Federal civil rights complaint against Fort Worth ISD gets backing from a dozen groups

Twelve organizations have banded together to send a demand letter to Fort Worth Independent School District leadership, uplifting a federal civil rights complaint filed last week that accuses the district of racial discrimination by way of its COVID-19 relief spending.

Da’Taeveyon Daniels, a director with Students Engaged in Advancing Texas , sent the letter alongside 11 other entities on Monday to Superintendent Angélica Ramsey and district school board members, reiterating allegations of the inequitable distribution of Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief funding — or ESSER funding — that were laid out in a complaint submitted last Monday by community member and literacy advocate Wanda McKinney.

The complaint, focusing on the last round of the $262 million in ESSER funding, was submitted to the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights and asserts that the district violated Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Among the arguments cited is that “FWISD failed to implement an intentional, equitable plan to distribute ESSER funds to improve learning outcomes for African-American students.” As an example, the complaint says, Black students in kindergarten through third grade regressed in reading fluency about two years after the district started receiving its last round of ESSER funding.

It remains to be seen whether the federal office will investigate the complaint.

“If these discriminatory practices continue, African-American students in FWISD will face long-term academic setbacks, limiting their opportunities for future success and perpetuating cycles of poverty and disenfranchisement,” the demand letter states. “Conversely, if immediate action is taken to rectify these funding inequities, we can ensure that all students have equal access to the resources and support they need to succeed. Equitable funding will help close the racial achievement gap, provide a fair learning environment, and uphold the principles of justice and equality in education.”

The letter lists demands that are identical to the demands listed in the complaint:

• Conduct an audit of ESSER fund spending from June 2021 to now showing how each school campus acquired its respective funding and the ways equitable distribution was monitored.

• Provide a comprehensive report on each campus’ funding allocation and how the funds were utilized when looking at racial demographics, accountability ratings and specifics of how learning loss and social-emotional learning were addressed.

• Implement equitable practices that align Title VI compliance, including targeted support and equitable funding to address disparities impacting African-American students.

A fourth demand that was later added to the original complaint includes the district creating a timeline and plan of financial restoration “for students who were discriminated against in compliance with Title VI, including equitable funding practices and targeted support for African-American students to address the identified disparities.”

Fort Worth ISD officials declined to comment on the letter and the complaint, citing potential litigation.

The organizations that signed on to the letter include:

• Students Engaged in Advancing Texas

• Defense of Democracy

• The Fort Worth-Tarrant County branch of the NAACP

• Makom Shelanu Congregation

• By Any Means 104

• Tarrant4Change

• Fort Worth Black and Brown Coalition

• Texas Poor People’s Campaign

• Texas Grassroots Alliance

• Southside Community Garden

• FWISD 4 ALL

• Cesar Chavez Committee of Tarrant County

Daniels, who coordinated the organizational sign-on and sent the letter, also played a key role in the original complaint coming forward and created an online petition to recruit community support for it. The petition had more than 125 signatures as of Monday afternoon.

Daniels told the Star-Telegram it’s important for young people to be involved in efforts such as this one when they’re the main stakeholders impacted by education policy.

“A lot of the time, we’re not included in the conversation or our best interests aren’t thought of when we are the topic of discussion. So our mission is to essentially make sure that young people are the center of the conversation, especially in instances like this, where young people have been inequitably treated by the district,” Daniels said on Monday.

McKinney, who filed the original complaint, said that she would have been unable to navigate the federal complaint process without Daniels after keeping track of the district’s spending of ESSER funding over the years and gathering various sources of its impact on African-American students.

“My purpose in life is to serve God honorably! Throughout the assignment that He gave me a few years ago, which is to seek educational justice for Black students in FWISD through equity, I have done so with honesty and integrity. I will continue to do so without compromise!” McKinney said in a statement on Monday.

Estella Williams, president of the Fort Worth-Tarrant County chapter of the NAACP, said the organization signed onto the letter in support of McKinney because of its mission to advocate for equal opportunities for all. Williams highlighted the importance of having a plan tailored to African-American students, as each student group has its specific needs.

“If you receive those federal dollars, and those dollars were supposed to be used in order to help bridge the gap, then that’s exactly what should have taken place. However, we saw regression. We saw regression. It’s just a sore subject… not providing the school that educational opportunity,” Williams said. “Do some assessments, and based on the assessments that are done, put things in place in order to make a difference. And try to make a difference, and not just say it’s a cookie cutter and all of the cookies are cut the same way. That’s not the way it should be.”

Alexander Montalvo, coalition facilitator with the Fort Worth Black and Brown Coalition, said the entity was originally created to address education inequities in Fort Worth ISD, and its support of the complaint is a continuation of why the coalition first formed. Montalvo is also a co-founder of Tarrant4Change .

“Community leaders had come together to address the concerns they had been hearing from parents, families, students, and their own experiences with Fort Worth ISD and advocacy efforts,” Montalvo said of the coalition’s creation. “The issue with ESSER funds has been a concern of the Fort Worth Black and Brown Coalition and we are in full support of the complaint that has been filed (and) led by Wanda McKinney.”