Fort Worth ISD leadership to let go of some staff members amidst state takeover
At a special meeting Tuesday night, the new Fort Worth ISD leadership team presented a turnaround plan amidst their state takeover, and it could include letting some staff go.
According to the agenda, the Board of Managers will discuss behind closed doors the decision not to renew or terminate certain contracts, then take up a public vote. This reduction in staff will apply to employees under a Chapter 21 contract, which, under the Texas Education Code, means classroom teachers, principals, librarians, nurses, or school counselors could be impacted.
Here's what the specific agenda item says:
"The superintendent of schools has determined it is in the best interest of the District to restructure certain areas of the District. The program change is part of the ongoing efforts to address the decrease in student enrollment, improve efficiency, and redirect resources to positively impact students. This restructuring will result in changes to a number of employment areas within the district."
Emotions ran high as speaker after speaker urged the board to slow down, warning that the cuts would impact a wide range of contracted employees.
"Find a way to retain every employee in this district," said Stephen Poole, the Fort Worth Teachers Union President.
The board decided not to take any action on terminating some contracted employees in the district on Tuesday night, but they did vote to reduce jobs for the ELEVATE campuses.
Leaders say internal job fairs are scheduled this Saturday and on the 25, giving staff a chance to apply for other positions for next school year.
Who could be impacted?
According to the agenda, this reduction in staff will only impact certain campuses.
That includes "ELEVATE" campuses, which are 19 of the lowest-rated campuses in the district.
The board will discuss giving them more attention to improve test scores. Teachers at those schools will receive higher compensation, and they will have an additional school day.
ELEVATE campuses will no longer have outside substitute teachers. Resident teachers, or teachers in training, will be the substitutes.
Here are the 2026-2027 ELEVATE campuses and their letter-grade ratings from 2025:
- Clifford Davis Elementary (F)
- Diamond Hill Elementary (D)
- East Handley Elementary (D)
- Eastern Hills- West Handley Elementary (F)
- George Clark Elementary (D)
- Harlean Beal Elementary (D)
- Hazel Harvey Peace Elementary (D)
- Maudrie Walton Elementary (D)
- Monnig Middle (D)
- Morningside Middle (F)
- Rufino Mendoza Sr. Elementary (F)
- T.A. Sims Elementary (F)
- Van Zandt-Guinn Elementary (D)
- W.J. Turner Elementary (D)
- W.M. Green Elementary (F)
- Wedgewood Middle (F)
- Westcreek Elementary (D)
- Western Hills Elementary (D)
- William James Middle (F)
Other campuses impacted by staff reductions that have already been approved to close include the following:
- Milton Kirkpatrick Elementary
- Charles E. Nash Elementary
- Riverside Applied Learning Center
- Edward J. Briscoe Elementary
- Western Hills Primary
- De Zavala Elementary
Why is this happening?
Fort Worth ISD is currently under a state takeover from the Texas Education Agency. One campus, which is now closed, was given an "F" for five years in a row, and that triggered a state law that allows the TEA to intervene.
Last month, the TEA appointed a new Board of Managers to temporarily replace the elected school board, and they appointed a new superintendent, Dr. Pete Licata.
The new leadership is tasked with turning around district-wide performance, and Tuesday's presentation is the first reveal of new plans.
