Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath shared details on Tuesday about the qualities he sought in new state-appointed leaders in the Fort Worth Independent School District, who were announced earlier in the day.
New Fort Worth ISD Superintendent Peter Licata and a nine-person Board of Managers consisting of attorneys, educators and business leaders formally began their roles on Tuesday, starting the clock on a state takeover that could last at least two years. Morath answered questions from the media over Zoom, sharing background on how the appointments were decided.
Morath acknowledged former Superintendent Karen Molinar’s leadership and gave her praise for the foundation she set for Fort Worth ISD as it starts its next phase of governance. He noted that the superintendent search was conducted nationwide to find the best talent pool possible and called Licata’s track record “quite stellar.”
“Bringing in an outside party, a fresh set of eyes can significantly benefit when trying to reassess from top to bottom the things that are going on,” Morath said, citing business processes, funding allocation and classroom instruction as examples.
Morath highlighted Licata’s “varied school context” that is applicable to Fort Worth ISD’s large range of neighborhoods and high number of campuses. Licata most recently served as superintendent of Broward County Public Schools in Florida. His education background includes working as a teacher, coach, principal, regional superintendent, assistant superintendent and university professor.
“He led at the most senior level for a relatively brief period of time in Broward, yet got it back up to an A (rating). First time that’s happened in that school district in over a decade. And our goal is to see similar levels of academic gains and performance gains in Fort Worth,” Morath said.
In terms of the Board of Managers, Morath said he used his prior experience as a Dallas ISD school board member as a lens for selecting board members. Effective board members should believe all children can learn and achieve when given proper support while also being “servant leaders” with a mentality to serve the school system and families, he said.
Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath talks to the press following a tour of William James Middle School on Aug. 28, 2025, in Fort Worth. Amanda McCoy amccoy@star-telegram.com
Familiarity with business processes was also a focus when choosing members of the Board of Managers, as the district has an almost $1 billion budget. Morath looked for diversity in terms of people who have held leadership positions in small and large institutions.
“We looked for a broad array of individuals who represent Fort Worth in a variety of different contexts, from a variety of different backgrounds, but who can come together around this united vision,” Morath said.
The Board of Managers and new superintendent replace the Fort Worth ISD’s elected school board and former superintendent Molinar as the state intervenes to turn around the district’s struggling academic performance. In accordance with state law, the district received notice almost a year ago of potential state intervention after a now-closed campus had five failed accountability ratings from the state in a row.
After months of due process, in addition to appeals sought by Fort Worth ISD officials, the district was unsuccessful in stopping the state takeover from happening.
The takeover will continue until the district meets criteria set by the Texas Education Agency, which include exceeding the state and/or regional average for meeting-grade-level proficiency in reading and math, and ensuring the district has no schools unacceptable ratings for multiple years.
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Lina Ruiz covers early childhood education in Tarrant County and North Texas for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. A University of Florida graduate, she previously wrote about local government in South Florida for TCPalm and Treasure Coast Newspapers.