5 Fort Worth ISD schools will be spared from closure or changes as district shaves options
Five schools previously considered for closure or conversion in the Fort Worth Independent School District will remain open and unchanged, district officials said.
Manuel Jara Elementary, Westcliff Elementary and William Monnig Middle schools are no longer being considered for potential closures as the district approaches the final stages of its facilities master plan, according to Fort Worth ISD Deputy Superintendent of Operations Kellie Spencer. As early as this spring, recommendations will come forward to close and consolidate certain campuses — mostly elementary schools — as the district deals with declining enrollment and underutilized buildings.
District officials had also eyed converting Western Hills High into a middle school and converting W.C. Stripling Middle into an elementary school but have taken those options off the table.
The decision to leave these campuses as they are came forward after a Feb. 13 discussion by the district’s community task force, which consists of more than 100 parents, staff and community members who have been weighing in on the facilities planning process this school year. It was determined that implementing those options would not be currently feasible for various reasons, Spencer said.
Manuel Jara Elementary and Westcliff Elementary were both spared due to their locations in their communities and their steady enrollments. William Monnig Middle and Western Hills High would have been considered if the Arlington Heights, Benbrook and Western Hills pyramids had consolidated into two larger ones to accommodate growth in the area. Spencer noted that this proposal might be considered in the future, but not right now.
“There was a long-term thought that potentially, if a new high school was built, that the Western Hills High School students and the Benbrook High School students could consolidate into a new high school. In doing that, that… could have meant that Western Hills High School became a middle school that serves the Arlington Heights pyramid,” Spencer said. “Which would then mean you wouldn’t need Monnig (Middle), but that discussion really was 10 plus years in the future.”
A proposal to consolidate North Hi Mount and South Hi Mount elementary schools onto the W.C. Stripling Middle school campus, thus converting it to a larger elementary school, was left off the table because the campus is about 50% done with its construction and renovation project funded by the 2021 bond program. Since the renovations are geared toward middle school needs, it would not have made sense to convert the campus, Spencer said.
These campuses were originally among a list of more than 20 schools being floated as options for potential closures or conversions, which were presented to the school board in early February by consultant Tracy Richter, vice president of planning services at HPM. He walked through an in-depth look at data analysis that resulted in the proposed options.
This list appeared to shorten when the district hosted three in-person community meetings last week and presented a smaller range of options for each region. When campus administrators were informed of their schools no longer being considered in the ongoing consolidation process, they asked to share the news with their campus staff and families.
“We felt that there was no reason to continue with any heightened anxiety about their campus closing, and so we did help draft information that they could share with their families,” Spencer said.
Spencer said it’s important to note that campuses could still be impacted by boundary changes moving forward as a result of these decisions. Boundary changes could come as early as the 2026-27 school year and are expected to happen in phases over the course of five years.
The next community task force meeting is March 26. District officials are looking for feedback through a community survey, which is open until Feb. 16 and can be found on the district’s facilities master planning webpage.
This story was originally published March 6, 2025 at 7:31 PM.
