Fort Worth ISD’s accountability grades show improvement, but a failing middle school triggered Texas’ intervention law.
William James Middle School received its fifth consecutive F rating Aug. 14 as the 60,000-student district maintained a C overall.
Five straight F’s means the education commissioner has to either close the campus or appoint a board of managers to govern the district.
FWISD is in its first year of a state takeover that saw Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath appoint a new superintendent and board of managers.
The district now has seven F-rated campuses, down from last year’s 11. Morningside Middle School received its fourth consecutive F.
The ratings are largely based on how well students do on STAAR, or State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness.
Morath ordered the intervention in October over years of low academic performance and a campus that received five consecutive failing academic accountability grades under the Texas’ school rating system.
Texas assigns A-F ratings based on three broad areas: student achievement, school progress and how well districts and campuses are closing gaps among groups of students. The calculations rely heavily on STAAR performance. At the high school level, ratings incorporate measures including graduation rates and college, career and military readiness.
The 2026 grades measure performance during the 2025-26 school year, most of which unfolded before Licata and the appointed managers took control. The results provide a new benchmark for the district under state intervention, but they are not a clean measure of the state-appointed leadership’s work.
FWISD entered this year after two consecutive years of improvement in its overall rating. This year’s C had a score of 77. The district scored 73 in 2025, up from 70 in 2024.
That 4-point gain masks considerably more movement campus by campus.
Among 117 campuses with ratings in both years, 41 improved by at least one letter grade, 53 stayed the same and 23 declined.
The number of A- and B-rated campuses grew from 43 to 52, while D- and F-rated campuses fell from 35 to 25.
Some of the swings were dramatic:
- Diamond Hill Elementary climbed from a D to an A.
- M.H. Moore Elementary moved from a D to a B.
- West Handley Elementary jumped from an F to a C.
At the other end, Carter Park, Sunrise-McMillan and Woodway elementary schools each fell from a C to an F.
The results are still far from Morath’s criteria to return control back to elected trustees: eliminate campuses with multiple years of unacceptable ratings; meet or exceed state or regional averages for students reaching grade level in reading and math; and improve the appointed board’s governance performance.
This is a developing story.
Jacob Sanchez is education editor for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at jacob.sanchez@fortworthreport.org or @_jacob_sanchez.
Matthew Sgroi is an education reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at matthew.sgroi@fortworthreport.org or @matthewsgroi1.
Disclosure: FWISD manager Pete Geren leads the Sid W. Richardson Foundation, a financial supporter of the Fort Worth Report. FWISD manager Laurie George is a member of the Report’s reader advisory council. At the Fort Worth Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here.
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