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“Provides an in-depth investigation of schools in different regions of the country that have made dramatic improvement in student achievement. The opportunity to share and learn from these promising practices offers practitioners a valuable repertoire for implementation.”

“Gives rich, engaging, and often inspiring glimpses into the stories of eight American schools that went from horrendous to excellent. The book could provide an effective scaffold for personal reflection or serve as a source book for a masters program in educational administration.”

"Lew Smith's patient attention to developing a framework that captures the dimensions of successful school improvement has paid off handsomely. Both researchers and school administrators will gain insight into the theory and art of change leadership. More importantly, readers will come away with many ideas about how to create the conditions that Smith identifies as critical to substantive change for teachers, students, and families."

"Schools That Change integrates equal parts passion and intellect. A well-crafted contribution to the literature on successful reform—a sophisticated and nuanced book that should be read with care."

"School principals and aspiring school administrators looking for real-world school change will find this book among their most trusted resources. This book reveals the challenges of successful school change and provides a recipe for how to become an intelligent leader for complex decision making."

"Lew Smith makes it clear that schools in the most desperate of situations have been able to find hope and success through change initiated by courageous leaders using strategies based on commitment to improve the status quo, caring, and trust. I hope others will avail themselves of opportunities to gain inspiration from the change stories told in this book."

“Smith’s book offers educators a variety of inspiring examples of schools that beat the odds and improved teaching and learning. Smith thinks like a designer rather than a problem solver. Problem solvers concentrate on eliminating things—problems—while designers focus on creating things—in this case, exciting new learning environments. For my money, the hopes of our neediest young people are better vested in the dynamics of designers than the predicaments of problem solvers.”

"Schools do change. Some schools, however, take the initiative and look for a better way to serve their constituencies. Lew Smith has given us a revealing and important glimpse of some of these remarkable schools."

"Makes powerful connections that bridge research, policy, and practice, enabling those in the field to make decisions to effect systemic improvement of teaching and learning in America’s schools. It is refreshing to have a timely book that not only makes the case for change and improvement, but also provides evidence on how to do it effectively."

“Lew Smith has written about how eight schools have changed from schools of mediocrity to schools of excellence. He presents practical suggestions on how to accomplish the same results through the essential elements of context, capacity, and conversation. The book has a scholarly foundation, but has a practical focus reflecting the author’s own experiences as a successful high school principal.”

“Schools have shown themselves to be gifted and talented at resisting and subverting change. Lew Smith hands to us the keys to the storehouse of insights about how schools changed…really changed.”

"The author uses the individual school stories to tie educational research to the actual plan. Anyone interested in change can use it as a very clear road map to success!"

"Smith's book captures real school change where it counts most: in schools and classrooms, and for children, teachers, and communities. A must-read!"

“At last, a book that provides practical guidance by focusing on schools that have improved. Schools That Change offers sound insights from experienced educators on what it takes to create the schools we need to educate America's children.”

“A rich guide for educators interested in nuts-and-bolts tools and resources to support the journey from low to high performance. Lew Smith has powerfully captured the lessons learned in his magnificently colorful portraits of eight schools selected for the National School Change Award. Practitioners will find Schools that Change to be wonderfully grounded in evidenced-based research and documented best practice."

“Schools that Change captures that rare combination of intellectual rigor, challenging vision, and the passion. I have been eagerly awaiting this book to share with our Board and with all of our educators. Beyond the mechanistic change processes that are observed all too often, Lew helps us locate the work squarely where it resides; in the messy, organic world of human organizations where leaders must understand and work though the change essentials of context, capacity and conversations.

"This book vividly illuminates the incredible power of leadership as the key factor in turning schools around. The stories from the eight featured schools provide us with a bold and unvarnished account of the courage and tenacity of principals and teacher leaders who won’t accept the 'status quo' when that means accepting unsafe schools, failures in student learning, and policies that thwart effective instruction. This book will be incredibly useful for discussions among practicing and future educational leaders."

"An engaging, practitioner-friendly examination of successful school improvement from inside the school. Smith provides eight vivid portraits of schools that were once failing but that have subsequently pulled themselves together and improved dramatically. By blending theories of change with the policies and practices that have facilitated success across a variety of educational contexts, this text provides both instruction and hope to educators, parents, policy makers, and aspiring school leaders. It should be on the short list of required reading for all school stakeholders."

"Provides every school with many valuable strategies to consider.”

"In a thorough review of the literature, Smith describes both the beauty and the challenge of change. The messages and the lessons learned are grounded in the stories of real schools and the paths they took to work their way up to become high-performing schools. These stories will resonate with school leaders everywhere, particularly urban educators. The book is a great contribution to the field and is needed now more than ever."