This paper describes an inservice teacher education program--its development and its attempts to prepare teachers for urban environments. As the result of a collaborative venture between the University of St. Thomas (Minnesota), the American Federation of Teachers Local 59, and the Minneapolis (Minnesota) school district, a distinctive master's degree program emerged. The link between the union and the school of education offers joint development of courses and on-site graduate study at the union office complex. Both the university and the union believe that institutions of higher education must respond to the specific needs of learners regardless of setting and become partners in educational reform. In the partnership, the higher education institution brings research on effective instruction and models varied methods of delivery. The union and K-12 teachers contribute their current strategies for cross-curricular teaching and their perspectives on classroom organization and management. The document's appendixes provide a list of course requirements and a schedule for the Master of Arts in Curriculum and Instruction K-12 program, and both a course schedule and licensing requirements for a Master of Arts degree in Early Childhood Special Education. (Contains 16 references.) (LL)