Tex. Codes » Education Code · TITLE 2. PUBLIC EDUCATION · SUBTITLE A. GENERAL PROVISIONS · CHAPTER 5. DEFINITIONS
Texas Codes

Tex. Educ. Code § 5.001 (2026)

Definitions

✓ current as of May 2026
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Sec. 5.001. DEFINITIONS. In this title:

(1) "Agency" means the Texas Education Agency.

(1-a) "Child who is homeless," "person who is homeless," and "student who is homeless" have the meaning assigned to the term "homeless children and youths" under 42 U.S.C. Section 11434a.

(2) "Classroom teacher" means an educator who is employed by a school district and who, not less than an average of four hours each day, teaches in an academic instructional setting or a career and technology instructional setting. The term does not include a teacher's aide or a full-time administrator.

(3) "Commissioner" means the commissioner of education.

(4) "Educationally disadvantaged" means eligible to participate in the national free or reduced-price lunch program established under 42 U.S.C. Section 1751 et seq.

(5) "Educator" means a person who is required to hold a certificate issued under Subchapter B, Chapter 21.

(5-a) "Mental health condition" means a persistent or recurrent pattern of thoughts, feelings, or behaviors that:

(A) constitutes a mental illness, disease, or disorder, other than or in addition to epilepsy, substance abuse, or an intellectual disability; or

(B) impairs a person's social, emotional, or educational functioning and increases the risk of developing a condition described by Paragraph (A).

(6) "Open-enrollment charter school" means a school that has been granted a charter under Subchapter D, Chapter 12.

(6-a) "Private school" means a school that:

(A) offers a course of instruction for students in one or more grades from prekindergarten through grade 12; and

(B) is not operated by a governmental entity.

(7) "Regional education service centers" means a system of regional and educational services established in Chapter 8.

(8) "Residential facility" means:

(A) a facility operated by a state agency or political subdivision, including a child placement agency, that provides 24-hour custody or care of a person 22 years of age or younger, if the person resides in the facility for detention, treatment, foster care, or any noneducational purpose; and

(B) any person or entity that contracts with or is funded, licensed, certified, or regulated by a state agency or political subdivision to provide custody or care for a person under Paragraph (A).

(9) "Substance abuse" means a patterned use of a substance, including a controlled substance, as defined by Chapter 481, Health and Safety Code, and alcohol, in which the person consumes the substance in amounts or with methods that are harmful to the person's self or to others.

(10) "Informed American patriotism" means a reasoned appreciation, gained through the study of historical primary sources, of why America has been, is now, and continues to be the destination of choice for those around the world who yearn to live in freedom. Informed American patriotism is only a conditional pledge of devotion that will be maintained only so long as America adheres to a republican form of government. If we abandon a representative democracy, our pledge of allegiance will be withdrawn as is stated in the Pledge of Allegiance, which swears devotion to a "republic".

Added by Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 260, Sec. 1, eff. May 30, 1995. Amended by Acts 1999, 76th Leg., ch. 396, Sec. 2.03, eff. Sept. 1, 1999.

Amended by:

Acts 2007, 80th Leg., R.S., Ch. 1371 (S.B. 7), Sec. 1, eff. June 15, 2007.

Acts 2017, 85th Leg., R.S., Ch. 522 (S.B. 179), Sec. 6, eff. September 1, 2017.

Acts 2019, 86th Leg., R.S., Ch. 352 (H.B. 18), Sec. 1.01, eff. December 1, 2019.

Acts 2019, 86th Leg., R.S., Ch. 597 (S.B. 668), Sec. 1.01, eff. June 10, 2019.

Acts 2021, 87th Leg., R.S., Ch. 1005 (H.B. 4509), Sec. 2, eff. June 18, 2021.

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 9 cases (1 in the last 5 years), 2002–2025 · leading case: Ex Parte Morales, 212 S.W.3d 483 (Tex. App. 2007).
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Ex Parte Morales, 212 S.W.3d 483 (Tex. App. 2007). · cites it 2× “See Tex. Educ.Code Ann. § 5.001(5) (West 2006).”
Mike Morath, Comm'r of Educ., in His Off. Capacity Glenn Hegar, Texas Comptroller of Pub. Accounts, in His Off. Capacity The Texas State Bd. of Educ. & the Texas Educ. Agency v. the Texas Taxpayer & Student Fairness Coalition Calhoun Cnty. Isd Edgewood Isd Fort Bend Isd Texas Charter Sch. Ass'n & Joyce Coleman, 490 S.W.3d 826 (Tex. 2016). “For those who are disappointed, their remedy “lies in the Legislature and thus in the privilege and duty that all Texans have to elect the legislators who will implement the policy choices they desire.” Ante at 868. . See Tex. Const, art. VII, § 1; id.”
Azleway Charter Sch. v. Hogue, 515 S.W.3d 359 (Tex. App. 2016). “See Tex. Educ. Code Ann. § 5.001 (6) (West 2012).”
Houston v. Nelson, 147 S.W.3d 589 (Tex. App. 2004). · cites it 2× “” Tex. Educ.Code ANN. § 5.001(2) (Vernon Supp.”
Untitled Texas Attorney Gen. Opinion: KP-0488 (Tex. Att'y Gen. 2025). “, TEX. EDUC. CODE § 5.001 (“Definitions”). The absence of a statutory definition requires us to assess the “common, ordinary meaning” of the term “chaplain” by consulting relevant dictionaries and the term’s “usage in other statutes, court decisions, and similar authorities.”
Bd. of Trs. of Mission Consol. Indep. Sch. Dist. v. Cent. Educ. Agency & Dizdar Dev., Inc. (Tex. App. 2002). “See Tex. Educ. Code Ann. § 5.001 (West Supp. 2002).”
Ex Parte Santiago Morales Jr. (Tex. App. 2006). “See Tex. Educ. Code Ann. § 5.001 (5) (West 2006).”
Ex Parte Santiago Morales Jr. (Tex. App. 2006). “See Tex. Educ. Code Ann. § 5.001 (5) (West 2006).”
Hermenia Jenkins v. Crosby Indep. Sch. Dist. & Michael L. Williams in His Off. Capacity as State Comm'r of Educ. (Tex. App. 2015). “ccredited or otherwise approved by an accrediting organization recognized by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board; (3) hold a valid classroom teaching certificate; (4) have two creditable years of teaching experience as a classroom teacher, as defined in Chapter 153,…”
— Tex. Educ. Code § 5.001(2) — 2 cases
Houston v. Nelson, 147 S.W.3d 589 (Tex. App. 2004). “” Tex. Educ.Code ANN. § 5.001(2) (Vernon Supp.”
Hermenia Jenkins v. Crosby Indep. Sch. Dist. & Michael L. Williams in His Off. Capacity as State Comm'r of Educ. (Tex. App. 2015). “ccredited or otherwise approved by an accrediting organization recognized by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board; (3) hold a valid classroom teaching certificate; (4) have two creditable years of teaching experience as a classroom teacher, as defined in Chapter 153,…”
— Tex. Educ. Code § 5.001(4) — 1 case
Mike Morath, Comm'r of Educ., in His Off. Capacity Glenn Hegar, Texas Comptroller of Pub. Accounts, in His Off. Capacity The Texas State Bd. of Educ. & the Texas Educ. Agency v. the Texas Taxpayer & Student Fairness Coalition Calhoun Cnty. Isd Edgewood Isd Fort Bend Isd Texas Charter Sch. Ass'n & Joyce Coleman, 490 S.W.3d 826 (Tex. 2016). “For those who are disappointed, their remedy “lies in the Legislature and thus in the privilege and duty that all Texans have to elect the legislators who will implement the policy choices they desire.” Ante at 868. . See Tex. Const, art. VII, § 1; id.”
— Tex. Educ. Code § 5.001(5) — 2 cases
Ex Parte Morales, 212 S.W.3d 483 (Tex. App. 2007). “See Tex. Educ.Code Ann. § 5.001(5) (West 2006).”
Houston v. Nelson, 147 S.W.3d 589 (Tex. App. 2004). “” Tex. Educ.Code ANN. § 5.001(2) (Vernon Supp.”
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