Fort Worth Mayor has a plan to boost school performance. Students might not like it

Fort Worth school children should stay in class extra days to make up for education lost during the COVID-19 pandemic, Mayor Betsy Price said Thursday during her State of the City address, urging those listening to advocate for a longer school year.

Price gave her 10th and final address from the RFD Studios in the Stockyards, touching on a range of accomplishments over her decade as mayor: population and economic growth, a stable city budget, her focus on wellness and how the city has weathered the coronavirus. She is not seeking reelection.

Education has long been a focus of hers. In response to high number of Fort Worth school district students failing classes, Price said the best solution was to extend the school year, even if it means running classes into the summer.

“It’s probably the only way to do it and it won’t be popular with teachers or with parents, but really we can’t have a whole generation that’s lost,” Price told the Star-Telegram and KXAS Channel 5 following her address. “Right now they’re struggling.”

Student performance has dropped across the country, and Fort Worth is no exception.

The Star-Telegram reported in December that number of Fort Worth middle and high school students failing a class was up 57% compared to the same time a year before. The number of students failing a class during the second grading period was up 30% over last year.

The number of students failing a class climbed from the first grading period of this school year to the second, from 18,022 to 18,539. There were 75,772 students enrolled in the district in mid-January.

Price has used the office of mayor to advocate for education throughout her tenure. She has focused on early childhood with Read Fort Worth, a partnership with the Fort Worth school district to increase the number of third-graders reading at grade level. Price also started Best Place for Kids and Best Place for Working Parents, initiatives designed to improve early childhood education.

In a statement, the district said Superintendent Kent Scribner agreed with Price and has been working toward expanding the school calendar and lengthening the school day.

“We know that our students who are in greatest need benefit most when they receive high quality instruction from our best teachers,” the district said.

Price said she has had “casual conversations” with district leadership about what can be done to boost achievement, including adding extra days to the year. During her address, she asked the audience and those watching the live stream to advocate for extra days.

To help improve student performance, the district said it would allow students with F’s to redo certain assignments and retake tests. The policy would allow any student with an average of 70 or below in a class to redo any test or assignment on which they earned less than a 70, according to a memo sent to teachers in the district.

Price said education is directly tied to the health of the city, adding that poor education outcomes can lead to homelessness, drug use and poor economic growth.

“Anyone who says it’s not this mayor’s job is wrong,” Price said “It’s the entire city’s job to educate our children.”