Poll shows Tarrant County residents want school choices, academic transparency
A recent poll asking Tarrant County residents how they perceive and prioritize public education showed that they want multiple school choices in their community, and they want a system that provides open information about academic performance, according to a report released on Tuesday.
The report published by the Fort Worth Education Partnership, which analyzes the poll results, reveals several insights on what community members value in Tarrant County’s education system, in addition to how they interact with it. For example, education is the fourth highest priority for parents following the cost of living, jobs and affordable housing, according to the poll. Most of the 500 participants — 90% — say it’s important for families to have multiple school options, including charter schools and schools of choice. In general, there is overall agreement that schools should be held accountable for their academic performance, and the quality of a school’s academics is shaping families’ decisions about where they enroll their children.
“The message from families is clear: They want a public education system that centers academic achievement, provides transparent information, and offers genuine access to excellent schools. As we continue our work, we remain committed to listening and responding with the urgency this moment requires,” the report states.
Looking at some of the numbers, the poll showed:
87% of Fort Worth residents value a statewide system that measures the performance of individual students and their schools.
47% of Fort Worth parents have considered switching schools for their child, with many citing concerns about academic quality.
70% of Fort Worth parents perceive public education to be high quality, while 43% of Fort Worth non-parents perceive it to be low quality.
There were 500 Tarrant County residents and parents surveyed in May who took the poll online in English and Spanish. There were at least 300 Fort Worth residents who participated with a “substantial” portion being parents of students from different school types and grade levels. Fort Worth Education Partnership sponsored the poll and conducted it with national public affairs and opinion research firm SKDK.
Leila Santillán, chief operating officer of the Fort Worth Education Partnership, said she hopes parents, community members and education leaders will see what’s important to the community through the report and that it will prompt them to act on bettering the local education system.
“Our community is incredibly ... unified across the board. I think it’s a discipline to stay hopeful and focused when things feel polarized, and that you know that polarization has some real implications for schools and school systems and kids, but we hope that the report shows that there is an opportunity for Fort Worth to lead differently, to be united and to deliver on what the community desires and deserves,” she said.
As far as the desire for more school choices, Santillán hopes leaders take the opportunity to ask their communities what they’d like to see in their schools, such as expanding programs in high demand or improving transportation, for example.
Good teachers, academics among parents’ top priorities
Good teachers were the No. 1 factor when weighing the quality of a public school, followed by a safe school environment and strong academics or test scores. While 84% of Fort Worth residents strongly agree that more quality public schools are needed, 33% think it’s difficult for local families to find a public school that is both high quality and meets their child’s needs.
Parents were also asked what their level of confidence was in understanding how well their child was performing academically.
“Parents are generally confident they understand how their child is achieving academically (72%), though Hispanic parents, lower-income parents, and non-college parents are more likely to be only somewhat confident,” the report states.
Community members and organizations in Tarrant County have been rallying behind a campaign, Go Beyond Grades, to raise awareness about the mismatch between students’ report card grades and their state test scores. It encourages parents to seek out more academic information to ensure their child is actually performing on grade level. Santillán said campaigns like this one are a step in the right direction in keeping parents informed, and the gap between the perception and reality of how students are performing is beginning to narrow.
A general demographic breakdown of poll participants — when looking at the highest percentages in each category — shows 30% are at least 55 years old, 47% are white, 68% do not have a college education, 39% are Independents, 86% are registered voters, 58% are non-parents and 40% earn at least six figures.
Almost half of participants, 48%, say they use their school district’s website as their primary source for information on school quality, while 39% utilize state or school rating websites.
The Texas Education Agency releases A-F accountability ratings for schools and districts annually to show how well they’re faring academically, but the 2023 and 2024 ratings were tied up in lawsuits until this year, leaving limited access to information for families. Fort Worth ISD, though, was among districts that released their own self-calculated ratings in the meantime for both years. The 2023 ratings were released by the state in April; a Texas appeals court recently ruled that TEA could release the 2024 ratings, but officials have yet to share a release date.
Santillán said the the contrast between the major local support for an accountability system but the relatively minimal use of state or school rating websites shows a disconnect in access.
“For me, I think that that shows the challenge of access. Both real access, and then also knowledge that it exists, where to find it. I think folks don’t always know where to find that information or how to use it,” she said. “When I think about what this data can call on us to do, I think just keep making that information easier to access and act on.”
This story was originally published July 22, 2025 at 2:33 PM.
