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Fort Worth ISD needs bold change. Chief’s plan to shrink administration is great start | Opinion

In one sense, it’s too bad that Fort Worth ISD trustees voted after midnight on Superintendent Angélica Ramsey’s plan to reorganize her administration team.

The unanimous “yes” vote was an appropriate and strong endorsement, although quick and without discussion. It needs to be shouted from the rooftops: Not just yes, Dr. Ramsey, but hell yes — and what else do you need to make it work?

Ramsey has obviously spent her six months on the job wrestling with the reality of a bloated district in decline. She would cut high-level chiefs, assistant superintendents and executive directors in several large divisions, according to the resolution the board will consider.

The details may not be perfect, and any reorganization is only as good as the personnel behind it. There are undoubtedly good employees who will feel they’ve been treated unfairly, and that’s unfortunate.

To build trust in the plan, the district needs to specify the money saved and provide details about the reduced administrative staff. In a written statement, spokeswoman Claudia Garibay said the plan is part of the “ongoing effort to address a decrease in student enrollment and the need to reallocate resources from central administration to impact student learning more positively.”

Please, tell us more.

Ramsey clearly understands that the district needs to shift a whole lot more people, money and attention into learning. Every school district needs enough good administrators to function, but eliminating positions, focusing on a handful of priorities and — most importantly — filling classroom needs first is the path for a district that needs a turnaround.

Fort Worth ISD has been losing students for nearly a decade. It’s a statistical oddity, given the area’s overall rapid growth. But it’s a clear indication that parents with any other option will take it. Dropping enrollment means less state funding, so even in a time of property-tax abundance, the district has a perpetual budget crunch. Ramsey’s plan will be a vital part of straightening that out.

And most important of all, many children aren’t learning. There have been recent signs of improvement, but officials estimated recently that about one in five third-graders will test as reading on grade level or better. That’s appalling, embarrassing and unacceptable.

Everything the district does must be in service of turning around student performance. It’s Ramsey’s mandate, and when any government or business hires a CEO, he or she initially must be trusted with the plans they want to execute. The board must give Ramsey the organization she wants and the time and space to make it work. If it doesn’t, changes can be made later or she can be held accountable.

A lean, focused organization should push as many administrators as possible to campuses or at least closer to them, not in a central office. Garibay’s statement described the plan as the first step in the transition to “a District Service Center to better support students, families, and employees.”

Let administrators work, too, among the teachers and children who need help. Let them take some classroom shifts to see firsthand what’s needed. Have them help address teacher shortages for short stretches. And find ways to lift burdens from teachers that distract from their core work, whether it be paperwork or handling discipline.

Everything beyond improved learning is a secondary concern, and there can be no sacred cows. Nimbleness is a must, and the district showed a sign of the kind of decisiveness necessary to make quick progress when it cut ties with a charter school operator. Phalen Leadership Academy operated Jacquet Middle School for a year and made no progress in its rating.

We believe charter schools and other nontraditional approaches are an important part of the mix for FWISD. But accountability must be upheld across the board, and the district’s action is welcome.

If that’s a sign of Ramsey’s intentions to move boldly, it’s more than welcome. Now, the school board should help in any way it can — even if that means mostly staying out of the way.