The Fort Worth ISD is saddened to learn that McLean Middle School teacher and academic coach, Ronald Boley has passed away.

Mr. Woods died Monday, August 3, following a brief battle with cancer, according to his obituary. He was 65.

For 27 years, Mr. Boley taught mathematics at Fort Worth ISD’s McLean Middle School. He coached students in multiple academic competitions including Whiz Quiz and University Interscholastic League tournaments.

Fort Worth Board of Education trustees extended their condolences at the loss of Mr. Boley during their meeting, Monday, August 10. District 6 Trustee Anne Darr remembered Mr. Boley as “a dedicated and impenetrable force to be reckoned with.”

“He was a remarkable man who touched many, many lives and made a difference in not only students but also with families. I know that that community is grieving and I also know that his goodness and his passion for geometry and algebra will live on in that community because he laid the groundwork and laid the foundation for that to happen,” she said. “We appreciate him, and he will be greatly missed.”

Mr. Boley is survived by his wife and two children.

The Fort Worth ISD extends its deepest sympathy to Mr. Boley’s family and all who were impacted by his life.

To Fort Worth Independent School District Employees:

 

For safety precautions, onsite enrollment assistance will not be available for the 2020-2021 Open Enrollment Period. 

Por precaucioines de seguridad, la asistencia para la inscripcion en el lugar no estara disponible para el periodo de inscripcion abierta 2020-2021.

 

ASSISTED OPEN ENROLLMENT:

For safety precautions, onsite enrollment assistance will not be available.

If you need assistance, it will be provided via telephone only.

Refer to the attached postcard for your location’s call date.

Callers will be greeted by knowledgeable enrollers ready to walk you through your current enrollment, answer all benefits questions and assist with any changes.

 

Please call : (817) 710-8135 MON-FRI 8:00AM – 5:00PM

 

The Fort Worth ISD will hold a virtual town hall meeting tonight, August 11, 2020 for parents, teachers, students and community stakeholders to ask questions and hear from District leaders on plans for the 2020-2021 fall semester. The two-hour session will begin at 5 p.m.

FWISD Board President Jacinto Ramos, Jr., representing District 1, will host the meeting and be joined by fellow Board members Representative Daphne Brookins, District 4; Representative Anne Darr, District 6; Representative Ashley Paz, District 9; and Superintendent Kent. P. Scribner.

If you would like to submit a question or comment for the Virtual Town Hall or speak live, please visit www.fwisd.org/Aug11 and look for “Submit a Question.”

Your message can be submitted anonymously via the web application and the community will have the chance to “vote up” all submissions. If you prefer to speak live during the event, you may do so via the Zoom link on the page. While in Zoom, please enter your name and your topic of discussion in the “Chat” section. Attendees will be called on in the order of submission.

And, if you just want to watch, you may do so via the Zoom address above, Slido, the Fort Worth ISD Facebook page, or the Fort Worth ISD YouTube channel (The channel is called Fort Worth ISD Live.)

Check out frequently asked questions from the District's previous virtual town hall meetings here.

Change Takes Effect This Fall, Impacts Incoming Freshmen

The number of courses calculated to determine a high school student’s class rank in the Fort Worth ISD is changing.

The FWISD Board of Education recently approved a policy update to class rank  that will use 16 courses to determine a student’s class rank. Currently all courses a student takes are used to determine class rank. The policy update, approved Tuesday, July 21, takes effect this fall and impacts approximately 6,000 incoming freshmen graduating high school in 2024. Incoming sophomores, juniors and seniors will graduate under the current class rank policy.

“It's definitely a shift, but we wanted to create a system that allows for students participating in a variety of programs to be competitive for class rank," said Maria Phillips, FWISD curriculum policy director.

Class rank, starting with incoming freshmen, will be determined using the 16 highest numerical core course grades in the following highest weighted categories. Eight semesters of course grades for the following classes will be used to determine class rank:

• mathematics
• English language arts
• science
• social studies

Weighted and un-weighted GPA calculations and the tier system are not impacted by the class rank policy change.

With the class rank policy change, Fort Worth joins other districts that have transitioned to similar policies in recent years.

“In the state of Texas, every school district decides how they will calculate class rank, and many large districts have started moving, have already moved in the direction that we are moving towards,” Ms. Phillips said.

In 1997, the Texas Legislature passed House Bill 588, also known as the “top 10 percent rule,” which grants students finishing high school in the top 10 percent of their class automatic admission into most Texas public colleges and universities. The law was modified in 2009 for the University of Texas in Austin, requiring that “the university must automatically admit enough students to fill 75 percent of available Texas resident spaces,” according to UT admissions website. Currently, automatic admission is granted to students ranking in the top 6 percent of their class by the end of their junior year, according to University of Texas admissions.

The class rank policy change is the first in many years for the Fort Worth ISD and more than a year in the making. 

Over the last year, the District sought feedback from students at each high school, student leaders, parents, campus administrators and higher education representatives. Two forums were held in January for parents about the possible changes, Ms. Phillips said.

The District also reached out to area districts like Dallas that recently moved to a similar policy for input on how the transition was made.

The change allows “students to continue in programs such as visual and performing arts, athletics, CTE, and other elective programs without the worry that the grades in those courses will ‘bring down’ their class rank,” Ms. Phillips said. 

The new class rank policy will soon be available for viewing here.

For additional class rank information, contact Ms. Phillips at maria.phillips@fwisd.org.

The Fort Worth ISD Board of Education will hold a meeting on Monday, August 10, at 5 p.m.

Here is the agenda.

As has been the practice for recent meetings, this one will be a virtual meeting with all Board members being in different remote locations.

The general public is invited to watch the meeting on Spectrum Channel 192, AT&T Channel 99, Zoom, or on the Fort Worth ISD Live YouTube channel.  The link for Zoom access is https://esc11.zoom.us/j/92449250562

Those wishing to address the Board during public comment may register to do so by calling 817-814-1956 from now until 5 p.m. on Monday, August 10.

 

 

Fort Worth ISD has more than 10,000 employees who dedicate themselves to serving more than 84,000 students annually. We are lucky to have them and want to especially thank 268 employees who recently retired after many years of service.

While we were not able to host the annual spring retirement recognition reception in their honor, we want to acknowledge their years with us and wish them well as they begin this new chapter in their lives. Some were with us a short time and others were with us for decades. FWISD thanks you for your service and wishes you nothing but the best for the future.

Some FWISD students have some sage advice for our retirees.

Look out for the names of FWISD's recent retirees in future editions of Inside FWISD.

Teachers new to the profession who were recently hired by the Fort Worth ISD for the 2020-2021 academic year will receive an early payment ahead of their September paychecks. The pay compensates new teachers to the extent allowed by law who will not receive a paycheck this August due to the delayed school start date.

Forms requesting the early payment will go out next week electronically to new teachers with zero years experience along with instructions for completing the form. New teachers must complete the form and return it to the District by close of business, Monday, August 24. Eligible employees who request the early payment will receive a direct deposit to their bank accounts on September 11.

The payment’s gross amount of the payment, before deductions, will be calculated as 10 workdays at the daily pay rate of a teacher with a bachelor’s degree and zero years experience, according to District officials.

Any workdays missed by teachers applying for the payment will be deducted from their paychecks.

New teachers report to work for the Fort Worth ISD New Teacher Academy  August 24-28. Registration for the academy opens Monday, August 10

 

Fort Worth ISD’s report start and end dates for the 2020-2021 academic year have been modified for employees who work less than 240 days annually. The change aligns with the Board of Education’s recent decision to delay the opening of the 2020-21 school year until September 8 and offering at-home online instruction the first four weeks. If you have any questions, please consult your immediate supervisor.

District employees will report to work for the new academic year on the following dates:

• August 10: High school counselor clerks, admission advisers, Child Nutrition Services specialists, middle school counselors and data clerks and all other 198-workday personnel
• August 17: All 193-workday personnel
• August 24: Elementary counselors, middle school counselor clerks, elementary clerks, all other 188-workday personnel, librarians, nurses, campus monitors and all other 187-workday personnel
• August 31: Classroom teachers

The Fort Worth ISD New Teacher Academy for new teachers and educators new to the District is slated for August 24-28. Registration for the academy opens Monday, August 10.

Report start and end dates for Early College High School classroom teachers are to be determined. Teachers must contact their immediate supervisor for their start and end contract dates.

Payroll dates do not change as a result of modifications to the instructional calendar, and veteran teacher payroll checks will remain consistent with the payroll schedule for many Texas school districts, according to FWISD officials. Teachers will be paid monthly, beginning in September 2020 and through August 2021.

First-year teachers with zero experience who would not receive an August paycheck may request an early payment due to the start of school being pushed back. Forms requesting the early payment will go out electronically to new teachers soon. 

All 202, 217, 215 and 210-workday personnel returned to work July 27, followed by 202-workday employees on Monday, August 3. The District’s 198-workday employees report to work on Monday, August 10.

FWISD 220, 217 and 215-workday employees must report to work for Fall Break (October 12, 2020), Cesar Chavez and Dolores Huerta Day of Service (March 29, 2021) and scheduled snow days (February 15 and April 19, 2021). Employees who work 210, 198, 193, 188, 187 and 183 days respectively are off work those days. If snow days are used, make-up days will be added to the end of contracts for employees who work less than 240 days annually.

Employees who work 220 days must report to work on Good Friday, April 2, 2021, and Memorial Day, May 31, 2021.

The 2020-2021 academic year concludes for students on June 18, 2021.

Most employee contracts will end between June 21 and 30. The District has finalized the following report end dates:

• June 21, 2021: Librarians; nurses; campus monitors; 187-workday personnel; classroom teachers and all 202-workday personnel
• June 22, 2021: Elementary counselors; middle school counselor clerks; elementary clerks; high school counselor clerks; admission advisers; Child Nutrition Services specialists; middle school counselors and data clerks; and all other 188, 193 and 198-workday personnel
• June 24, 2021: Elementary assistant principals; high school counselors, Licensed Specialists in School Psychology (LSSPs); dyslexia evaluators/ assessors; and all other 210-workday personnel
• June 25, 2021: Secondary assistant principals; elementary and middle school secretaries; high school data clerks; and all other 215-workday personnel
• June 29, 2021: All 217-workday personnel
• June 30, 2021: All elementary and middle school principals, Family Communications specialists and all other 220-workday personnel

For additional details, click here to view the updated 2020-2021 report start and end date calendar for employees who work less than 240 days annually.

Starting Monday, the FWISD Educational Technology Department is offering live webinar sessions on essential topics to support FWISD Forward virtual teaching and learning.

These sessions complement the required professional learning eCourses that teachers must complete in preparation for the new school year.  

The live webinars will serve as opportunities for additional differentiated support, accommodating various learning styles. These do NOT replace the required FWISD Forward eCourses.

You can access the eCourses at http://bit.ly/fwisdedtechlearn.

 

Colleagues: 

Thursday, the District shared a video from our Chief Academic Officer Jerry Moore in which he gave more detail about the District’s plan for virtual learning, an overview of instructional engagement, and an outline of professional development opportunities for teachers as we prepare for September 8.  Today we are following up with some specifics about that professional development for teachers and others.  Please see the attached documents below.

 

• Professional Learning Overview- K-12
• Professional Learning Overview-PK
• Professional Learning Overview- Instructional Coaches
• Professional Learning Overview- Administrators