TCOLE advisory committee advances draft training-coordinator standards, tasks subcommittee with curriculum

Presiding officer Director Scott Donaldson convened the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement advisory committee and led a broad discussion of draft minimum standards for training coordinators and a proposed new training curriculum. The committee agreed that a subcommittee will finalize course objectives and return a revised draft for the commission to consider.

The conversation focused on two linked efforts: a new “training coordinator” initial course (described in the meeting as the “basic” or “new training coordinator course”) and an ongoing continuing-education requirement for persons who serve as training coordinators on licensed basic courses. "We appreciate everybody making time on our busy schedules for this important project," Director Scott Donaldson told the group, opening the session.

Why it matters: the committee is drafting rules that would raise the baseline qualifications for anyone serving as a training coordinator for licensing courses (basic peace officer courses and similar licensing programs). Committee members said the change is intended to reduce instances in which poorly vetted individuals run licensure programs and to create a clear pathway—initial qualification plus continuing education—for future appointments.

Most discussion centered on who would be covered by stricter rules and how to make the requirement practical. The draft text presented to the committee calls for training coordinators for licensing courses to hold either a peace-officer license or “the respective license for the course to be taught,” undergo a…