Keller superintendent clears out office ahead of vote on separation agreement
Keller superintendent Tracy Johnson has cleaned out her office ahead of a vote on a voluntary separation agreement with the district, according to a school board member.
Trustee Joni Smith confirmed that Johnson has vacated her office in a text message to the Star-Telegram.
Johnson did not respond to a text message and voicemail seeking comment. At a special meeting of the board on Jan. 16, she announced that she had already written up her letter of resignation.
At the time, she said she did not agree with a proposal to split the district and would submit it if she was not in agreement with the board’s discussion during the closed-door session.
Board president Charles Randklev did not respond to a text message, and the school district did not respond to an email seeking comment.
On Jan. 30, the school board will vote on a voluntary separation agreement with Johnson and name an interim superintendent.
At least three school board members — Smith, Chelsea Kelly and Heather Washington — said they were unaware of the agenda item until it was released to the public.
Johnson was hired in January 2024 as the school district’s first female superintendent. Her contract runs through 2027.
Some school board members said the split is necessary because of budget shortfalls and a lack of state funding. But opponents said the plan was based in dividing the district along racial and economic lines.
The plan calls for the district to be split at the Union Pacific Railroad tracks along U.S. 377, the border between Keller and Fort Worth. The 27 schools in the Fort Worth area of the district have a larger percentage of lower performing schools and economically disadvantaged students.
During the Jan. 16 meeting, all but one of the 121 speakers spoke in opposition to the split.