Principal wants job back, Molinar’s severance pay, more Fort Worth school news

Fort Worth ISD dominated education headlines in the past week with leadership shakeups, a notable severance payout and a school property sale. Meanwhile, Gov. Greg Abbott launched a new teacher-focused commission, and local libraries showcased early literacy programs.

Here are key takeaways:

• Shayma Alzubi, the reassigned Western Hills High School principal, rejected a $130,000 Fort Worth ISD offer for a principal program administrator role, calling it a “made-up job that no one else in the District has,” in a legal filing in U.S. District Court.
• Alzubi filed a motion for preliminary injunction on July 9 asking a federal judge to reinstate her at Western Hills before the school year begins, after being reassigned in May over social media posts about Black Lives Matter and Sharia law, according to the updated federal complaint.
• Former Fort Worth ISD Superintendent Karen Molinar was named the first CEO of Rev Partnership, a Tarrant County nonprofit, after her 28-year career with the district ended in March following the state takeover, the nonprofit announced.
• Molinar will receive at least $360,000 in settlement pay — equal to one year’s salary plus benefits — because her contract predates a new state law capping superintendent severance at 20 weeks of compensation, per a separation agreement released by Fort Worth ISD.
• Rev Partnership, founded in 2022 by Elizabeth R. Brands, serves 17 public school districts and 750,000 students across Tarrant County, including Fort Worth, Arlington, Keller and Mansfield, as detailed in the CEO announcement.
• Fort Worth ISD filed a request for proposals on May 29 to sell Charles Nash Elementary, which closed in May after 99 years in a historic 1927 building on the edge of downtown, with proposals due July 24 and closing expected between November and December 2026, according to public files.
• Gov. Greg Abbott announced the Texas Classroom Commission on July 7 to bring exemplary current and retired teachers together to develop recommendations for the governor, the Texas Education Agency and the Texas Legislature before the 90th legislative session, in a statement from his office.
• Courtney Boswell MacDonald, of Kerrville, chair of the State Board for Educator Certification and a former math teacher in the Richardson and Dallas school districts, will lead the new commission, per Abbott’s announcement.
• Music and Movement classes at Fort Worth Public Library branches use songs, dance and story time to build reading skills in children up to age 5, with research showing musical training improves verbal memory, reading ability and executive functions, as highlighted in a feature on early literacy.

The summary points above were compiled with the help of AI tools and edited by journalists. The source reporting referenced above was written and edited entirely by journalists.