FWISD Superintendent Karen Molinar observed the children learning as she visited classrooms Monday and Tuesday, knowing the clock on her three decades in Fort Worth schools was winding down.
Molinar, 51, learned her time in the district that grew her from a reading teacher into a principal and, eventually, the leader of its schools was over after the Texas education commissioner told her last week she won’t serve during the state takeover. She informed families and staff Wednesday that she will not remain as superintendent.
“I promised them at the beginning of this that I would be transparent, and I would give them updates,” Molinar told the Fort Worth Report. “I had to do that even when it came to what would happen to me personally and professionally. I had to stand up to my word.”
Her impending departure from FWISD drew mixed reactions. Some teachers, parents and city leaders praised Molinar’s decades of service and insisted she should remain in the role during the takeover. Others argued new leadership is necessary as state leaders try to turnaround years of failing academics in Fort Worth.
Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath said the decision to move forward with new leadership reflects the scale of change the district needs to accomplish during the turnaround. The commissioner recently completed interviewing superintendent candidates and is considering 21 people for nine appointments to the board.
“This decision is not a reflection of Dr. Molinar’s leadership but made with consideration for the scope of changes and improvements needed to better serve all students in the district,” he said in a statement.
Fort Worth ISD chairs sit vacant during a board meeting on Oct. 28, 2025. (Maria Crane | Fort Worth Report/CatchLight Local/Report for America)
North Side High School teacher Monita Sharpe described Morath’s decision as “crummy.” Molinar was hired to turnaround FWISD, and that’s what Sharpe has begun to see in classrooms after the district’s rocky times under the two previous superintendents.
“You cannot always bring somebody from the outside to do what needs to be done at home,” Sharpe said. “If you look at some of the issues that have happened in Fort Worth ISD, that’s exactly what we did.”
Brandon Hall, a State Board of Education member representing parts of FWISD, said he appreciated Molinar’s service, but backed Morath’s decision. Student outcomes have remained stubbornly low for nearly a decade.
Children need bold leadership that comes from outside of the Fort Worth school system, he wrote in a Facebook post.
“The turnaround process calls for difficult decisions that are often complicated by long-established personal relationships,” Hall wrote. “Commissioner Morath has the opportunity to bring in a leader with fresh perspectives and the independence needed to make tough decisions and break from the status quo that has failed students.”
Molinar isn’t leaving immediately and plans to be at the March school board meetings. Morath informed her that his appointments for superintendent and the board of managers are expected in 30 to 60 days, she said.
Until then, her priority stands fast.
“Stay focused on our kids,” she said. “We would not be here if we did not serve kids.”
The leadership change comes months after the commissioner ordered the state intervention in October, citing years of low academic performance and a campus that received five consecutive failing accountability grades under Texas’ school rating system.
Molinar became superintendent in March 2025 after serving as interim leader. Some educators and city leaders urged the state to keep her at the helm during the takeover process.
‘Stability or not?’
Students listen for words to rhyme and complete bingo cards during Bookworms, an after school program at E.M. Daggett Elementary School, on Jan. 22, 2026. Students listened for a word and had to find a rhyming match on their bingo cards. (Maria Crane | Fort Worth Report/CatchLight Local/Report for America)
Educators across Fort Worth ISD say the decision not to retain Molinar deepens uncertainty in a district already preparing for a state takeover. Teachers worry the change could disrupt stability in classrooms and push experienced staff to consider leaving.
Johnathan Sanders, a career and technical education teacher at I.M. Terrell Academy, said losing a longtime district educator who rose through the ranks could deepen concerns among teachers about their own stability.
“It’s a tragedy,” Sanders said. “We have a Fort Worth ISD veteran educator who worked her way up to superintendent, and now just like that they pull the rug from underneath her.”
The change could also discourage teachers hoping to advance within the district themselves, he said.
“When you have one that wants to stay — and you don’t have to pay her to leave — you let the state get rid of her?” he said. “So it’s like, are we going to have stability or not?”
Replacing Molinar intensifies uncertainty among teachers already nervous about the state takeover, said Steven Poole, executive director of the United Educators Association that represents many FWISD employees. That could drive an exodus of employees seen in other districts taken over by the state, he warned.
“Molinar, they knew her and respected her. With her not getting the superintendent job, I think it’s going to cause a lot more people to look for opportunities outside of Fort Worth,” Poole said.
Nearby districts are already trying to poach Fort Worth ISD’s educators, he said. Teachers point to Houston ISD, where the state takeover brought sweeping leadership changes and new instructional policies that critics say contributed to that district’s teacher departures and heightened pressure on classrooms.
“Other districts are actively recruiting Fort Worth teachers,” Poole said. “I was at the Arlington ISD job fair, and I would estimate about 300 Fort Worth teachers in the room. So they’re already looking.”
Steve Montgomery welcomes attendees to the State of the City on Oct. 16, 2025. (Maria Crane | Fort Worth Report/CatchLight Local/Report for America)
Some Fort Worth business leaders expressed support for the state’s intervention.
In December, leaders from the Fort Worth Chamber of Commerce, Fort Worth Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and Fort Worth Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce visited a Houston campus and later praised what they described as “bold systemic changes” under that district’s state-appointed Superintendent Mike Miles.
Steve Montgomery, president and CEO of the Fort Worth Chamber of Commerce, thanked Molinar on Wednesday for her service and said business leaders will continue working with the district during the transition.
“We are deeply grateful to Superintendent Molinar for her dedicated leadership and steadfast commitment to the students, families and educators of Fort Worth ISD,” Montgomery said in a statement. “Her service to the district has made a meaningful difference, and we sincerely appreciate the care and integrity she has brought to this role.”
Michelle Green-Ford, president of the Fort Worth Metropolitan Black Chamber of Commerce, conveyed disappointment in Morath’s decision, stressing that the district’s next leader must build on progress already made.
“We are disappointed that Dr. Molinar will not be continuing as superintendent of FWISD, for her experience and community engagement have provided great value to the district,” Green-Ford said in a statement.
The Hispanic chamber did not respond to a request for comment about Molinar’s departure.
Leadership matters, parents say
Parents and community leaders offered mixed reactions to Morath’s decision. Some said Molinar’s leadership had strained relationships with families, while others argued removing her now threatens morale in a district already facing major change.
In February, mother Heather Tolksdorf was certain Molinar shouldn’t remain leading Fort Worth schools. Tolksdorf pointed to the superintendent’s handling of the accelerated closing of De Zavala Elementary, her children’s campus.
“She’s not engaging and bringing the community along with her,” Tolksdorf said. “She is failing at leadership and expecting everything to go well. She’s just white knuckling it through to the end.”
Families Organized and Resisting Takeover, or FORT, a parent advocacy group formed a few months before the state intervention was announced, criticized Morath’s decision to oust Molinar.
Fort Worth parent Zach Leonard speaks during a town hall hosted by Families Organized and Resisting Takeover on Sept. 19, 2025, in Greater St. Stephen First Church on East Berry Street. (Jacob Sanchez | Fort Worth Report)
“Dr. Molinar’s removal is disappointing and destabilizing for a district that has made real academic progress,” FORT President Zach Leonard said in a statement. “Teachers and staff deserve clarity and stability.”
The group plans to continue advocating for transparency and a clear path back to local control, Leonard said. Many in the community expressed frustration over the state keeping applicants for the district’s appointed board of managers secret. The managers will govern the district in place of locally elected trustees.
One of Molinar’s most vocal cheerleaders urging Morath to keep her was Mayor Mattie Parker, who calls the superintendent a friend. Parker said Wednesday afternoon she was grateful for Molinar’s leadership, commitment and nearly three decades of service to FWISD, especially during the intervention.
“The district has achieved significant gains under her leadership, notably improving 40 campuses by a full letter grade in just one academic year,” Parker said. “The progress we have seen is a testament to her professionalism, heart and dedication to all Fort Worth students.”
Mayor Mattie Parker and Fort Worth ISD Superintendent Karen Molinar hold a press conference at Mary Louise Phillips Elementary School in Fort Worth during their first day of school Aug. 12, 2025. (Maria Crane | Fort Worth Report/CatchLight Local/Report for America)
Beyond school accountability ratings, a recent midyear exam showed average reading scores increased by 1 to 8 points while average math scores bumped up 1 to 5 points.
Those gains are an encouraging sign that students are moving in the right direction, said Leila Santillán, chief operating officer for the Fort Worth Education Partnership.
But the improvements were not big or quick enough for Morath. However, they are a solid foundation for her successor, the commissioner said in a statement.
“These needs require specialized leadership that can rapidly improve the trajectory of the district,” Morath said.
Molinar doesn’t have any regrets as her time working for Fort Worth ISD ends. She’s disappointed she won’t be at graduation in May. But for now, the work continues even as she reflects on her career and considers her next steps.
“Who would have thought this girl from Delaware who moved here by herself and started teaching in an underground school in the first grade classroom? And now look at me,” Molinar said. “I took a chance, and this place took a chance on me, too. But you can’t sit back and wait for something to be handed to you.”
Karen Molinar
Education:
Doctorate in education administration, Texas Wesleyan University
Master’s in education administration, Tarleton State University
Bachelor of science in education, Salisbury State University
Associate degree in early childhood education, Delaware Technical and Community College
Experience:
2020-2023: Deputy superintendent of Fort Worth ISD; interim superintendent in 2022
2018-2020: Chief of staff of Fort Worth ISD
2016-2018: Fort Worth ISD’s chief of elementary leadership
2014-2016: Assistant superintendent for Fort Worth ISD’s Learning Network 1
2011-2014: Director of leadership and Learning Network 1 in Fort Worth ISD
2010-2011: Director of elementary school leadership in Fort Worth ISD
2007-2010: Principal of Oakhurst Elementary in Fort Worth ISD
2006-2007: Assistant principal of M.G. Ellis Elementary in Fort Worth ISD
2005-2006: Assistant principal of Bayard Intermediate in Christina, Delaware
2003-2005: Assistant principal of Bonnie Brae Elementary in Fort Worth ISD
1997-2003: Teacher at Washington Heights Elementary in Fort Worth ISD
Family: Married to Orlando Molinar and they have one daughter, Kendal, who is in college.
Hobbies: Molinar is an avid reader.
Why she got into education: Molinar grew up around teachers. Her two aunts are teachers. A cousin, who she described as like a sister, is a teacher. Growing up, Molinar’s aunts let her grade papers and she “just fell in love with the concept of it. And then, I always liked school.”
Editor’s note: This story was updated at 5 p.m. March 4, 2026, with additional reporting. The story was originally published at 11 a.m. March 4, 2026.
Matthew Sgroi is an education reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at matthew.sgroi@fortworthreport.org or @matthewsgroi1.
Jacob Sanchez is education editor for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at jacob.sanchez@fortworthreport.org or @_jacob_sanchez.
At the Fort Worth Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy her
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