Superintendent Peter Licata will lead Fort Worth ISD through at least 2030.
The state-appointed board of managers on Tuesday unanimously approved a four-year contract with Licata that sets his annual salary at $360,000.
Manager Frost Prioleau said the board and the superintendent — all of whom were appointed at the same time — are in their positions for one reason: improving student outcomes.
“ I wholly and strongly believe that ratifying this contract and the changes and efforts that Dr. Licata and his team are making will have strong positive impacts on the students of Fort Worth ISD,” Prioleau said.
The takeover chief will earn the same salary as his predecessor, Karen Molinar. Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath replaced Molinar with Licata as part of a state intervention over FWISD’s persistently low academic achievement and a campus that received five consecutive failing accountability grades under Texas’ school rating system.
FW Final Supt Employment AgreementDownload
The contract acknowledges that Licata is not currently a certified Texas superintendent, but that he is pursuing the credential. The contract and any extensions depend on him receiving a superintendent certification.
Any raises to Licata’s salary are tied to teacher pay increases, according to the 26-page contract. His raise would equal the highest percentage pay bump to teachers.
Licata is eligible for performance and retention bonuses as determined by the board of managers. The superintendent and managers will develop a criteria for performance incentives.
Additionally, Licata can receive a salary performance incentive based on priorities for a year as set by managers. For each measure that the district meets or exceeds, Licata will receive $20,000. The number of priorities is not guaranteed, but the contract establishes that managers should set more than seven no later than Nov. 30 annually.
Elected trustee Roxanne Martinez said managers should not take action on the superintendent contract. Before they approved it, managers should have established clear performance measures on reading, math, discipline, college and career readiness, as well as rates for attendance and graduation, she said.
“ How will this board measure whether recent changes are helping or harming our students? What indicators will you monitor before STAAR data is released? And when will we receive regular progress reports tied to student outcomes?” Martinez said.
Every month, Licata will receive $1,000 for car expenses and $300 for a technology allowance. Previous superintendents received similar allowances.
For the next four years, FWISD will assist Licata in joining the Teacher Retirement System of Texas by contributing the maximum amount allowable for employers. The superintendent previously spent almost 30 years working in Florida schools.
The board of managers will evaluate Licata’s performance every year by Oct. 31. The superintendent assessment will occur in executive session, unless Licata requests it in an open meeting, according to the contract.
The superintendent’s contract was negotiated between Licata and the Texas Education Agency, according to district documents. Previous superintendent contracts were hashed out between the district leader and elected trustees.
The Texas Education Agency pre-negotiates takeover superintendent contracts that are then approved by the board of managers, board President Pete Geren said. Geren said the nine managers have worked with Licata for the past two months and know his leadership.
“We’re not having to guess whether or not this contract is good for kids or whether Dr. Licata is good for kids — Dr. Licata is good for kids,” Geren said.
FWISD parent Karen Perry asked managers to lean into the contract’s emphasis on joint governance with the superintendent. She said the board of managers should ask hard questions and exercise independent judgment on behalf of the community.
“Go beyond the mandate that you support the superintendent and annually evaluate his leadership,” Perry said. “We need a board that leads year-round.”
Previous contracts were not available to the public until after elected trustees approved them. The board of managers took a different approach.
“In the spirit of public transparency, the district is providing the contract in advance of the May 19, 2026, regular board meeting,” a district document states.
After his contract was approved, Licata said the district’s work just started. He pointed to a new report that showed Fort Worth ISD was among the worst in the nation for student learning growth, proving the importance of the district’s primary focus.
“We have a lot to do for our children,” the superintendent said.
Disclosure: FWISD manager Pete Geren leads the Sid W. Richardson Foundation, a financial supporter of the Fort Worth Report. FWISD manager Laurie George is a member of the Report’s reader advisory council. 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.
Jacob Sanchez is education editor for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at jacob.sanchez@fortworthreport.org or @_jacob_sanchez.
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.
This article first appeared on Fort Worth Report and is republished here under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
