Keller trustees who were ‘blindsided’ by split plan surprised again when plan is called off
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Keller school district kills plans for split
The Keller school district has abandoned plans to split the district, citing high costs of dividing district debt.
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The two Keller school board members who said they were “blindsided” by a plan to split the district were surprised to learn Friday that the plan had been called off.
Trustee Chelsea Kelly, who, along with trustee Joni Shaw Smith, stood in opposition to the other five board members against the split plan, said she was thrilled with the news, but she was disappointed that she and Shaw Smith weren’t told the board was planning the announcement.
“I am very, very thankful that they have reversed course,” she said, “but it’s infuriating that I get an email before I knew this decision was being made.”
According to Kelly, she learned the board would not pursue a district detachment at the same time as the community. As of Friday afternoon, she was processing the news, but there was frustration in her voice when she talked about the lack of transparency between her, Shaw Smith and the rest of the board.
Shaw Smith said she got a phone call from interim superintendent Cory Wilson as the email went out.
“I feel that it is an absolute victory I mean, wow, the amount of relief that I’m feeling right now is just immeasurable,” she said. “I feel there was incredible pressure, the legal and social malcontent. This community is incredibly hurt and it’s going to take a very long time to heal from this.”
Kelly and Shaw Smith wrote on social media on Jan. 9 that they did not know about the plan until it was discussed during a closed session by three of their colleagues at a Dec. 19 meeting. Their posts followed comments from Fort Worth city council member Charles Lauersdorf, who told the Star-Telegram that he had heard about the plan from a school board member who didn’t want to disclose the plan publicly because of fear of a community outcry.
Kelly and Shaw Smith are the only two board members who live in Fort Worth. The others live in Keller, according to campaign filing forms and the Tarrant Appraisal District.
Keller is the fourth-largest school district in Tarrant County, with more than 34,000 students in Keller, Fort Worth, Colleyville, Haltom City, Hurst, North Richland Hills, Southlake, Watauga and Westlake; 27 of its 42 campuses are in Fort Worth.
“This may be over, but the healing process is just beginning,” Shaw Smith said. “That is our next point of order. We’ve got to truly begin that process because no one trusts this board right now. Now we are trying to rebuild that trust.
“Obviously we still have our financial issues that all districts in the state are dealing with. Now we can focus on that. Now we need to maintain this district and maintain this level of excellence and put pressure on the state to allow the proper funding to keep our kids succeeding in life and to give our teachers raises.”
This story was originally published March 14, 2025 at 4:03 PM.
