Founded by the federal government in 1966 as an educational research documentation network, the Educational Resources Information Center (ERIC) has evolved in both scope and philosophy over the past years. This publication is a tribute to the ERIC program as it enters its fourth decade. The contents, which were chosen to chronicle the progress of educational development, focus on how the public schools, as agents of change, have adapted over time to selected societal trends. The volume presents documents dealing with four social trends that have occupied much of professional literature during the past 30 years: the increase in children and families living in poverty; the influx of children and families whose home language is not English; the "epidemic" rise in teen pregnancy and parenthood; and the widespread use of tobacco, alcohol, and other drugs by children at younger ages. The volume is divided into five sections. Each of the first four sections deals with one of the four societal trends. Each section contains an overview of the ways in which schools have responded over time to the trend in question, and highlights key elements that distinguish responses and approaches. At the heart of each section are the ERIC documents, which offer first-hand insight into how the schools have reacted, and which reflect the societal and educational mores of the times. The fifth section is a summary of the major themes. A list of additional ERIC readings pertaining to the subject areas is included. (LMI)