Hailing from a family that prioritized the importance of education, Dr. Karen Molinar knew from a young age that she would follow in the footsteps of her aunts and cousins and become an educator.
She never strayed from that goal and went on to achieve a successful career in public education, rising through the ranks from an elementary school teacher to principal to the highest level of administration as superintendent of the Fort Worth Independent School District.
Despite her deep commitment to public education and enduring efforts to support teachers and raise the bar on student achievement, Texas Education Agency Commissioner Mike Morath announced in October 2025 its intention to intervene with a takeover of the district and appointment of a board of managers, a conservator and a superintendent.
Although Morath acknowledged in a letter that recent improvement in student achievement, which occurred under Molinar’s leadership, the number of “chronically unacceptable” campuses continued to rise. But it was the Leadership Academy at Forest Oak 6th Grade campus’ five years of unacceptable ratings that triggered the takeover, even though the school had closed.
The Fort Worth school board disagreed with the decision to remove the district from local control and appealed to the TEA to reconsider, which was rejected. Molinar had hoped to remain but that was not to be. The agency chose Dr. Peter Licata as the new superintendent.
“This decision is not a reflection of Dr. Molinar’s leadership but made with consideration for the scope of changes and improvements needed to better serve all students in the district,” the TEA announced in a statement.
The announcement would end Molinar’s three-decade career in public school education, mostly in Fort Worth.
But Molinar wasn’t ready to retire and she was still passionate about supporting teachers and students and improving public education.
While some opportunities came along, the perfect offer came in July from Rev Partnership, a Fort Worth-based non-profit organization dedicated to improving public education and student outcomes, as well as building a strong education workforce.
In her new position as the organization’s first Chief Executive Officer, Moliner was familiar with the organization’s goals and mission as a result of her leadership in the Fort Worth ISD. It also allows her to continue to work that was so important to her.
Founded in 2022, REV Partnership works with Tarrant County school districts to solve common challenges and create successful education strategies through collaboration and impactful solutions aimed at supporting teacher recruitment, compensation and retention, as well as improving student preparedness and success.
The organization partners with the 17 school districts in Tarrant County, including Fort Worth USD and Lake Work ISD, which are both operating under state intervention.
Elizabeth Brands, founded and board chair of Rev Partnership as well as president and CEO of The Morris Foundation, said that Molinar was the perfect fit for the organization’s CEO.
“We knew that whoever we brought in as the CEO, it was necessary that they would be a trusted peer and colleague with our superintendents because that coalition is at the heart of everything we do,” Brands said in a statement. “She sat in the same seat that they have.”
In her new role, Molinar oversees operations, staff and regional strategy, including providing support to Tarrant County superintendents.
Joe Harrington, superintendent of the Hurst-Euless-Bedford Independent School District stated that Molinar is a “thoughtful, collaborative and mission-driven leader.”
For her part, Molinar looks forward to the upcoming session of the Texas Legislature in 2027, where she hopes to be a “stronger voice” for public education policy and rulemaking.
“State rules can affect districts as much as legislation,” she said.
She recently shared the 2025-2026 accountability results for Tarrant County school districts from the Texas Education Agency, which show that progress is being made. In the last two years, 14 of the county’s 17 school districts improved their state accountability score, with five increasing a letter grade.
Also, from 2025 to 2026, 220 Tarrant County campuses improved their overall score, with 51 becoming A/B campuses. There are now 112 A/B rated campuses within Tarrant County. The number of F-rated campuses decreased from 26 to 19, which represents only 4 percent of Tarrant County schools.
“There is so much work to be done,” she stated. “I have a lot more to give and I am excited to do that with Rev Partnership.