Business leaders will get a closer look at school district takeovers this week when the Fort Worth Chamber of Commerce tours Houston schools.
The Fort Worth team wants to learn how the state’s 2023 takeover of Houston Independent School District impacted the Greater Houston Partnership and businesses in the area.
“It’s a fact-finding trip,” said Steve Montgomery, president and CEO of the Fort Worth chamber. “We had been talking to their government affairs guy and he was saying, ‘Be sure you do this,’ and ‘Don’t do this,’ so we decided to learn all we could because we don’t really know.”
Montgomery, Mayor Mattie Parker and other business leaders say it’s too early to know the impact of Texas taking control of FWISD on Fort Worth’s economic development efforts.
A strong public education system is key to attracting and retaining companies in North Texas, business leaders say. Incentives matter, but so does having a sizable talented workforce in the fast-growing city. Above all, they said, the business community must support the 67,500 students in Fort Worth ISD because they are the region’s future workforce.
“What I do know is that we’ve got leaders, Mayor Parker, superintendent leadership, that are laser-focused on delivering the best possible results for every student with Fort Worth ISD,” said Robert Allen, president and CEO of the Fort Worth Economic Development Partnership. “At the end of the day, that’s what matters most.”
The intervention — which includes appointing a board of managers and a superintendent — could impact such recruitment, said Michelle Green-Ford, president and CEO of the Fort Worth Metropolitan Black Chamber of Commerce.
“Anything that reflects negatively on our school district and education as a whole has an adverse effect on companies who may want to consider relocating here,” she said in a statement.
Some business leaders said they were disappointed that Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath will name new FWISD leadership in the spring. He appointed a conservator on Nov. 6 who will monitor progress and has the authority to overturn local decisions in the district.
They point to Superintendent Karen Molinar’s progress since she took over as Fort Worth ISD chief in March. Molinar, who has worked nearly three decades in the district, is a candidate in Morath’s national search for superintendent.
However, many expected state intervention after years of failing schools. One campus missing state academic standards five years in a row triggered the Texas law that required the takeover.
Former Mayor Ken Barr, who was a Tarrant County College trustee in recent years until he stepped down in the spring, said FWISD has struggled for decades with the quality of schools being a concern for many in the community when he was mayor from 1996 to 2003.
“One of the reasons I ran for the Tarrant County College board was I realized it takes a whole lot more on both ends, pre-K and before and then getting into a career or into higher education,” he said.
It’s important to invest in education to ensure that children in FWISD classrooms have the skills to compete, business leaders said. That’s why local businesses must find ways to support the students and district, they said.
Montgomery of the Fort Worth chamber said companies that call the city home and those looking to move here will want to know there is an action plan in place that will improve student performance.
“They want to know we’re doing the things necessary to make that happen,” he said, adding the takeover is now part of that story.
The takeover represents a generational opportunity to fix many of the issues that have plagued Fort Worth ISD schools for decades, said Issac Manning, president of Trinity Works, who has served stints on previous school district bond committees.
“Here’s a chance to focus on everything from the students to right-sizing our schools, to dealing with our real estate issues in a meaningful way, dealing with closure in a meaningful way, and being able to get everything that we’re doing to focus back on educational attainment for our kids and properly resourcing our schools,” he said.
Business leaders have voiced public concern about the direction of the Fort Worth ISD in recent years.
In August 2024, the mayor and a group of more than 40 civic leaders voiced dissatisfaction with the state of FWISD and offered a plan forward for the school board in a letter to the district. All City Council members also signed the letter, as did the leaders of all three Fort Worth chambers.
Fort Worth ISD lags behind many other Texas districts in academic performance, according to STAAR results. Only 30% of FWISD students scored at grade level on the state tests compared to 48% of all Texas students in 2024, according to the Texas Education Agency.
No one solution will address the challenges facing FWISD schools, Montgomery said. He and others note that Molinar has made substantial and important progress in leading the district.
“We applaud her efforts and see the state’s intervention as additive to that progress,” he said.
Those concerned about the state takeover of the school system’s impact on Fort Worth’s economy should keep in mind that this will be temporary, said Sriram Villupuram, associate professor of finance and real estate at the University of Texas at Arlington.
However, business leaders should keep a focus on what is happening in the local communities to monitor ripple effects, particularly near schools that have had low test scores because that could impact the economy, he said.
Now it’s critically important for business leaders and others to support the district to move forward, said Ben Robertson, who serves local boards including Trinity Metro and the Fort Worth Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.
“It’s important that we focus on the future of our kids and what that looks like for the community and not get lost in the past,” he said.
Members of the Black chamber have spent the past year participating in the mayor’s roundtable on education, which involves leaders focused on improving the school district.
Green-Ford stressed that chamber members have been pleased with Molinar’s progress and disappointed in the state’s action. Green-Ford urged business and community leaders to apply to be a manager before the Dec. 1 deadline.
The Black chamber, she said, is committed to working with TEA and those who will be appointed to serve Fort Worth’s students.
“These young people are the future of our city, and we must put forth every effort to ensure that they are genuinely prepared,” Green-Ford said.
Ty Stimpson, an attorney with Varghese Summersett who chairs the Black chamber’s board, added its members are seeking more ways to be active in citywide literacy efforts, such as signing up to read to students.
“It’s important that we rally behind them and let them know that we’re supporting them because we need them,” he said of the district’s children.
Eric E. Garcia is a senior business reporter at the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at eric.garcia@fortworthreport.org.
Bob Francis is business editor for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at bob.francis@fortworthreport.org.
Disclosure: Ben Robertson is a member of the Report’s Business Advisory Council. News decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here.
