The following words and terms, when used in this subchapter, shall have the following meanings, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.

1. (1) ADE-1317--The driver education certificate of completion used for certifying completion of a driver education course exclusively for adults. This term encompasses all parts of a certificate of completion with the same control number issued for an approved driver education course. It is a government record.
2. (2) Advertising--Any affirmative act, whether written or oral, designed to call public attention to a school and/or course in order to evoke a desire to patronize that school and/or course.
3. (3) Alternative method of instruction--A method of instruction for the minor and adult driver education course that does not require students to be present in a classroom.
4. (4) Branch school--A licensed driver education school that has the same ownership and name as a licensed primary driver education school.
5. (5) Break--An interruption in a course of instruction occurring after the lesson introduction and no later than 30 minutes before the daily lesson ends.

6. (6) Change of ownership of a school--A change in the control of the school. Any agreement to transfer the control of a school is considered to be a change of ownership. The control of a school is considered to have changed:

   1. (A) in the case of ownership by an individual, when more than 50% of the school has been sold or transferred;
   2. (B) in the case of ownership by a partnership or a corporation, when more than 50% of the school or of the owning partnership or corporation has been sold or transferred; or
   3. (C) when the board of directors, officers, shareholders, or similar governing body has been changed to such an extent as to significantly alter the management and control of the school.
7. (7) Chief school official--The owner, director, assistant director, or assigned liaison of a licensed driver education school.
8. (8) Clock hour--55 minutes of instruction time in a 60-minute period for a driver education course. This includes classroom and in-car instruction time.
9. (9) Contract site--An accredited public or private secondary school approved as a location for a driver education course of a licensed school.
10. (10) Course content validation question--A question designed to establish the student's participation in the course and comprehension of the course material by requiring the student to answer a question regarding a fact or concept taught in the course.
11. (11) Criminal history record information--In accordance with the Texas Government Code, §411.082(2), information collected about a person by the Texas Department of Public Safety, a law enforcement or a criminal justice agency, or a private entity governed by the Fair Credit Reporting Act (15 United States Code, §1681 et seq.) that consists of identifiable descriptions and notations of arrests, detentions, indictments, informations, and other formal criminal charges and their dispositions.
12. (12) DE-964--The driver education certificate of completion used for certifying completion of an approved minor and adult driver education course. This term encompasses all parts of a certificate of completion with the same control number issued for an approved driver education course. It is a government record.
13. (13) Deferred adjudication--An order by a court deferring action on a criminal matter pending the successful completion of terms imposed by that court.
14. (14) Division--The division of the Texas Education Agency (TEA) responsible for administering the provisions of the law, rules, regulations, and standards as contained in this chapter and licensing Texas driver training programs.
15. (15) Division director--The person designated by the commissioner of education to carry out the functions and regulations governing the driver education schools and designated as director of the division responsible for licensing driver training programs.
16. (16) Educational objectives--The goal to promote respect for and encourage observance of traffic laws and traffic safety responsibilities of driver education and citizens; reduce traffic violations; reduce traffic-related injuries, deaths, and economic losses; and motivate development of traffic-related competencies through education, including, but not limited to, Texas traffic laws, risk management, driver attitudes, courtesy skills, and evasive driving techniques.

17. (17) Good reputation--A person is considered to be of good reputation if:

    1. (A) there are no felony convictions, unless the applicant can successfully demonstrate that the applicant has been rehabilitated;
    2. (B) there are no convictions involving crimes of moral turpitude;
    3. (C) within the last seven years, the person has never been successfully sued for fraud or deceptive trade practice;
    4. (D) the person has not owned or operated a school with serious violations; and has never owned or operated a school or course provider that closed with violations, including, but not limited to, unpaid refunds or selling, trading, or transferring a DE-964, ADE-1317, or uniform certificate of course completion to any person or school not authorized to possess it. In making a determination regarding serious violations, the division may consider the seriousness and number of violations, efforts made to correct the violations, and any history of similar violations;
    5. (E) the person has not failed to provide material information to representatives of TEA or falsified instructional records or any documents required for approval or continued approval;
    6. (F) in the case of an instructor, there are no misdemeanor or felony convictions involving driving while intoxicated over the past seven years; and
    7. (G) in the event that an instructor or applicant has received deferred adjudication of guilt from a court of competent jurisdiction, a determination can be made upon satisfactory review of evidence that the conduct underlying the basis of the deferred adjudication has not rendered the person unworthy to provide driver training instruction. When determining underlying conduct, the commissioner may consider the facts and circumstances surrounding the deferred adjudication.
18. (18) Inactive status--When a license is placed on inactive status, it does not confer authority for the activity for which the license was issued until the license has been reactivated.
19. (19) Moral turpitude--Conduct that is inherently immoral or dishonest.
20. (20) National criminal history record information--Criminal history record information obtained from the Federal Bureau of Investigation under Texas Government Code, §411.087, based on fingerprint identification information.
21. (21) Personal validation question--A question designed to establish the identity of the student by requiring an answer related to the student's personal information such as a driver's license number, address, date of birth, or other similar information that is unique to the student.
22. (22) Primary school--A licensed driver education main school that may have branch schools.
23. (23) Teacher of record--A licensed supervising driver education teacher or licensed driver education teacher employed at the school who is directly responsible for the classroom instructional phase provided by a teaching assistant-full.

Source Note:The provisions of this §84.100 adopted to be effective December 26, 1999, 24 TexReg 11335; amended to be effective April 21, 2005, 30 TexReg 2215; amended to be effective December 29, 2010, 35 TexReg 11636; amended to be effective August 27, 2012, 37 TexReg 6593; transferred effective September 1, 2015, as published in the Texas Register August 28, 2015, 40 TexReg 5471.