Jacob Sanchez

1 week ago | fortworthreport.org | Matthew Sgroi |Jacob Sanchez

Superintendent Karen Molinar saw the same problem over and over as she visited classrooms across Fort Worth ISD. Different classrooms, teaching the same grade level and the same subject — with wildly different expectations. “We must be consistent,” Molinar said during a May 20 board meeting. That edict formed the heart of Molinar’s redesign of instruction ahead of the 2025-26 school year.

1 week ago | fortworthreport.org | Jacob Sanchez

Principal Winston McCowan wove between the tables in Chisholm Trail High School’s cafeteria. A group of students flagged him down and invited their principal to join their livestream. McCowan wasn’t sure how many people were tuned in, but it didn’t matter. His job is to connect with students. They fired off a hard-hitting question: What do you like about being a principal?

1 week ago | fortworthreport.org | Jacob Sanchez

All he wanted was Play-Doh. Purple Play-Doh. Rose Jones didn’t have any. In fact, purple Play-Doh was nowhere to be found on the floor of Cook Children’s Medical Center where she volunteered. 52 Faces of Community is a Fort Worth Report weekly series spotlighting local unsung heroes. It is sponsored by Central Market, H-E-B and JPS Health Network.

2 weeks ago | texasstandard.org | Jacob Sanchez |Matthew Sgroi

Westpark. Tanglewood. Overton Park. Kelly Moreno listed off the elementaries and compared them to her child’s campus, De Zavala. All four are A-rated campuses. Yet De Zavala has an enrollment with higher percentages of students from low-income families and is demographically closer to the overall district. “Only one of these four schools is slated for closure,” Moreno said. “ There are hard, smart decisions and there are hard, misguided decisions.

2 weeks ago | keranews.org | Jacob Sanchez

Trustee Tobi Jackson has one wish for Fort Worth ISD’s teacher pay. The school board heard plans May 20 outlining the district’s $22 million teacher compensation package for the 2025-26 academic year, including a self-directed bump in starting teacher pay and likely mandated raises from the Texas Legislature. Jackson pointed to the newly proposed starting teacher salary of $64,500, up $1,500 from the 2024-25 pay.