If Morath orders a state intervention of Fort Worth ISD, it would make it the second-largest takeover in Texas history. The TEA assumed control of Houston ISD, the state\u2019s biggest district, in 2023<\/p>\n
Fort Worth ISD, which has about 67,500 students, has faced the threat of a takeover for months after one of its campuses earned a failing rating for five consecutive years. State law requires the commissioner to either appoint a board of managers to govern a district or order the closure of a consistently failing campus. <\/p>\n
Complicating matters is that district officials closed the failing campus, Leadership Academy at Forest Oak Sixth Grade, in 2023. The 2023 failing state rating that triggered the takeover was released only this year after lawsuits delayed the state\u2019s A-F academic accountability grades for two years. <\/p>\n
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In recent months, Fort Worth ISD officials said their schools have improved in accountability ratings over the past year, a sign that their reforms, such as new reading and math frameworks, are paying off. Fifty of the district\u2019s schools have moved up at least one letter grade, and the number of F rated schools has decreased from 31 to 11.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are committed to equipping teachers with the resources they need and ensuring students receive consistent, high-impact instruction that accelerates learning and academic growth,\u201d district officials said in May after the 2023 accountability ratings release. <\/p>\n
Morath, who visited Fort Worth schools in late August, described the \u201clevel of student proficiency\u201d in Fort Worth as \u201cmuch lower\u201d than similar districts. <\/p>\n
Morath said he was visiting campuses to understand how well the district supported its classroom teachers. After a visit to William James Middle School in August, where he observed students and teachers in an English and math class, Morath said he saw \u201chighs and lows.\u201d <\/p>\n
\u201cThere are changes that have to be made, because otherwise we wouldn\u2019t be in this situation in the first place,\u201d he said. \u201cThe goal is to make those changes quickly and then to reach some degree of stability so that we can just trend year in and year out.\u201d <\/p>\n
At the time, he said a decision on a takeover would come in three months. <\/p>\n
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After the state took over Houston ISD, Morath installed former Dallas ISD superintendent Mike Miles to lead the nearly 200,000-student district. <\/p>\n