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<\/p>\nFort Worth ISD will help seven low-performing campuses by adopting a turnaround model that prioritizes hiring effective teachers, school officials said during a board meeting Tuesday night. \u201cThese are our best teachers on our campuses that need the most help. We need them in front of the students every single day,\u201d said Superintendent Karen Molinar. The initiative \u2014 called Accelerating Campus Excellence or ACE \u2014 started in Dallas ISD in 2015. It\u2019s been used at over 40 campuses and been used to educate more than 50,000 students, according to Fort Worth officials. Richardson ISD also took inspiration from Dallas ISD\u2019s version to create its own improvement plan that was implemented in 2018.<\/p>\n
The ACE initiative will be employed at seven struggling Fort Worth ISD campuses, identified as:
\nThe key to the ACE model is the staffing, Molinar said. The district will launch a \u201cvery targeted recruitment plan\u201d to secure the most talented teachers, she said. To lure qualified instructors, there will be a competitive salary and appealing incentives. Texas educators in the Teacher Incentive Allotment (TIA) program, which designates and rewards high-performing teachers, are encouraged to apply. For example, a third grade teacher with 10 years of experience and a TIA designation of \u201cMaster Teacher\u201d currently makes about $96,000 at a high-performing campus. At an ACE school, the pay would be about $124,000. \u201cWe have teachers who are on our pay schedule who will never see $124,000,\u201d Molinar said. \u201cOur assistant principals do not make $124,000.\u201d<\/p>\n
Molinar noted that there are \u201crequirements and expectations\u201d that come along with the job. While the teacher contract is typically 187 days, teachers at ACE campuses will need to work an additional 25 days, since ACE schools have an extended school year. They also will participate in at least two hours of professional development each week. The recruitment plan will launch this year. In November, ACE principal positions will be posted, and teaching roles will follow shortly after Thanksgiving, according to Molinar. Teachers currently employed at schools set to be ACE campuses will need to reapply. Custodial, safety and child nutrition staff will keep their jobs. \u201cWe need to recruit the best leaders \u2014 not just around Texas, not just in Fort Worth ISD, but across the United States," Molinar said. \u201cWe need the best for our students here in Fort Worth Independent School District.\u201d<\/p>\n
The announcement comes amid tense times, as the district braces itself for a state takeover. Education Commissioner Mike Morath will replace elected school trustees with a temporary board of managers and appoint a new superintendent. Texas Education Agency officials say that the intervention is necessary, after a Fort Worth ISD campus received a failing grade under the state\u2019s academic accountability system for five consecutive years. The takeover has community members on edge. A week earlier, parents, teachers and alumni packed the same conference room where the Tuesday meeting was held, grilling a TEA official about how the intervention would impact schools.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Molinar acknowledged that the district has campuses with failing grades. Two middle schools have received an F for the fourth year, including one slated to be an ACE campus. \u201cWe are not where we need to be,\u201d she said. Despite the uncertainty ahead, she remained hopeful about the possibilities ACE offers. The plan will roll out next school year. \u201cThis is really very simple. It\u2019s about the opportunity of making sure that no child is left behind,\u201d Molinar said.<\/p>\n
The ACE initiative is a promising solution to the challenges faced by low-performing campuses in Fort Worth ISD. By prioritizing the hiring of effective teachers and providing competitive salaries and incentives, the district hopes to improve student outcomes and close the achievement gap. While the district faces uncertainty with the upcoming state takeover, the ACE initiative offers a beacon of hope for a better future for its students.<\/p>\n
Q: What is the ACE initiative?
\nA: The ACE initiative is a turnaround model that prioritizes hiring effective teachers to improve student outcomes at low-performing campuses.
\nQ: How many campuses will the ACE initiative be employed at?
\nA: The ACE initiative will be employed at seven struggling Fort Worth ISD campuses.
\nQ: What are the requirements and expectations for ACE teachers?
\nA: ACE teachers will need to work an additional 25 days, participate in at least two hours of professional development each week, and meet certain performance standards.
\nQ: How will the district recruit teachers for the ACE initiative?
\nA: The district will launch a targeted recruitment plan to secure the most talented teachers, offering competitive salaries and incentives.
\nQ: What is the current state of Fort Worth ISD?
\nA: The district is facing a state takeover due to low performance at some of its campuses, but the ACE initiative offers a promising solution to improve student outcomes.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Introduction to the ACE Initiative Fort Worth ISD will help seven low-performing campuses by adopting a turnaround model that prioritizes hiring effective teachers, school officials said during a board meeting Tuesday night. \u201cThese are our best teachers on our campuses that need the most help. We need them in front of the students every single […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":17152,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rank_math_lock_modified_date":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-17150","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-education"},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/dmn-dallas-news-prod.cdn.arcpublishing.com\/resizer\/v2\/MG2P6JM2NRE4LJ7ZRXNAVGT6JQ.jpg?auth=bc1c068f7b224d6c6a164e892eebdfc96f643090ccc9111fa0a6ba8de3c6660e&quality=80&width=1200&height=630&smart=true","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/dallas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17150"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/dallas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/dallas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/dallas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/12"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/dallas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=17150"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/dallas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17150\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":17153,"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/dallas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17150\/revisions\/17153"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/dallas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/17152"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/dallas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17150"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/dallas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17150"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/dallas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17150"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}