Oct. 1 marked the first day of Angélica Ramsey no longer at the helm of Fort Worth ISD.

She recapped her two-year tenure — the shortest for a Fort Worth ISD superintendent in at least 50 years — in a four-page statement issued hours after the school board accepted her voluntary resignation Sept. 24. 

Ramsey’s statement celebrated her achievements and outlined the pride and honor she felt in leading Fort Worth ISD. The Fort Worth Report examined six major accomplishments Ramsey listed in her statement as high points and provided context for each of her claims. 

Read Ramsey’s full statement here.

When Ramsey started leading Fort Worth ISD in 2022, the Texas Education Agency had just awarded the district a B rating, the state’s most recent official grade. Since then, official ratings for 2023 and 2024 were not released because of lawsuits blocking the rollout of an updated accountability rating system that some school districts say was not sufficiently communicated.

In September, Fort Worth ISD administrators publicly issued self-assigned ratings based on internal calculations. Administrators’ math — which was sent for TEA verification a week after presenting the data to the school board — determined that the district would have received a D in 2023 and a C in 2024.

The state later found issues with Fort Worth ISD’s self-assigned accountability ratings, but the estimated C rating was unaffected, district officials said. 

The underlying data from state standardized exam scores forming the foundation of the ratings remains nearly unchanged dating back a decade.

In August 2023, Ramsey and the district began working on a five-year strategic plan to improve Fort Worth ISD. 

As a document of goals intended to guide decision making, the plan would address issues like the district’s funding problems, student achievement and post-pandemic issues, Ramsey’s administration said. It cost the district $180,000 and was created partly through community feedback and advisory committees, according to the district.

Officials initially expected the plan to be adopted by the school board in April 2024.

Trustees received their first strategic plan presentation in July 2024.

During a July 24 board meeting, when a draft was presented to trustees, a 5-2 vote against the plan halted its adoption. Trustees Quinton Phillips and Camille Rodriguez voted to approve the plan; now President Roxanne Martinez and trustees Michael Ryan, Tobi Jackson, Anael Luebanos and Wallace Bridges voted against it.

Trustees Kevin Lynch and Anne Darr were not present that night — a primary factor in the plan being voted down. 

Insufficient public engagement also led others to vote against its adoption. 

“We need to be very intentional about getting this out to the community,” Martinez said during that July 24 meeting, expressing that she wanted more residents to see that night’s presentation. “We want the community to own these goals as well as the board — we want that transparency and ownership.”

Since then, a new draft of the plan with action steps was uploaded to the district’s website. An expired poll garnering community feedback on the draft is also still posted to the website.

Trustees have not been presented with an updated draft and have not yet adopted Ramsey’s five-year plan.

Fort Worth ISD has opened mini grocery stores at more than 19 schools as a way to help feed families. More than 8 in 10 students in Fort Worth ISD come from a low-income family.

The district also launched a new dinner service for the 2024-25 school year at campuses offering an afterschool enrichment program. 

“By ensuring that students have access to nutritious meals throughout the day, the district is laying a solid foundation for their overall health and academic achievement,” the district said in a July news release announcing the dinner service program.

Ramsey’s personal newsletter blasts, which were sent to every Fort Worth ISD parent over email, were new for a Fort Worth ISD superintendent. Her predecessor, former Superintendent Kent Scribner, did not use a similar communication method with families.

Ramsey also sent a weekly email to district staff — called the Monday Message — that was consistently posted to the district website. 

Trustees have previously criticized Ramsey’s administration for its communication regarding potential middle school closures. 

When the district considered closing four middle schools in spring 2024, Bridges said there was a lack of trust between parents and community members and the district. Though closures were eventually tabled, many community members felt their input was useless, Bridges said.

Ramsey also made it a priority to visit every school, she said, spending two to three days each week on campuses.

The Report has filed a public records request for Ramsey’s calendar and schedule as superintendent.

The school board adopted a budget with a $17.7 million deficit for the 2024-25 academic year.

Ramsey’s administration presented a balanced budget in May, but it did not feature any raises for teachers nor other compensation changes. Numbers at the time showed the district slashed about $37.5 million in expenditures, including $28.4 million in instruction.

At the end of May, the school board adopted a $17.7 million compensation package.

“Our charge was to bring a balanced budget, recognizing that any additional compensation that we may give into the next year was going to come out of reserves and deficit spending,” Chief Financial Officer Carmen Arrieta-Candelaria told the Report after trustees adopted an unbalanced budget.

A balanced budget has been a goal for the past two years, with the CFO emphasizing it would take just as long to get there.

As part of her district restructuring, Ramsey cut 37 jobs from the district’s technology department, according to documents obtained through an open records request. 

Classrooms and students felt the effects of the layoffs as the school year started, some teachers told the Report. Some students’ MacBooks were not ready. The rollout of a website where students receive assignments and grades was bumpy. 

Trustee Jackson raised the issues during a Sept. 10 meeting. A deputy superintendent said the problems should have been addressed by the end of September.

The Report filed a records request with the district for the number of devices issued to students and teachers and how many were in need of repair.

Jacob Sanchez is a senior education reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at jacob.sanchez@fortworthreport.org or @_jacob_sanchez. 

Matthew Sgroi is an education reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at matthew.sgroi@fortworthreport.org or @MatthewSgroi1.

At the Fort Worth Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here.