Fort Worth ISD superintendent's job under review as district falls behind
FORT WORTH, Texas - The Fort Worth Independent School District’s leadership is under fire after being criticized for not keeping up with the city’s growth.
Fort Worth ISD Superintendent Dr. Angelica Ramsey sat silent as frustrated parents, teachers and community members teed off on her performance during a specially called meeting Tuesday.
"The teachers and principals that are being run off are not the ones who are ineffective," said Fort Forth ISD Teacher Ale Checka.
The board of trustees called Tuesday’s meeting to discuss the superintendent’s future.
Last month, Mayor Mattie Parker presented a letter backed by 40 community leaders, including members of the Fort Worth City Council, expressing their dissatisfaction with the district’s STAAR test results.
Mayor calls Fort Worth ISD’s STAAR test results ‘unacceptable’
In 2024, Fort Worth ISD students scored 11 percentage points lower than Dallas ISD students on the STAAR test. Mayor Mattie Parker called the stats "unacceptable" and is demanding trustees take action.
Fort Worth ISD is now 11 percentage points behind Dallas ISD and 14 percentage points behind Houston ISD.
When accountability ratings were released last week, the district fell from a B in 2022 to a C for this past school year. Those ratings are largely based on how students performed on the STAAR test.
"Look at how many teacher openings we have. Look at the failure," said resident Hollie Plemons. "What have you done to contribute to that? Because she is 100% in charge, and she is 100% to blame."
A handful of people at Tuesday’s meeting believe the superintendent is receiving unfair criticism.
"Paying the blame game does not help anyone," one speaker said.
However, the majority of people speaking during public comment believe blame starts at the top.
Dr. Ramsey has been on the job for two years and makes $335,000 a year.
"Mayor Parker was right to come into this room and express the community’s dissatisfaction with you," another speaker said.
Trenace Dorsey-Hollins is a mother of two daughters who were in the district. Now, her ninth grader is elsewhere.
"One of my daughters I had to move out of the district just because they weren’t meeting the needs of her," she said. "We’re just ready for the district to really put some focus on our kids."
The superintendent’s seat was empty once the board returned from closed session and ended Tuesday’s meeting. But as of now, no action has been taken.
Fort Worth ISD Board President Roxanne Martinez said she could not discuss personnel issues. When asked about the superintendent’s performance, she said she’d reserve comment until further discussion have taken place.
The board has a regularly scheduled meeting next Tuesday. That’s when we could learn more.