TDLR details school licensing, curriculum timing, inspections and electronic proof-of-inspection

TDLR’s education and inspections staff explained how implementation affects barber and cosmetology schools.

Lorraine (team lead, Education & Examination) told attendees that starting Sept. 1, 2023, separate barber and cosmetology school licenses will combine into one school license per address. That single license can cover both barber and cosmetology courses and students at the same location; separation in curriculum remains where specific practical techniques require unique hours (for example, the 300-hour block for shaving or eyelash-extension training).

The department said curriculum technical standards in Rule 83.202 will be available for course approvals beginning Aug. 1, 2023, so schools and high schools can submit new courses in advance of the fall academic term. Lorraine also reminded schools that a 25-to-1 student-to-instructor ratio remains in effect for permitted students; teacher-prep or mentor participants do not count toward that ratio.

Eric Beverly described inspection changes: beginning Sept. 1 the agency began risk-based inspections that consider recidivism and prior inspection outcomes, and the new electronic inspection system (built with the Texas Department of Information Resources and Microsoft) will email typed PDF inspection reports with standardized violation descriptions. "So now you will be receiving via email a PDF that has typed out all the information about your inspection, including any violations," Beverly said. He explained that licensees have 10 days to correct violations and 30 days to acknowledge fixes via reply email (attach photos or documentation) and urged schools to keep contact information current.

Rebecca Armis and others reiterated that instructor licenses were deregulated and that schools and districts set local hiring standards; TDLR will retain instructor-hour records in its database for verification and transcript requests.