Lake Worth ISD leaders want more young students reading and doing math on grade level, more middle schoolers prepared for high school and more graduates ready for college or careers by 2031.
The priorities form the foundation of four proposed academic goals presented July 15 to the district’s state-appointed board of managers.
The board did not vote on the goals. Managers will refine them during governance training and at their August meeting before adoption.
The proposed goals are part of a broader effort to establish what academic improvement should look like during Lake Worth ISD’s state intervention — and what the district must accomplish before control returns to an elected board.
The district posted some of Tarrant County’s largest gains on the spring 2026 STAAR, improving 9 percentage points in math and 3 points in reading. However, it remained near the bottom of the region and at least 10 points behind the state in both subjects.
“Goals are your priorities,” Ben Mackey, a Dallas ISD trustee and the district’s governance coach, told managers. “This is what winning looks like for the school system.”
Lake Worth ISD has not held public listening sessions on the proposed goals and guardrails before presenting them to managers. The board of managers in Fort Worth ISD, Tarrant County’s other district under state intervention, is gathering community input through listening sessions for its new goals.
Lake Worth’s draft — still missing some measures and specific targets — lays out four goals:
Early literacy
Early mathematics
Middle school readiness
College, career and military readiness
Lake Worth ISD’s proposed academic goals
The district has not yet filled in every baseline or 2031 target.
Goal 1: Early literacy
Increase the percentage of third graders who meet grade level or higher on the reading STAAR from 27% in 2026.
The district would track whether more kindergarten, first- and second-grade students reach or exceed reading benchmarks on tests administered throughout the school year.
Goal 2: Early mathematics
Increase the percentage of third graders who meet grade level or higher on the math STAAR from 30% in 2026.
The district would track whether more kindergarten, first- and second-grade students reach or exceed math benchmarks on tests administered throughout the school year.
Goal 3: Middle school readiness
Increase the percentage of eighth graders who finish middle school meeting grade level or better in both reading and math on STAAR by June 2031. The district has not yet listed the baseline or final target.
Progress measures would include:
Sixth and seventh graders reaching or exceeding benchmarks in both reading and math.
More eighth graders enrolling in and passing the Algebra I end-of-course exam.
Goal 4: College, career and military readiness
Increase the percentage of graduates who meet the state’s college, career and military readiness standard by June 2031. The baseline and final target have not yet been filled in.
The district would track:
Sophomores through seniors meeting college-readiness standards in math and English.
Juniors on track to complete an approved college or career pathway, including an industry certification, dual-credit coursework or military-readiness option.
Although Lake Worth ISD would use reading and math tests administered throughout the school year to track students’ progress, the proposed goals focus on increasing the percentage of students performing at or above grade level.
“We want to increase the percentage of students who are achieving, not just growing,” Superintendent Ena Meyers said.
Unlike STAAR, which is administered once a year, the district’s interim reading and math tests can be given at the beginning, middle and end of the school year. That would give managers three opportunities each year to determine whether students are on pace to meet the district’s five-year targets.
Board President Tom Harris said improvement alone would not provide managers with enough context. He asked the superintendent to show how many Lake Worth students are reaching grade level compared with students elsewhere.
Meyers said the district’s interim reading and math tests allow comparisons with students nationally and agreed to provide managers with additional information.
Manager Judy Starnes raised a complication with the proposed eighth-grade math measure. Students taking Algebra I sit for the high school end-of-course exam instead of the eighth-grade STAAR math test, meaning the reported eighth-grade rate excludes many of the district’s advanced math students and is calculated from a different group.
Meyers acknowledged that Algebra I enrollment changes the number and mix of students included in the eighth-grade STAAR results. She proposed separately tracking how many eighth graders take and pass Algebra I so managers can see both measures.
Superintendent limits
Alongside the academic goals, the board reviewed five proposed limits that managers would place on how the superintendent pursues those results. Managers referred to the limits as guardrails.
The proposed guardrails cover instructional materials, teacher effectiveness, campus leadership, student experiences and campus accountability.
Lake Worth ISD’s proposed guardrails
The district has not yet filled in every baseline or final target.
Guardrail 1: Lesson planning
The superintendent would not allow students to receive instruction that lacks grade-level rigor, alignment with state standards or evidence-based practices.
The district would track:
Third- through eighth-grade reading and math classrooms effectively using the district’s adopted lessons.
Classroom teachers rated proficient or higher during district instructional observations.
Guardrail 2: Effective teachers
The superintendent would not allow students to experience ineffective teaching practices or disruptions to instruction.
The district would track:
Teachers clearly modeling and explaining lessons during classroom observations.
Teachers earning performance-based state designations tied to additional pay.
Reliance on outside substitutes in third- through eighth-grade reading and math classrooms.
Guardrail 3: Leadership effectiveness
The superintendent would not allow schools to operate without effective leaders who are accountable for improving student outcomes.
The district would track:
Favorable responses on the district’s staff climate and culture survey.
Principals and assistant principals rated proficient in observing, coaching and providing feedback to teachers.
Lake Worth ISD’s state financial integrity rating.
Guardrail 4: Student experience
The superintendent would not allow students to learn in environments that are unsafe, unresponsive or disengaging.
The district would track:
Students’ sense of belonging on the district’s climate survey.
Chronic absenteeism, defined as missing at least 10% of enrolled school days.
Out-of-school suspensions.
Guardrail 5: Campus accountability
The superintendent would not allow any Lake Worth ISD campus to receive a D or F rating under the state accountability system.
The district would track:
Reducing the number of D- and F-rated campuses to zero by June 2031.
Reducing vacancies among core-subject teachers at D- and F-rated campuses.
Reducing the number of uncertified teachers at D- and F-rated campuses.
Progress measures would include reducing chronic absenteeism, out-of-school suspensions, reliance on outside substitute teachers and the number of uncertified educators. The district also wants to improve employee and student survey results and increase the number of teachers who earn performance-based state designations tied to additional pay.
One proposed measure calls for Lake Worth ISD to reduce its number of D- and F-rated campuses to zero by 2031. Under the latest state ratings, five of the district’s six campuses received F’s; Lake Worth High School received a C.
To exit the state intervention, Lake Worth must eliminate its underperforming campuses.
Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath replaced Lake Worth ISD’s superintendent and elected trustees in April after five years of failing accountability ratings at Marilyn Miller Language Academy — and across the district. The state appointed Meyers and a five-member board of managers to oversee the district.
The intervention is also changing how Lake Worth ISD selects curriculum and delivers daily lessons.
Managers unanimously approved new reading, math, science and social studies materials July 15.
The materials lay out a fast-tracked version of a state plan for fixing struggling districts — covering everything from staffing and budgets to instruction and leadership. Lake Worth is one of five districts under state intervention completing the work on a faster timeline, Meyers said.
In the classroom, Lake Worth plans to use the state-developed Bluebonnet Learning reading and math lessons. Teachers would also receive additional activities covering the same standards for students working above, at or below grade level.
Meyers said a teacher could begin with one common lesson, then adjust instruction immediately based on what each student understood that day.
“I can’t wait until we get the test results,” Meyers said.
The approved lessons include materials from Savvas, Zearn, Carnegie Math, Amplify and other publishers. Crystal Deaver, the district’s executive director of curriculum and instruction, said the reading materials emphasize phonics and other research-backed practices rather than teaching students to guess unfamiliar words from pictures or context clues.
The purchases will come from a dedicated state instructional-materials fund rather than Lake Worth ISD’s general operating budget.
The academic goals, guardrails and lesson changes are intended to work together: Managers define what student success should look like, set boundaries for achieving it and publicly monitor whether the district is making progress.
“It’s not enough to simply set one goal,” Mackey said. “You must regularly and publicly monitor.”
Matthew Sgroi is an education reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at matthew.sgroi@fortworthreport.org or @matthewsgroi1.
Disclosure: LWISD President Tom Harris works as a 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.
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