Parents must also provide written consent before schools provide any human sexuality instruction.

The state legislature has prohibited instruction and guidance for students relating to sexual orientation or 
gender identities. Additionally, school districts must have a policy and prohibit staff assistance of students 
socially transitioning. Parents have certain rights relating to observed violations of this policy and school 
boards must investigate complaints.

The Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) establishes required immunizations for students
who attend public schools in Texas. Parents who wish to exempt their child from the required 
immunizations can access an exemption affidavit form from the DSHS website

Before the first day of the school year, districts must inform parents of each health-related service offered 
at the campus their child attends. Health-related services will vary by campus and district but might 
include services such as school counseling services, physical health screenings, first aid, management of 
chronic illnesses, medication administration, social skills training, substance abuse prevention, and 
stress management. When notice is provided to a parent, a statement must also be provided of the 
parent’s right to decline or deny consent for any health-related service. 

Parents retain their right to make medical and health care decisions for their child and consent will be 
sought prior to care being provided unless it is for life saving care or otherwise prohibited or not required 
under other existing laws. 

A parent may submit a written request to the school to administer nonprescription medication to their child if the medication provided by the parent is unexpired, appears to be in the original container, and the dose requested by the parent is consistent with the container’s label. Prescription medication that the parent would like administered to their child at school would need to also be submitted with a written request by the parent asking that it be administered to the child while at school. 

School counselors must implement a comprehensive school counseling program in accordance with state 
law and guidelines. However, each school must annually conduct a preview of the program for parents, 
and parents could choose to remove their child from the services provided under this program.

School districts must develop a process to identify and serve students who are considered gifted and 
talented. Each district has a policy about how gifted and talented students are identified and served.

Students with disabilities and emergent bilingual students are entitled to certain protections and 
programming under both federal and state law. Parents have the right to be involved and informed in their 
educational experience and are entitled to receive specific notices to ensure their participation in meetings 
regarding their child’s educational needs.

Parents of students who are emergent bilingual who qualify or might qualify for bilingual or special 
language programs can access information regarding their rights in those programs. 

Parents of students who receive special education services or who think their students might be eligible 
for special education services can review an Overview of Special Education for Parents form or can access 
SpedTex for more information.

There are certain protections available for student and family information obtained from a student at 
school. Parental consent is required for many types of surveys or information gathering before those can 
occur, including information that involves gathering a student’s biometric identifiers such as fingerprints 
or retina scans. School districts are also required to consult with parents to create local policies that cover 
parental rights during surveys or physical exams and the collection of personal information from students.

Additionally, the release of student-level information maintained by a district would be prohibited, with 
limited exception, without parental consent to release that information.

Parents have several options when they suspect a requirement is not being followed. You are encouraged 
to work through disagreements with your child’s teacher(s) and campus administrators. School districts
must also have a local grievance process to ensure parents can submit a grievance to the individuals most 
able to address their concern and to appeal up to the board of trustees, or a committee composed of some of the board members, within timelines designated by law. Districts are required to post on their websites and in student handbooks their procedures for resolving grievances and the forms for filing grievances. 

In certain cases, a parent may appeal to the commissioner of education. If a public school appears to be 
violating an education law of the state, the parent may also file a complaint with the agency.