Why you've never heard of it

Texas teachers have had this right since 1995. Almost none of them use it. Here is what the numbers show, what we think is going on, and what protects you if you use it.

How often it's used

In the 2024-25 school year, the state recorded 179 cases of a teacher permanently removing a student from class. Texas had about 370,000 teachers that year. That's about one removal for every 2,000 teachers.

For scale: in the same school year, Texas schools recorded 3,755 assaults on school district employees and more than one million violations of local codes of conduct.

Where these students went

The state also records what happened to each student after the removal. One incident can lead to more than one action, so these don't add up to the counts above. ISS is in-school suspension, OSS is out-of-school suspension, and DAEP is a disciplinary alternative education program.

"Hidden" means the state masked a small count to protect student privacy. In 2024-25, for the first time in these ten years, more of these students went to out-of-school suspension than to in-school suspension. Students moved to another classroom don't appear here.

On the record: teachers were pushed not to use it

In 2019, the author of a Texas Senate bill on teacher removals (Senate Bill 1451) explained why the bill was needed:

The Legislature passed that bill, and in 2025 it added more protection for teachers (below). Teachers still say they're on their own: in the Charles Butt Foundation's 2025 poll, 70 percent of Texas teachers said they lack adequate support from their campus for students with behavior problems. Asked what their administrators could do better, their top answer was support in handling discipline.

"It will hurt our numbers"

You may hear that a removal makes the school look bad. The law has answered that twice.

Be clear-eyed about the cost

Some people won't be happy. Your principal may be frustrated, because a removal creates work on a deadline. The teacher who gets the student may be upset. The parent may be angry. No law can change how someone feels about you.

What the law does is limit what anyone can do to your job because you used it. Keep everything professional and in writing, use the words of the law, and describe what the student did, not who the student is.

What protects you

Your job

Reporting a violation

The same section protects you for "the reporting of a violation of Chapter 37 to another professional employee of a school district, the agency, or a law enforcement agency" (§22.05121(b)(1)). Chapter 37 is where the removal rules live. If the student is sent back to your class before the conference, or no conference is held, you can report it to your district or to the Texas Education Agency, and that report is protected the same way.

Your evaluation

Your documentation

Your consent

The student comes back to your class only with your written consent, or after the committee decision, the conference, and a written return plan (§37.002(c)). For the most serious offenses against you, "The teacher may not be coerced to consent" (§37.002(d)).

Your administrators' own rules

The Texas Educators' Code of Ethics binds certified administrators too. An educator "shall not use coercive means ... to influence professional decisions or colleagues," and "shall not interfere with a colleague's exercise of ... professional ... rights" (19 TAC §247.2, Standards 2.6 and 2.4).

What the law doesn't cover

We'd rather you hear this from us. Section 37.002 has no general rule against retaliation. The 2025 job protection names firing, suspension, contract nonrenewal, and action against your certificate. It doesn't name a written reprimand, a schedule change, a cold shoulder, or a lower rating on something other than your removals.

If something like that happens because you used the law, you still have options:

• Keep your record. Every notice and letter you sent, with dates.
• Put it in writing. A short, calm email that says what happened and when.
• File a grievance under your district's employee complaint policy (usually numbered DGBA). Most districts' policy forbids retaliation for filing one. Deadlines are short, often 15 days, so check yours right away.
• Report coercion by a certified administrator to the State Board for Educator Certification, under the Code of Ethics.
• Know what the whistleblower law covers. The Texas Whistleblower Act protects public school employees who report a violation of law, in good faith, to an "appropriate law enforcement authority" (Government Code §554.002). Using your removal right isn't a report, so the act usually won't apply to the removal itself. If you file under it, you must start your district's grievance process within 90 days (§554.006).
• Get advice about your own job from a Texas attorney who represents teachers, or a professional association that offers legal help.

For every step in order, and what to know before you resign, see If your school ignores the law.

General information about Texas law, not legal advice.

Write your letters

Sources

• Texas Education Agency, State Level Annual Discipline Summaries, reason code 01, "Permanent removal by teacher," incident and action counts, 2015-16 to 2024-25; reason codes 21 and 27 for the 2024-25 comparison
• Texas Education Agency, PEIMS staff reports: about 370,000 full-time-equivalent teachers in 2024-25
• Senate Bill 1451 (2019), bill analysis with the author's statement of intent
• Senate Bill 1451 (2019), enrolled text: Sections 21.351(a-1), 37.002(b-1) and (e)
• House Bill 6 (2025), enrolled text: Sections 22.05121 and 37.028, and bill Section 24
• Texas Government Code, Chapter 554 (Whistleblower Act)
• Charles Butt Foundation, 2025 Texas Teacher Poll
• 19 TAC §247.2, Code of Ethics and Standard Practices for Texas Educators