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MISD reviews 2025-26 employee handbook changes tied to 89th Legislature, mental-health training and reporting rules
Summary
District staff presented proposed 2025-26 employee handbook updates, citing legislative changes, new mental-health training requirements, outside-employment limits for administrators and shorter mandatory-reporting timelines for suspected abuse.
Montgomery Independent School District staff presented proposed updates to the 2025-26 employee handbook on Aug. 19, describing multiple changes driven by the recent Texas legislative session and by policy guidance from TASB.
Staff said the district used TASB92s updated model handbook and that the most significant changes reflect (1) public-meeting posting timelines, (2) outside-employment and tutoring restrictions for administrators, (3) new evidence-based mental-health training for employees who regularly interact with students, and (4) tightened timelines and expanded definitions for mandatory reporting of suspected child abuse or misconduct.
Key clarifications staff provided included: board meetings and workshops must now be posted three business days in advance and a designated employee (identified in the presentation as Chabondolin Johnson, benefits and employee relations coordinator) will be the contact for open-records requests; administrators with significant administrative duties may be restricted from outside employment that poses a conflict with district business or curriculum unless the board approves; mental-health training must be completed by all staff who regularly interact with students using an evidence-based program, with the district targeting roughly 25% of staff each year until compliance is met; and the statutory reporting window for suspected abuse decreased from 48 hours to 24 hours, with required reports to law enforcement and the Department of Family and Protective Services within that timeframe.
Staff also flagged an apparent tension between two changes: the enhanced reporting and definitions of inappropriate boundaries, and a separate statutory requirement that parental consent be obtained before providing counseling services in schools (identified in the presentation as related to Senate Bill 12). Staff said administrators are working through how to comply with both requirements while preserving student welfare.
The handbook updates further addressed technology use (restrictions on entering student or staff data into external artificial-intelligence systems), vacation and non-duty-day definitions and pay for 260-day employees (10 paid vacation days per year, accrued without limit, payout on separation prorated by days worked), and superintendent-level reporting responsibilities when a staff member92s resignation or termination involves allegations of misconduct. Staff advised the board that the superintendent must report certain conduct to the State Board for Educator Certification (SBEC) and that district practice is to report as soon as facts are available rather than waiting the full statutory window.
Discussion: Trustees asked clarifying questions about timelines, who reports to whom, and how the district will implement mental-health training and new definitions of misconduct. Staff confirmed that principals and campus leaders will need training on the new reporting standards and that procedures will be refined before the Sept. 1 effective date cited in the presentation.
Next steps: Staff will return to the board with the final handbook language and any required requests for board approval of specific outside-employment exceptions.
