The details
During the contentious meeting, which lasted over seven hours, the board ultimately moved forward with naming Dr. Corey Wilson to serve as interim superintendent.
"Dr. Wilson brings 27 years of experience to the position, with 22 of those years in Keller ISD," board President Charles Randklev said.
He added that the board will pick up Johnson's separation agreement "at a later date."
While Johnson did not attend the Jan. 30 meeting, she told the KISD school board at a Jan. 16 special meeting she was prepared to offer her letter of resignation after speaking out against the possible plan to split the district, saying it wasn’t “right for kids.”
“As the CEO and superintendent of this district, you hired me to look out for the best interest of every stakeholder in this district,” she said. “I think the timeline [to possibly split the district] is accelerated. I don't think we have the details. I don't think that we have the answers. And if the community decides this is something that they want, then we need the time and the right way to figure it out.”
Johnson served as KISD’s chief human resource officer before being named the lone finalist in the district’s superintendent search in November 2023. After a state-mandated 21-day waiting period before being officially hired to the position, Johnson started her role Jan. 2, 2024, and is the first woman to serve in the superintendent position in Keller ISD.
What they’re saying
More than 200 community members signed up to speak at the Jan. 30 meeting. Katie Woods, a KISD parent, brought gold ribbons to share with others who feel that the community should have a voice in a possible split in the form of an election.
“I would like for the people in our district to get to vote on whether or not there should be a split,” Woods said. “Our right, according to the way the law was intended, is that there should be a vote of the people. I think everybody has a right to choose.”
Other community members showed up wearing yellow ribbons that read “Keller Split” to declare their support of splitting the district, which many said would lead to smaller class sizes and more focused education.
“We continue cutting vital programs with invaluable educators and have overcrowded schools due to the possibility of closures,” Keller ISD resident Vicky Harris said. “We need to embrace a system that truly serves our children and gives us a unique opportunity to provide more personalized, high-quality education, ensuring students have access to strong programs, great teachers and schools where they will thrive.”
Several elected officials, including Keller City Council members Tag Green and Shannon Dubberly and Tarrant County Precinct 2 Commissioner Alisa Simmons, spoke out on the issue.
"Let the people vote," Simmons said. "They elected you to manage this district and not cede your power and authority to the county judge and one or two commissioners."
Former Keller ISD Superintendent Rick Westfall posted on his Facebook page Jan. 30 school districts shouldn’t make district-altering decisions in the middle of a legislative session.
“The school finance system is so broken that every lever pulled by the legislators creates a ripple effect that even they aren’t fully aware of until it happens,” Westfall said. “If local elected officials believe a disruption to their constituents, students and staff are needed to stay afloat and to provide exceptional academic opportunities, create the plan, make sure it's fully vetted and communicated but don’t pull the trigger until the impact of SB2 is realized in the new plan.”
KISD Trustees Joni Smith and Chelsea Kelly, who have been vocal about their opposition to the process of the potential district split, both talked about being "blindsided" by the Jan. 30 agenda item concerning Johnson’s resignation.
"I have, once again, been blindsided to see the action items added to the posted agenda, as they were not included in the agenda I reviewed with Dr. Johnson," Smith posted on her Facebook page Jan. 27. "I have been given no information about the reasoning behind this agenda item or any plans for interim leadership, nor do I think it is voluntary."
"Once again, Joni and I have been left in the dark regarding a significant decision in our district," Kelly posted on Facebook Jan. 27. "During [the Jan. 27] agenda review with Joni, neither of us were aware that action would be taken against Dr. Johnson this Thursday. It seems that Joni and I are no longer privy to discussions among the other trustees. We haven't been provided with any details about the rationale behind this abrupt decision or who would serve as interim. We haven't been asked for our input or given the opportunity to voice our concerns."
A closer look
Board members have said they were looking at possibly splitting the district due to financial reasons. A webpage titled “Reshaping FAQ” on the district’s website states, “Unlike neighboring districts that are cutting back on resources, the Keller ISD Board is actively exploring innovative solutions to address financial and operational challenges while maintaining educational quality and support.”
At the beginning of the Jan. 30 meeting, Randklev read from a statement that the board’s actions concerning a possible split are financially motivated.
“We’re facing a $10 [million] to $15 million deficit,” Randklev said. “We must find a way to keep our tax dollars local, keep our schools open, support our excellent teachers and ensure all students receive the high quality education they deserve.”
Randklev added should the district be split in two, facilities such as the Keller Center for Advanced Learning would be shared by both districts. He said one district will not be saddled with debt from both districts, a concern that came up on social media.
“There’s been a lot of talk about local control,” Randklev said. “We know that local control works best when it’s local. The proposed reshaping could create greater opportunities for individualized instruction, tailored education policies, budget priorities and curriculum decisions based on student and workforce needs.”
Randklev addressed the concern that property taxes would also be affected by a possible split.
“No change to property taxes is anticipated at this time,” Randklev said. “[A split] allows each potential district financial freedom to more effectively prioritize funding where it is needed most, which is to support our students and educators.”
During his 2025-26 budget report at the Jan. 30 meeting, District Chief Operations Officer John Allison said school districts receive $6,160 as part of the per student allotment, an amount that hasn’t changed since 2019. He said in order for the district to be financially sound, that amount would need to increase by $1,400 to $7,560 per student.
Allison said in all of the school funding items that have been brought up in the 89th Texas Legislature session, he hasn’t seen any that have come close to increasing the allotment by $1,400.
Next steps
While the district’s Reshaping FAQ webpage doesn’t include a definite plan for what two new districts would look like, a potential division could occur along US 377, which follows the city limits between Fort Worth and Keller. Therefore, students residing in the city of Keller and other cities east of US 377 that the district serves would continue attending Keller ISD, while students in Fort Worth and students in other cities west of US 377 that the district serves would attend “a new independent school district whose name is yet to be determined,” according to the Keller ISD website.
If the split is approved by the Keller ISD board, the district would need to meet other requirements to move forward with the plan, including getting approval from the Tarrant County Commissioners Court and holding an election within Keller ISD and the new district, according to the Texas Education Code.
Jake Kobersky, director of media relations for the Texas Education Agency, said the TEA is not presently involved with this issue since it is a local matter. He added that Chapter 13 of the Texas Education Code speaks to the creation, consolidation and abolition of school districts.
According to Subchapter C of Chapter 13 of the Texas Education Code, which details the creation of a district by detachment, in order for KISD to split into two separate districts several requirements must be met, including:
- Minimum area and attendance requirements: A new district cannot be less than 9 square miles or fewer than 8,000 students in average daily attendance, nor can it be reduced to these numbers.
- Initiation of detachment: Creation of a new district by detachment is initiated by resolution of the board of trustees of each district from which territory is to be detached or by a petition presented to the commissioners court.
- Election: No later than the 30th day after the date the commissioners court receives a petition under this subchapter, the commissioners court shall hold a hearing on the validity of the petition. If the commissioners court determines the petition is valid, each board of trustees shall order an election to be held on the same date in each district. The creation of a new district needs at least 25% of the registered voters of each district to vote in the election to pass.
In addition, any real property in the territory that detaches would become the property of the new district. The new district would also assume, and is liable for, any portion of outstanding debt of the district from which the territory was detached that is allocated to the new district.
