Daniel L. Duke is Professor of Educational Leadership at the University of Virginia. He is the author of many books, including Education Empire: The Evolution of an Excellent Suburban School System and coeditor (with Margaret Grogan, Pamela D. Tucker, and Walter F. Heinecke) of Educational Leadership in an Age of Accountability: The Virginia Experience, both also published by SUNY Press.

"This short book covers the broad sweep of real life, from politics and facilities to instruction and learning." — The School Administrator"Virtually all states have moved toward deregulation and decentralization in an effort to require local districts to forge need-specific improvements. Historically, superintendents have been instruments of change and not reform architects. This book both exposes new realities of practices and provides an excellent example of one school district's journey." — Theodore J. Kowalski, coauthor of Effective Communication for School Administrators: A Necessity in an Information Age

• List of TablesPrefaceTimeline1. IntroductionUnderstanding Systemic ChangeDoing Organizational HistoryWhy Is the Manassas Park Story Important?Organization of the Book 2. The Birth of a School SystemA New City and a New School SystemA Plethora of Postpartum ProblemsSchooling in an Unsupportive EnvironmentCause for Hope 3. An Improbable Choice for an Impossible JobThe Cards DeBolt Was Dealt Delivering on the PromiseEnvisioning the New High SchoolFrom Brainstorming to BricksRaising Achievement in an Era of Accountability 4. Excellence Begins EarlyWhere Will It Be and Can We Afford It?Planning the New Elementary SchoolWhat About Learning?5. A Foundation for Sustained SuccessIt Takes More Than a Leader to Make a Leadership TeamCharting a Course to SignificanceThe Final Ingredient for Success 6. A Maturing Culture of High AchievementMultiple Indications of SuccessFeatures of Manassas Park's New Organizational Culture 7. A Future Full of QuestionsHow Will Manassas Park Cope with Changing Demographics?Will Local Revenue for Education Continue to Be Adequate?How Long Will the Political Alliance Hold?Will Student Achievement Continue to Improve?What Will Happen When Tom DeBolt Leaves? 8. Understanding the Process of School System TransformationThe Power of PoliticsThe Impact of Re-culturingThe Necessity of StructureThe Potential of PeopleA Systematic Approach to Systemic Change 9. The Significance of Manassas Park's TransformationLesson 1: School Systems Can Be Turned AroundLesson 2: A Change Process Characterized by Accelerating IncrementalismLesson 3: School System Change Benefits from Local AdaptationLesson 4: Size Probably MattersLesson 5: Don't Underestimate the Importance of Improved FacilitiesLesson 6: The Necessity of Broad-based Community SupportLesson 7: Transformation Starts at the TopLesson 8: Transforming a School System Can Transform a Community NotesReferencesIndex