Texas education classroom with a flag
BEN TORRES/Special Contributor
North Texas’ biggest school districts largely held steady in this year’s A-F accountability ratings, according to scores released Friday.
Dallas, Fort Worth, Arlington and Garland ISDs all gained a few points compared with last year’s results, but not enough to improve a letter grade. Statewide, nearly a quarter of both campuses and districts improved their ratings, and 85% of campuses that received a rating earned a C or better.
In a statement, Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath said the ratings give families a clear way to understand how their children’s schools are performing.
Article continues below this ad
Related: Dallas ISD earns second straight B rating from Texas Education Agency
“This year’s A-F ratings illustrate the progress Texas public schools are making and acknowledge the hard work of our educators while illuminating areas of needed improvement to ensure that all students have access to a high-quality education,” he said.
The state’s rating system is designed to give schools and districts credit for either student performance or student progress, whichever score is higher. In a news release, TEA officials said the scoring system gives all campuses the ability to earn high ratings, no matter where their students begin. Officials said nearly 400 high-poverty campuses statewide earned an A rating. That’s a list that includes Lorenzo De Zavala Middle School in Irving ISD, which earned a 91. About 85% of the school’s students are classified as economically disadvantaged.
Dallas ISD accountability ratings
Dallas ISD, the state’s second-largest public school district, earned its second consecutive B rating, improving to an 85 from an 83 last year. In an announcement about the rating released Thursday, district officials said Dr. L.G. Pinkston Sr., South Oak Cliff, Skyline and David W. Carter high schools moved into A-rated territory, and W.H. Adamson High School maintained its A rating from last year.
Article continues below this ad
During a meeting Thursday evening, Superintendent Stephanie Elizalde told the board everyone “from the curb to the classroom” deserves credit for the district’s progress. That includes not only teachers and principals, but also bus drivers, maintenance workers, security officers and many others.
“Every single person that serves Dallas ISD has worked towards us arriving at our students being a strong B, at an 85 for the 2026 accountability ratings,” she said.
While the district made gains on this year’s ratings, it fell short of Elizalde’s goal of having no D- or F-rated campuses. The district has two F-rated campuses: Edward Titche Elementary School, which received a B last year, and Harrell Budd Elementary School, which earned a D last year. During Thursday’s meeting, Elizalde acknowledged the district still has work to do.
“We’re very good, but we’re not excellent. That’s an A,” she said. “And we’re going to keep working towards that A.”
Fort Worth ISD accountability ratings
Fort Worth ISD earned its third consecutive C rating, climbing from a 73 last year to a 77 this year. The district spent most of the 2025-26 school year under the leadership of Superintendent Karen Molinar and the district’s locally elected board before a state-appointed board and superintendent took over in March. The district is under a state takeover after a single campus received a fifth straight F rating.
Article continues below this ad
The number of campuses in Fort Worth ISD earning an A or B rating climbed to 55 this year from 45 last year, and the number of campuses earning a D or F declined to 26 from 39. Among those that gained more than one letter grade was Leonard Middle School, which improved to a C rating after earning four consecutive Fs. Last year, the district’s elected board added Leonard to a group of schools the district operates in partnership with Texas Wesleyan University as a part of a campus turnaround program.
But another chronically low-performing campus continued to struggle. William James Middle School received its fifth straight F rating, a threshold that would put the district at risk of state takeover if it weren’t already under TEA intervention.
In a news conference Monday, Peter Licata, the district’s state-appointed superintendent, said students would notice several changes this year, including instruction that runs from the beginning of the school day to the final bell.
In a statement, Zach Leonard, president of the advocacy group Families Organized Resisting Takeover, or FORT, said the district’s progress is a result of Molinar’s leadership. The group hopes that momentum continues under Licata’s leadership, he said.
The organization will continue to advocate for clear, consistent communication with parents, evidence-based instructional strategies, protections for students in dual language and special education programs and engagement and collaboration with teachers and parents “who, so far, do not feel heard,” he said.
Article continues below this ad
Other North Texas districts posted gains. Arlington ISD received its fourth consecutive C rating, climbing to a 78 from a 77 last year. Garland ISD maintained the B rating it’s received for several straight years, climbing to an 86 from an 84 last year. Frisco ISD maintained an A rating, improving to 91 from a 90 for three consecutive years. Richardson ISD moved from a C to a B, climbing to 83 from a 79 last year.
Elsewhere, this year’s accountability scores placed Austin ISD one step closer to a state takeover. Webb and Burnet middle schools received their fifth consecutive F ratings, triggering a state law that requires Morath either to shut down those campuses or replace the district’s elected board of trustees with a state-appointed board of managers.
If Morath does take over Austin ISD, the district will join a growing list of districts that are under state intervention. TEA took over Fort Worth and Lake Worth ISDs last year, and Morath announced last year that the takeover of Houston ISD that began in 2023 will extend through June 1, 2027.
The DMN Education Lab deepens the coverage and conversation about urgent education issues critical to the future of North Texas.
Article continues below this ad
The DMN Education Lab is a community-funded journalism initiative, with support from Bobby and Lottye Lyle, Communities Foundation of Texas, The Dallas Foundation, Dallas Regional Chamber, Deedie Rose, Garrett and Cecilia Boone, Judy and Jim Gibbs, The Meadows Foundation, The Murrell Foundation, Ron Steinhart, Solutions Journalism Network, Southern Methodist University, Sydney Smith Hicks, and the University of Texas at Dallas. The Dallas Morning News retains full editorial control of the Education Lab’s journalism.