Fort Worth ISD school board names Molinar as superintendent. Here’s why

The timing was right for Karen Molinar to become superintendent. During her nearly three decades of working in the Fort Worth ISD, she built a reputation as a steady leader, a collaborator who takes every role given to her seriously. With those qualities in mind, the school board unanimously agreed Feb. 18 to name Molinar as lone finalist for superintendent.Now, as she steps into the top job, she’s eager to bring her own approach to leadership. Transparency. Student focus. Home-field advantage.Her family is more prepared for her to take the job than when it last opened in 2022. Plus, she’s been doing the work of superintendent for five months — just with the word interim in front of her title.“Sometimes our city and our district need different styles of leadership,” Molinar told the Fort Worth Report. “And now I think they’re ready for mine.”The choice was clear for trustees, they said.Trustees reviewed more than a dozen candidates’ applications, but none stood out quite like Molinar, board President Roxanne Martinez said.Molinar and the school board now must wait a state-mandated 21 days before officially hiring her as Fort Worth ISD’s next superintendent.“We are confident that in the coming three weeks, Dr. Molinar will continue to lead with both her heart and her vision and implement impactful changes that will benefit our students,” Martinez said.Molinar’s energy is felt through her work and the community responds positively to it, trustee Anne Darr said.“Your five-month interview has been quite a success, and you’ve knocked it out of the park,” Darr said.Trustee Wallace Bridges loved the excitement around the district’s lone finalist for superintendent. Molinar has the right passion, optimism and a clear message, he said.However, Molinar’s appointment does not mean the work to improve Fort Worth ISD is over, Bridges said.“The real work goes on now,” he said, adding that a great Fort Worth ISD requires the entire city to unite and roll up their sleeves to help students. “I look forward to seeing some great things happening in this district.”‘Hit the ground running’School closures.An increasingly tighter budget.A literacy crisis.The three issues are a few of the challenges Molinar will face as superintendent — and she’s already started addressing each as part of Fort Worth ISD’s turnaround effort. Molinar inherits a district grappling with declining enrollment. In response, she’s overseeing what leaders call difficult, but necessary conversations around potentially closing dozens of schools. Officials say closures will allow Fort Worth ISD to realign resources and better serve students. While no decisions are final, she’s made transparency a cornerstone of the process, engaging parents, teachers and community members. Trenace Dorsey-Hollins, executive director of parental advocacy group Parent Shield, praised Molinar’s openness.“I’m happy to have someone in that seat who is approachable and actually listens to the community,” Dorsey-Hollins said.Molinar is leading the district through financial uncertainty. She has pushed for a literacy-focused budget — prioritizing investments in early reading programs, classroom support and data-driven interventions while identifying areas to reduce administrative spending. And at the heart of these efforts is student success, particularly in literacy. Fort Worth ISD leaders have called the situation a “crisis,” pointing to years of underperformance. In response, Molinar championed a now-approved strategic plan that puts reading proficiency at its forefront.The plan she and district administrators outlined focuses on accelerating literacy initiatives, strengthening early reading interventions, expanding teacher training and ensuring campuses have the resources they need to meet reading benchmarks. “ I’m going to continue to model transparency, collaboration and accountability, as we implement these strategies and action steps for this strategic plan,” Molinar said.Danny Fracassi, principal of the Leadership Academy Network at Mitchell Boulevard Elementary, told trustees he has confidence in Molinar.“Under her leadership, we believe we can continue to make tremendous strides,” Fracassi said.Molinar’s approach won over trustees — and even some critics, including Fort Worth ISD resident and frequent board meeting speaker Hollie Plemons.“We need a superintendent who can hit the ground running — and she already has,” Plemons said.Pursuing superintendencyAfter her appointment as interim leader, Molinar arrived home and debriefed her husband, Orlando, about what happened that night in early October, she recounted during a fall 2024 interview with the Report.He stayed up late watching news coverage about his wife. Molinar was concerned about his reaction to an answer she provided during a news conference. A reporter asked whether she planned to apply for the full-time gig as superintendent. She said yes. The couple hadn’t talked about whether she would pursue the superintendency. It wasn’t necessary.“If you would have said anything but yes, I would have been shocked and disappointed,” Orlando told her. “Because if we’re going to do it, we’re going all in.”Karen Molinar

Age: 50

Occupation: Lone finalist for superintendent of Fort Worth ISD

Education: 

Doctorate in Education Administration, Texas Wesleyan University

Master’s in Education Administration, Tarleton State University

Bachelor’s in Education, Salisbury State University

Associate degree in early childhood education, Delaware Technical Community College

Experience: 

2020-2023: Deputy superintendent of Fort Worth ISD; interim superintendent in 2022

2018-2020: Chief of staff of Fort Worth ISD

2016-2018: Fort Worth ISD’s chief of elementary leadership

2014-2016: Assistant superintendent for Fort Worth ISD’s Learning Network 1

2011-2014: Director of leadership and Learning Network 1 in Fort Worth ISD

2010-2011: Director of elementary school leadership in Fort Worth ISD

2007-2010: Principal of Oakhurst Elementary in Fort Worth ISD

2006-2007: Assistant principal of M.G. Ellis Elementary in Fort Worth ISD

2005-2006: Assistant principal of Bayard Intermediate in Christina, Delaware

2003-2005: Assistant principal of Bonnie Brae Elementary in Fort Worth ISD

1997-2003: Teacher at Washington Heights Elementary in Fort Worth ISD

Family: Married to Orlando Molinar. They have one daughter, Kendal, who is in college.

Hobbies: Molinar is an avid reader. 

Why she got into education: Molinar grew up around teachers. Her two aunts are teachers. A cousin, who she described as like a sister, is a teacher. Growing up, Molinar’s aunts let her grade papers and, she said, “just fell in love with the concept of it and then I always liked school.”Jacob Sanchez is a senior education reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at jacob.sanchez@fortworthreport.org or @_jacob_sanchez. Matthew Sgroi is an education reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at matthew.sgroi@fortworthreport.org or @matthewsgroi1.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.