. . 

TEXE ATTORNEY GENERAL 

OF 7l?ExAs 

January 11, 1968 

Mrs. Bess Blackwell 

Executive Secretary 

Opinion No. M-191 

State Board of Hairdressers Re: Whether under Section 5-a 

and Cosmetologists of,,Article 734-b, Vernon's 

Sam Houston Building Penal Code, Junior Colleges 

Austin, Texas 78701 will be eligible for cosmetology courses the same 

Dear Mrs. Blackwell: as vocational high schools. 

You request from this office ,an opinion as to the 

above captioned matter. you have also stated.in your letter 

that the Board members have felt that junior colleges are not 

exempt under the above provisions, although public high schools 

are considered exempt and that presently the Texas Education 

Agency wishes to install cosmetology training courses in junior 

colleges. 

Section 5(a) of Article 73433, Vernon's Penal Code, 

reads as follows: 

"Sec. 5. (a) Any person, firm, association 

or corporation applying to the Board for an original certificate of registration or license, as a 

school of beauty culture, shall make such application in the form prescribed by the Board, giving 

the data and information required by the Board. 

The Board shall, in such applications, require 

such data, information and facts as it deems necessary to determine such applicant's compliance 

with this Act and his or its fitness to conduct 

and maintain such school. No applicant for an 

original school license shall hereafter be granted an original certificate of registration or 

license unless it shall have a building approved 

by the Board, having therein a minimum floor 

space of not less than three thousand, five hundred (3,500) square feet floor space in a modern 

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Mrs. Bess Blackwell, page 2, (M-191) 

fireproof building of permanent type construction. Such space shall be divided into three 

(3) separate departments, viz: a theory classroom, a room for practical work for seniors, 

and a room for practical work for juniors, and 

shall have not less than two (2) modern, sanitary toilets in separate rooms where there are 

male and female students, and shall possess 

and have installed the minimum equipment and 

apparatus required by the Board, sufficient to 

properly train and fully instruct a minimum of 

fifty (50) students at one time in all subjects 

of its curriculum; and such schools shall thereafter maintain the premises and minimum equipment 

and apparatus; and such applicants shall furnish 

a good and sufficient surety bond payable to the 

State of Texas, conditioned to refund any unused 

portion of tuition paid if such school closes or 

ceases operation before~courses of instruction 

have been completed. Provided, however, that 

the requirements as to floor space, type of 

building, bond requirement and number of licensed instructors shall not apply to Public Vocational Schools." (Emphasis added.) 

The leading case upholding constitutionality of 

junior college districts is Shepherd v. San Jacinto Junior 

College District, 363 S.W.2d 142 (Tex.Sup. 1963). The Court 

in discussina the nature of junior colleae districts made 

the following observation at-page 744: - 

"Some difficulty of classification has 

arisen with reference to junior colleges and 

the regional districts supporting them. Undoubtedly the framers of the Texas educational 

system envisioned a system of schools extending 

from those of an elementary grade to those of a 

university level, that is, elementary schools, 

secondary schools or high schools and colleges 

and universities. The junior colleges, developed 

for the most part since 1929, are sandwiched in, 

so to speak, between the high schools on one 

hand and the colleges or universities on the other 

hand. In certain respects, the junior college is 

what its name implies, that is, a school which is 

above the high school level yet one whose highest 

grade is below the educational level required for 

a degree from a university. Yet, as pointed out 

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Mrs. Bess Blackwell, page 3, '(M-191) ' 

by one of the briefs~on file here, it would not 

be inappropriate to refer to the districts which 

support such schools as 'junior college districts' 

'advanced independent school districts' or 'graduate high school districts.' The point of this 

is that junior colleges and their districts may 

in some instances be regarded as colleges and in 

other instances as schools in the nature of advanced high schools. The Junior College Act ,itself makes numerous references to independent 

school districts when delineating the powers and 

operations of a junior college district. 

"The Texas junior college history bears some 

relation to the experience of, other states with 

secondary schools, that is, high schools or college 

preparatory schools. 

II II . . . (Emphasis added.) 

We may say that, dependent upon the curriculum 

any high school, junior college or university would be regarded as academic in some areas and vocational and technical in other areas. 

A school of cosmetology is generally considered 

to be a vocational school as opposed to an academic school. 

It is, therefore, the opinion of this office that 

junior colleges, which offer as a part of its curriculum, 

vocational instruction, fall within the proviso of Section 

5-a of Article 73413, Vernon's Penal Code, and that the requirements as to floor space, type of building, bond requirement, number of licensed instructors, do not apply to such 

schools. 

------- SUMMARY 

The last sentence of Section 5a of Article 

73413, Vernon's Penal Code, which provides an exception for public vocational schools, applies 

to junior colleges of this State, which offer 

vocational instruction as a part of their curriculum, since a junior college may provide in 

its curriculum for terminal vocational and technical courses as well as preparatory academic 

courses. 

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f . 

Mr$. Bess Blackwell, page 4, (M-191) 

C. MARTIN 

rney General of Texas 

Prepared by Pat Cain 

Assistant Attorney General 

APPROVED: 

OPINION COMMITTEE 

Hawthorne Phillips, Chairman 

Kerns Taylor, Co-Chairman 

John Reeves 

Brock Jones, Jr. 

W. V. Geppert 

James Quick 

A. J. CARUBBI, JR. 

Staff Legal Assistant 

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