Fort Worth ISD hit hard by principal turnover following TEA takeover of district
Fort Worth ISD has named new leaders at dozens of its campuses in recent weeks after a string of principals announced their plans to leave their jobs following the uncertainty of the Texas Education Agency’s takeover of the district, with several other principal positions still open.
District leaders see the turnover as an opportunity to appoint new principals who can spark academic progress at some of Fort Worth ISD’s longest-struggling campuses.
A number of principals left on their own accord. Numerous others were not retained by new state-appointed district leadership. The district named 19 principals for the recently-created Elevate Network, a group of schools handpicked by Superintendent Peter Licata and his team because of persistent underwhelming academic performance. Of the 19 campuses, 12 will have new principals. Five of those 12 are new to the district, a spokesperson previously told the Star-Telegram.
Since then, the district has named new principals at more than 20 other campuses as well. Nearly a dozen other principals have announced their decision to leave the district following the end of the 2025-26 school year. Several sources told the Star-Telegram they expect even more principal and teaching turnover following the Texas Education Agency’s takeover of the district, especially during the summer as current faculty and staff look for new jobs.
While Fort Worth ISD leadership remains confident a district-wide principal shakeup can jumpstart some of its stagnant campuses, some education leaders warn that constant leadership turnover can do more harm than good. Others are concerned that long-time district employees no longer wish to work within the district and are instead opting for jobs at neighboring districts.
Sarah Cordes, a professor of policy and organizational and leadership studies in Temple University’s College of Education and Human Development, said data consistently shows K-12 campuses perform the best with as little leadership turnover as possible.
“Consistent leadership can help schools in establishing culture, establishing relational trust with teachers, and those things really take time,” Cordes told the Star-Telegram. “If you’re turning over frequently, that is very obviously going to be a bad thing.”
But Fort Worth ISD leaders believe the situation is a bit more nuanced. Although dozens of campuses across the district have had new principals every couple years, Licata and his staff believe this new round of hires at many of the district’s most struggling schools will be the start of major stability.
“Fort Worth ISD is focused on strategic realignments under Superintendent Dr. Licata’s leadership,” a district spokesperson wrote in a brief statement to the Star-Telegram.
The district has experienced principal turnover at both its highly-rated and lowest-rated campuses. Changes sparked by the district were at schools with D and F ratings in the state’s A-F accountability rating system. But a number of other principals from highly-rated schools have also exited their jobs.
Schools with principal changes since Licata was hired in March include: Como Success Academy, Rolling Hills Elementary, South Hi Mount Elementary, Polytechnic High, McRae Elementary, Alice Contreras Elementary, Trimble Tech High, IM Terrell Academy, O.D. Wyatt High, Rosemont Middle, Carter Park Elementary, South Hills High, Dunbar High, Jacquet Middle, Eastern Hills High, J.P. Elder Middle, Atwood McDonald Elementary, Sagamore Hill Elementary, Versia L. Williams Elementary, and 19 schools in the district’s new Elevate Network.
Out of those schools, 30 were given a 2024-25 A-F accountability grade of C or lower by the TEA. Twenty-four of those schools were graded D or lower.
Several schools in the Elevate Network have already cycled through a number of different principals in recent years, even prior to the district’s shakeup from state-appointed leadership. A few campuses replaced principals that were appointed just several months ago.
It’s possible for principal turnover to do damage to a campus. It can cause lower student test scores, accelerate teacher turnover and stall school improvement efforts, according to data from the Learning Policy Institute. Schools with average leadership tenures of less than four years create more unstable and less experienced staff environments than campuses with longer-tenured leaders, the data shows.
“The most robust evidence from the studies reviewed indicate that schools with higher percentages of students from low-income families, students of color and low performing students are more likely to experience principal turnover,” the Learning Policy Institute study reads. “These schools are also more likely to be subject to accountability pressures, which are associated with higher turnover.”
But Licata and his staff see the other side of the coin. They only targeted the district’s lowest-performing schools. It was something that needed to be done in order to find improvements at schools where improvement has been hard to come by, they said.
Licata previously told the Star-Telegram that he hoped to retain the district’s top educators, but he understands turnover is just a natural part of the education landscape and something he expected at the end of the school year. He still hopes to retain as many high-quality educators as he can.
“We’re trying to convince some of them that are really, really good that want to leave, to please stay,” Licata told the Star-Telegram in April. “Please, please, please stay. But we already accounted for about 40-60 percent (of teachers and principals to remain in place), so that’s what we’re preparing for. We’ll know more as time goes on.”
Licata created the Elevate system because the campuses included had already experienced severe underperformance compared to other schools in the district. Leaders think the restructuring will be better in the long run. They hope new leadership can stay in place for several years moving forward.
“Dr. Licata was very intentional about the principal selection process,” said Louis Kushner, Licata’s chief of staff. “It wasn’t only teachers that reapplied for their jobs — it was principals and assistant principals, who had to go through a very rigorous interview process.”
Licata said the process for principal selections included evaluating data, test scores, an intense interview process and classroom walkthroughs.
“After the interviews, we had them come and walk through classes with our regional chiefs, myself and Dr. Kusher,” Licata said. “We pulled them aside after and asked them what they saw, what they didn’t see, what should have been better. We had them jump and coach immediately. And not all of them made it through that process. It was really intense. It’s like, you’re honored to be in front of these kids and be the leader of these teachers. You’re gonna have to show us that you’re worth it.”
Trenace Dorsey-Hollins, founder and executive director of Parent Shield Fort Worth, a parent-led public education group, told the Star-Telegram she has heard from a number of parents who have voiced concern about principal and teacher turnover following the TEA’s district takeover.
Dorsey-Hollins said she understands the reason for high turnover, especially because the district has to make sure the best teachers and principals are working at struggling schools to ensure they’re equitably distributed.
“I can understand the shift a little bit,” Dorsey-Hollins said. “You want to make sure these schools and campuses are performing well so that all children are seeing growth. But from a relationship standpoint, you never want to see teachers and principals that have been around at their campus for a while go anywhere. Because those are the leaders that have been your child’s safe space. For a lot of kids, teachers and principals are more than just academics.”
This story was originally published June 11, 2026 at 5:30 AM.
