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LAKE WORTH, Texas – The Texas Education Agency is taking over Lake Worth ISD, they announced Thursday. 

The news comes after what the agency called chronic academic problems at several campuses.

Lake Worth ISD TEA takeover

The latest:

Thursday’s letter, which was signed by agency commissioner Mike Morath, officially orders the installation of a board of managers to govern the district and a conservator. Morath will also appoint a new superintendent at a later date, the letter says. 

Morath says this is due to one campus earning its fifth consecutive unacceptable academic accountability rating. 

What’s next:

An informal review for the district has been scheduled for Dec. 19 at 2:15 p.m. This will allow for Morath to hear from the district about his board and conservator appointments. 

The letter says all such information and documentation should be submitted to TEA no later than Monday, Dec. 15.

‘Unacceptable performance’

What they’re saying:

In part, Morath’s letter says:

“Unacceptable academic performance in a single year represents significant academic weakness – typically less than one-third of students in those campuses reach grade level and less than one-half of students on those campuses demonstrate a year’s worth of academic growth. When that unacceptable performance continues for multiple years, the children in those campuses develop  significant academic gaps. Multi-year unacceptable ratings represent a school district’s most fundamental mission failure and a complete inability to take necessary action to provide a high quality education for students.”

In a later release to FOX 4, Lake Worth ISD included the following statement:

“We accept the TEA’s decision and view this as an opportunity to accelerate our progress,” said Superintendent Dr. Mark Ramirez. “Our focus remains clear: supporting teachers, improving instruction and doing what’s best for kids. We are committed to transparency, accountability and partnership as we work side-by-side with TEA to ensure lasting improvements for our students.”

Lake Worth ISD academic troubles

The backstory:

The TEA began weighing the idea of a LWISD takeover in October. Morath visited the district’s six campuses towards the end of that month to assess the options moving forward.

At that time, it was noted that five of the district’s six campuses had F ratings for the previous academic year. The remaining campus received a D. Marilyn Miller Language Academy was the campus with its fifth-consecutive unacceptable academic accountability rating, prompting a choice between a district takeover or a campus shutdown.

The Source: Information in this report came from the TEA and previous FOX 4 coverage. 

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