After months of deliberation, the TEA is expected to take over, and a state-appointed board will lead Fort Worth ISD, sources say.

FORT WORTH, Texas — We will have coverage of this story starting at 9 a.m. Thursday live on WFAA+.

TEA Commissioner Mike Morath is expected to announce a state takeover of the Fort Worth Independent School District on Thursday, sources confirmed to WFAA.

The Texas Education Agency (TEA) sent a release to WFAA Wednesday afternoon, announcing a press conference involving Commissioner Mike Morath starting at 9 a.m. Thursday. The appearance comes just two days after Morath visited Lake Worth ISD, which also faces the possibility of a state takeover.

Sources told WFAA that Morath is expected to announce a full state takeover of the district.

WFAA has reached out to the TEA for confirmation, but we have not heard back.

Sources told WFAA this would be a full takeover, which could mean the existing board — and its superintendent — could be stripped of their positions and replaced with state-appointed candidates. If implemented, the state would begin accepting applications for the board and superintendent positions, sources said.

Sources said the takeover should last anywhere from two to three years.

Fort Worth ISD has been facing the potential of a state takeover since one of the district’s schools, Leadership Academy at Forest Oak 6th Grade, received an unacceptable rating for its fifth consecutive year, according to the 2023 TEA A-F ratings. That same year, the district consolidated the failing campus with Forest Oak Middle School.

State law requires the TEA Commissioner to intervene if a campus receives five consecutive years of a failing grade.

Despite the “F” rating, Fort Worth ISD’s campuses have improved academically over the past year. The number of F-rated schools in Fort Worth ISD dropped significantly, from 31 in 2024 to 11 in 2025. Additionally, the number of “A” rated schools jumped by 70%, according to TEA data.

Several schools were able to make a significant jump from an F rating, including M.L. Phillips, Cesar Chavez, Versia Williams, and D. McRae Elementary schools, which all leaped from an F to a B rating. Fort Worth ISD noted that nine other schools moved from an F to a C rating. 

That turnaround can partially be attributed to Molinar, who took over as the district’s superintendent in February after the resignation of Angélica Ramsey. Since taking over, Molinar and the district have rolled out an aggressive overhaul, planning to designate seven campuses as “resource campuses” using the Texas Education Agency’s (TEA) Resource Campus model. That designation would expand the school year at some campuses, provide incentives to teachers with high-performing classes and require principals, assistant principals and teachers to reapply for their jobs at those campuses, among other changes.

“I am held accountable for campuses that are continuously not performing,” Molinar said at the September presentation, announcing the initiative. “This is how I’m holding myself accountable, by putting this school action in place…This can change the trajectory of them being on grade level.”

It is unclear if that re-designation would continue under the state.

This would not be the first time a state-appointed board has taken over a Texas school district. Most recently, the TEA took over Houston ISD in 2023 after Wheatley High School received its seventh consecutive unacceptable rating. This past summer, the state expanded its takeover of Houston ISD through June 2027.

Since 2023, HISD has reduced the number of D- and F-rated schools from 121 to 41.


Despite academic success, the takeover in Houston has drawn criticism as the district saw its 28 libraries removed and replaced with “discipline centers.”

According to our content partners at KHOU, Houston ISD must meet three criteria to end the state takeover: 

No multi-year academically unacceptable campusesSpecial education operations must be in compliance with state and federal lawThe board must operate with procedures aligned with high-performing governance practices

Fort Worth and Lake Worth ISDs are not the only districts currently being considered for a state takeover. Beaumont ISD, just five years removed from its last state takeover, faces the possibility of another state takeover. Cornally ISD and Wichita Falls ISD are also grappling with that fate after years of underperformance at campuses in their districts.