FORT WORTH, Texas — School districts across Texas are grappling with a literacy crisis, and Fort Worth Independent School District is taking a bold step to address it.

What You Need To Know

  • Fort Worth ISD is restructuring its budget to address a literacy crisis with new demonstration teachers

  • Only 32% of the district's third graders are currently reading at grade level, with that percentage dropping by eighth grade

  • These specialized educators will split their time between direct student instruction and supporting fellow teachers

  • The initiative is seen as a potential model for improving literacy across Texas

The district announced it is restructuring its budget to invest in a new kind of educator—demonstration teachers—who will work directly with students and support fellow educators to boost reading outcomes.

Inside one of Fort Worth ISD’s classrooms, coach Jacqui Hill is already doing the work.

“We really do need to be focused on literacy,” Hill said. “I’m excited about the streamlining that’s going to happen across the district.”

Hill currently serves as an instructional coach, helping support teachers. But beginning this fall, she’ll become one of the district’s first official demonstration teachers. She’ll be a teacher of record for a group of students, responsible for their instruction, grades and communication with parents—while also modeling best practices for other teachers on campus.

“We will be their reading teacher,” Hill explained. “We’ll be doing all of the communication with parents, with what’s going on with those students.”

The urgency for change is backed by data. According to Fort Worth ISD, only 32% of the district’s third graders are reading at grade level. By eighth grade, that number drops to just 24%. For comparison, the statewide average is 56% for students meeting grade-level reading standards.

Fort Worth ISD Superintendent Dr. Karen Molinar says the new role is designed to provide support for both students and educators.

“Half of the day they will be working with students, and the other half they will be available to work with adults on that campus,” Molinar said. “It’s extra support not only for students, but for teachers.”

The literacy challenge stretches beyond Fort Worth. Across Texas, roughly 70% of fourth graders are reading below proficiency, according to recent national data.

That’s why Fort Worth ISD leaders hope their approach will serve as a model for other school systems statewide. The demonstration teacher model is part of a broader effort to prioritize early intervention, provide targeted reading instruction, and boost long-term academic success.

Hill says she’s ready to be part of the solution.

“You see the moment it clicks for a student,” she said. “That’s what keeps me going.”