Third through eighth grade students living in Fort Worth made modest gains on state reading and math exams this year, but continue to trail their peers across Tarrant County and Texas, according to STAAR results released Tuesday.
Schools within Fort Worth city limits increased 2 percentage points in math and 1 point in reading on the spring 2026 STAAR, according to a Fort Worth Education Partnership analysis of preliminary state testing data.
Still, fewer than half of Fort Worth students met grade level in either subject. In schools located within city boundaries, 36% of students met grade level in math, while 47% met the standard in reading.
The results show a familiar pattern for Fort Worth: measurable improvement, but not enough to erase years of academic gaps.
Brent Beasley, president and CEO of the Fort Worth Education Partnership, said the gains reflect the work of educators, district leaders and community groups that have been focused on improving student achievement.
“We are starting to see what’s possible when an entire city focuses on an issue and works together to resolve it,” Beasley said.
Fort Worth Education Partnership, a nonprofit committed to high-quality public education, found that city schools continued to trail both Tarrant County and statewide averages across all reported subjects. Statewide, 43% of students met grade level in math and 54% did so in reading.
Science results have not yet been released.
Fort Worth ISD, the city’s largest school district and one of two Tarrant County districts under state intervention, posted some of the strongest growth in the county. The district improved 6 percentage points in math and 3 points in reading, outpacing statewide growth in both subjects.
Lake Worth ISD, Tarrant County’s other takeover district, saw even larger math growth. The district increased 9 percentage points in math and 3 points in reading.
Lake Worth’s gains also followed leadership changes, Beasley said, including work under former Superintendent Mark Ramirez to bring a clearer focus to student performance.
But both districts remain well below state averages. The Fort Worth and Lake Worth districts still lag the state by about 10 percentage points or more in each subject.
“We have to both celebrate our improvement and keep the foot on the gas so our kids can fully catch up,” Beasley said.
Across Tarrant County, students also improved. Schools in the county showed gains of 2 percentage points in math and 1 point in reading, meaning Tarrant County outpaced the state’s math growth and matched the state’s reading gains.
District-level results varied widely.
Among the highest-growth districts in math were Lake Worth ISD, Castleberry ISD, Fort Worth ISD and Kennedale ISD. Castleberry, Kennedale, Fort Worth and Lake Worth also posted the strongest reading growth.
Beasley said Castleberry ISD’s growth was worth watching, crediting the district’s leaders and teachers for what he called really strong growth.
But growth and overall performance tell different stories.
Among Fort Worth-area districts reviewed by the Fort Worth Report, Carroll and Aledo remained the clear top performers, with more than two-thirds of students meeting grade level in math and more than 77% meeting grade level in reading across tested grades.
The Grapevine-Colleyville, Hurst-Euless-Bedford, Keller and Northwest districts also remained among the region’s strongest performers.
Lake Worth ISD remained near the bottom in both reading and math. Everman, Crowley and Fort Worth also continued to post some of the region’s lowest overall proficiency rates.
Beasley said Fort Worth’s progress should not obscure disparities within the city. In third-grade reading, he said, FWISD’s Black students’ achievement declined, with only 25% reading on grade level.
“All Fort Worth kids deserve the opportunity to succeed academically — not just a few,” Beasley said.
The results offer some encouragement for Tarrant County schools, especially in math. But for Fort Worth and Lake Worth, the takeaway is more complicated: Students are improving, while the academic gaps that helped lead to state intervention remain.
Beasley compared FWISD’s progress to a relay race. Under Molinar’s leadership, he said, students began gaining ground. Now that the baton has passed to new leadership, he said, the district must accelerate even more.
“I believe we can do it,” Beasley said. “We are showing that it is possible.”
Disclosure: FWISD manager Pete Geren leads the Sid W. Richardson Foundation, a financial supporter of the Fort Worth Report. FWISD manager Laurie George is a member of the Report’s reader advisory council. Lake Worth ISD manager Tom Harris is an executive vice president at Hillwood, a financial supporter of the Fort Worth Report. News decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here.
Matthew Sgroi is an education reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at matthew.sgroi@fortworthreport.org or @matthewsgroi1.
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