Inside ALERRT Level 1 (TCOLE 3311): The 16-Hour Class, Rule 218.3, and FREE Texas Seats
Most Texas officers who have not yet finished ALERRT Level 1 are not looking for another PowerPoint. They need a two-day class that puts them in a hallway, teaches them how to move as a team, and ends with force-on-force. That class is ALERRT Level I Basic — 16 hours over two days, reported to TCOLE as course 3311. It is still the once-per-career Level 1 requirement for peace officers who do not already have 3311, 3313, or 3315 on their record, and American Police Training is listing FREE Texas Indirect Delivery seats this fall and winter.
The Advanced Law Enforcement Rapid Response Training Center at Texas State University in San Marcos was built as a partnership with the San Marcos Police Department and the Hays County Sheriff’s Office. Texas State’s Center page still carries the 2013 FBI designation as the national standard in active shooter response training, and it still prints the line officers care about: in most cases the training is delivered at no cost to first responders or agencies. APT’s host page for the program is ALERRT Center at Texas State University.
ALERRT’s published Level I catalog does not sell a lecture. The course is designed to prepare the first responder to isolate, distract, and neutralize an active shooter. The same topic block covers both the 16-hour Basic course and the 40-hour Train-the-Trainer. The difference is role, not a secret second curriculum.
Level I Basic is two days for licensed law enforcement officers, active or retired. Level I Train-the-Trainer is five days, with preferred tactical, firearms, or instructor experience and a teach-back. Graduates of that 40-hour class become Certified Instructors who can then run Level I for their own and partner agencies. APT’s Texas listings titled Basic Active Shooter Level I — Indirect Delivery are the 16-hour user course, taught by those local certified instructors. They are not the instructor school.
According to ALERRT’s Level I course page, the 16 hours cover:
The course culminates in dynamic force-on-force scenarios. That is why ALERRT’s hosting guidance tells agencies the building has to be clean enough for people to lie on the floor — typically an unoccupied school with wide hallways and multiple classrooms, or another ALERRT-approved facility. Students bring a long-sleeve shirt, gloves, groin protection, and an open mind. ALERRT provides head, eye, and throat protection. Duty gear and body armor are strongly suggested, not required.
One practical note for training coordinators: First Responder Medical is a separate ALERRT catalog course. Level I’s published outline is not a medical class. Do not log it as one.
Indirect delivery also has reporting nuance. ALERRT reports TCOLE hours for its direct delivery and online courses. For Indirect Delivery, the host or the student’s agency is responsible for reporting. If your agency cannot report, confirm the host is a TCOLE contract training provider before you travel.
Senate Bill 1852 still requires every Texas peace officer to complete ALERRT Level 1 at least once by August 31, 2027, and to complete 16 hours of ALERRT training every two-year unit. Courses that satisfy the one-time Level 1 requirement include 3311, 3313, and Train-the-Trainer 3315. If one of those three is already on the officer’s TCOLE record, do not repeat Level 1; finish the ongoing 16-hour ALERRT requirement with an approved ALERRT course instead. If none of those three is on the record, the mandated sheet says the officer must complete 3311 by that 2027 date.
Separately, Rule 218.3 (amended, effective September 1, 2026) updated continuing education. Per TCOLE’s adopted-rules summary, supervisors must complete advanced incident response and command continuing education each two-year training unit. Individuals licensed as reserve law enforcement officers or public security officers must complete ALERRT continuing education each four-year cycle and complete ALERRT Level 1 by August 31, 2029. Rule 218.3 is a CE rule, not a course number, and it is not 1016.
Chief administrators (police chiefs, sheriffs, and elected constables) also still owe an ALERRT Command and Control course once each two-year cycle. That is a different mandate from the Level I user course — see ALERRT’s TCOLE page for the accepted command-and-control course list.
These are two-day classes. Cost prints as FREE. Confirm the seat on the event page before you travel.
More Texas dates sit on the Texas events list. If you need instructors who can teach Level I, look for the 40-hour Train-the-Trainer (TCOLE 3315) — that is a different listing from the 16-hour user course.
Sources: ALERRT Level I catalog; ALERRT TCOLE page; Texas State ALERRT Center; TCOLE Commission Rules (Rule 218.3 adopted summary); TCOLE, Legislatively Mandated Training – Peace Officers; TCOLE specific course reporting numbers.
Inside ALERRT Level 1 (TCOLE 3311): The 16-Hour Class, Rule 218.3, and FREE Texas Seats
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