This paper presents findings from a two-year qualitative case study of a new, break-the-mold public elementary school. This school focused on reforming traditional models of instruction with student-centered learning in order to engage and better address the needs of all students. Using a constructivist perspective to understand the dynamics of reform implementation this paper provides a close examination of reform within the school context. While in many ways succeeding in their implementation of a novel approach to schooling, a close examination of stakeholder and policy tensions expose the reasons behind the intractability of traditional models of education and the challenges to student-centered learning specifically and education reform more generally.