Peter Licata, the state-appointed superintendent of the Fort Worth school district, speaks during a news conference Tuesday, March 24, 2026, at the Reby Cary Youth Library. He was joined by board member Courtney Lewis, left; board chair Pete Geren; Fort Worth Mayor Mattie Parker; his wife Maria Licata; and board members Rosa Maria Berdeja and Luis Galinda.
Samuel O’Neal
soneal@star-telegram.com
Our group, Families Organized Resisting Takeover, or FORT, mobilized when the Texas Education Agency announced its intervention in Fort Worth ISD. Our name is direct, but our mission is not simply resistance. We are parents, educators and community members who believe that real improvement in our schools cannot happen without us.
Research from the Harvard Graduate School of Education shows that schools with strong family engagement produce stronger student outcomes. We have stepped up because we are invested. We started FORT to advocate for our children, not to fight others who are also trying to improve student outcomes.
Now that the TEA has taken over our district, we are squarely outside of the democratic process. The newly appointed Board of Managers and Superintendent Peter B. Licata do not represent us; they were chosen by and serve at the discretion of the TEA. Voters cannot remove managers if they take extreme actions that run counter to our community’s interests. The TEA, however, could remove managers who do not vote in accordance with the agency’s directives, as happened in Houston, where four managers who voted against the hand-picked superintendent on some matters were replaced. Therefore, we must demand transparency and accountability from the appointed leadership.
FWISD has underperformed academically for decades. We know that, and we want change. Our community has a clear vision for what great schools look like, and it is broader than a test score. We want schools that care about fine arts, libraries, recess and the social and emotional well-being of our children. We want kids who are prepared for life, not just for a standardized test.
Literacy is at the center of it all. We cannot ignore that far too many FWISD students are not reading at grade level and that dyslexia often goes unidentified and unsupported. We need leadership that understands the science of reading, invests in real dyslexia intervention and treats literacy as the foundation of quality education. A child who cannot read proficiently by third grade faces a steeper climb in the rest of education and life. We cannot accept that as inevitable.
Unconditionally supporting TEA’s intervention simply because change is needed could risk unintended consequences, though. Our children deserve calls for action rooted in evidence-based research, not hollow platitudes that call for unity while asking families not to question too much or too loudly.
FWISD families and teachers have reason to worry about the TEA intervention. In the first two years of the Houston ISD intervention, 13,000 students left the district and significant numbers of experienced teachers followed, resulting in consequential loss of both district funding and access to quality teachers. A call for action to support Fort Worth’s children should not ignore the real dangers a district takeover presents.
What if, instead, our community’s rally cry is one for radical and genuine transformation that puts student outcomes first? Where past and present city leaders, business leaders and families come together to demand that politics be set aside and public education for all is prioritized? Where together, we advocate for evidence-backed policies that support better student outcomes? Where we acknowledge both our district’s failings and the dangers of a district takeover? Where such advocacy is not seen as disruptive but as essential to the future of Fort Worth children?
If we do not hold FWISD’s new leadership accountable to student outcomes, how will we prevent the attrition of our students and our teachers? How will we stave off the loss of funding that comes with such attrition, which could take years for our city to restore?
If this intervention is genuinely about children, then we have no reason not to work together. FORT is ready to be a partner. We are ready to bring parents, teachers, and community voices to the table to help build something better.
If you care about Fort Worth children and the future of public education in our city, join us. Now is not the time for blind trust or looking the other way — too much is at stake. Join FORT and champion student outcomes. Expect transparency. Demand accountability. Fight for quality public education for every child. Fort Worth’s children are worth it.
Dionna Deardorff is communications director of Families Organized Resisting Takeover, or FORT, a Fort Worth ISD parent advocacy organization. Zach Leonard is president.
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