Mayor Parker has worked with Police and Fire Departments to build solutions for some of the City’s toughest and longest-standing issues, such as integrating services to provide an EMS system that prioritizes high-quality patient care. She has also shepherded the City’s initiative with the American Warrior Association and the R3 program – a partnership between the Police Department and Fire Department that takes a holistic approach to wellness, addressing moral injury through mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual support.
In 2023, she created Good Natured, a Fort Worth greenspace initiative and bold investment in natural community spaces. The partnership has set an aggressive goal to add 10,000 acres of open greenspace to Fort Worth by 2028. Mayor Parker – who serves as co-chair of the national Mayors for Parks Coalition – also saw the first bond program in City history that included dedicated funds for open space conversation, a $15M investment that voters overwhelmingly supported.
Mayor Parker has positioned the City to continue growing for years to come. She successfully advocated for increased incentives for the film industry in Fort Worth, which has created more than $700 million in economic impact since 2015. She has also worked with the Fort Worth Chamber of Commerce in creating the Fort Worth Economic Development Partnership to lead business recruitment and attraction for the city. Mayor Parker is focused on attracting innovative expansion and high-paying jobs to Fort Worth while fostering conditions that help companies and small businesses alike thrive.
With an eye always on improving Fort Worth for the next generation, Mayor Parker is leading efforts to expand access to education so all students are given the opportunity to succeed. Her Mayor’s Council on Education & Workforce convenes school and business leaders to match students with careers and higher education pathways, ensuring students in Fort Worth are prepared to succeed when they enter the workforce and, importantly, that Fort Worth is prepared to meet the future workforce demand.
Because support for Fort Worth’s youth and families must begin at childbirth, she has also worked to improve access to quality care and resources for mothers and children by convening a coalition of nonprofits and local hospital CEOs working to better streamline services for maternal and infant health in Tarrant County.
When Mayor Parker ran successfully for the first time, she was the youngest Mayor and the first millennial to lead a major American city. And her next-generation, values-based leadership prioritizes people and productivity in today’s polarized political landscape.
Mayor Parker is a licensed attorney, with more than 18 years of experience in national, state, and local public affairs, including her service as the chief of staff for Mayor Betsy Price and the Fort Worth City Council. She was the founding CEO of Fort Worth Cradle to Career and the Tarrant To & Through (T3) Partnership. Mayor Parker, a native of Hico, Texas, graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a Bachelor of Arts in Government and has a law degree from Texas A&M University School of Law. She and her husband David are the proud parents of one daughter and two sons.
Fort Worth Mayor Mattie Parker was elected to lead the nation’s now 12th largest city in 2021 and was reelected with 70% of the vote in 2023. Mayor Parker’s priorities in office focus on key efforts and community partnerships to bolster Fort Worth’s economic development, improve public safety, expand access to education and workforce opportunities, and preserve the city’s rich heritage with a determination to leave things better than she found them. As the leader of one of the nation’s fastest growing cities, Mayor Parker has centered her attention on improving the quality of life for every Fort Worth resident.
Understanding that strong public safety is the bedrock of any successful city, she has championed historic increases in the number of police officers and firefighters; in 2024, that was an increase 106 new Police Department positions and 76 new Fire Department positions.