This article describes the process of replacing a modest Master's level school leader preparation program with an innovative Ed.D. program at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC). The new doctoral program is intensive, highly selective, intellectually rigorous, and field-based. The authors provide side-by-side comparisons of the difference…

A chronic problem in quick visits to "innovative" schools is discerning whether something is happening. This article presents some guiding principles for recognizing the meanings, organizational structures, and effects of change. Accompanying School Restructuring Profile offers busy practitioners conceptual outline or set of "must sees" for…

Accounts, in part, for the successful implementation of an alternative "school-without-walls" and provides clues to what program administrators can do to make it more likely that new programs will get fair trials in the schools. (Author/IRT)

Provides a synthesis of related research and literature on implementing innovation at the school and classroom levels. The key factors affecting implementation include the nature of the intended change, contextual factors of school organization, and the roles of teachers and change facilitators. Recommendations for effective practice are offered.…

Studies in five Missouri districts identified eight characteristics deterring change and constituting an "informal covenant" between teachers and principals. Eight corresponding conditions essential to change include relating changes to a school's culture, knowing local procedures and sensitive issues, recognizing moments when changes are…