When the Maryland School Performance Assessment Program (MSPAP) was unveiled in 1991, schools faced a public supportive of change but unhappy with the tests' implications--measurement of school, not student performance. Teachers helped design a nationally normed test to complement MSPAP. The process involved listening, communication, and…

Argues that we can help develop resilience in youth by using a nontraditional approach to changing the fragmented manner in which most services are provided. This approach can include demonstrating desired behaviors instead of relying on the enforcement of mandates or directives to support the change process. (GCP)

Interview with Charlene Teters, Native American artist and activist, focuses on her role as leader of the national campaign to eliminate Native American symbols as college sports mascots, and especially on her experience as a University of Illinois graduate student, where the Native American symbol and mascot continues to be used despite a faculty…

Argues that governmental pressures on universities force change that can have positive effects on the institution's teaching function when guidelines based on sociological systems theory are followed. Offers as a successful example the Enterprise in Higher Education Initiative in the United Kingdom which focused on curricular change, and as an…

A longitudinal case study examined how Indiana University stimulated innovative activities aligned with the strategic plan by using competitive internal incentive grants. Identified five themes, noting that negative/positive attitudes toward the funding process were related to being funded (or not), and that the legitimacy of the strategic…

Report on a 10-year study of five European universities involved in major institutional change suggests five "pathways of transformation," including: (1) a strengthened steering core; (2) an enhanced developmental periphery; (3) a diversified funding base; (4) a stimulated academic heartland; and (5) an embracing entrepreneurial culture.…

Explains critical issues to consider when merging student affairs with academic affairs. States that this merger has potential to encourage greater interaction and become a catalyst for developing learning partnerships on campus. Suggests that in order to make partnership work, faculty, academic administrators, and student affair professionals may…

Proposes a new vision of higher education for the "Age of Transformation." Suggests that the primary issue facing higher education is the need to initiate, implement, and manage meaningful, planned change. Offers an expanded view of strategic planning, contrasting the traditional teaching paradigm with a learning paradigm. Stresses that managing…

Discusses how inconsistent nurturing as control theory asserts that because of competing goals of nurturing and controlling, partners of drug-dependent individuals will unintentionally encourage the very behavior they are trying to extinguish through inconsistent manifestations of reinforcement and punishment. Finds that partners of substance…

Describes how confrontational treatment programs for batterers may increase client resistance. Suggests an alternative approach to working with unmotivated clients which relies on a comprehensive model of the change process, with supportive clinical strategies tailored to the client's stage of change. Focuses on the importance of a collaborative…

Examines administrative processes in higher education institutions, focusing on the different core processes within an institution and the creation of structures to make them more efficient and productive. Proposes a framework of four process-related activities benchmarking, identifying best practices, redesign, and organization alignment to…

Describes how art therapists can clarify their roles and assertively sell themselves to the public. Looks at the future of art therapy, defines assertiveness, explores the need for art therapists as mentors, details the need for change, and introduces some practical solutions to achieve change. (RJM)

Tells about how the author has been learning how to advocate for progressive literacy practices (such as whole language) without demeaning traditional reading and writing instruction and, ultimately, the teachers who enact those practices. (SR)

Describes the need to reform teacher unions, highlighting the Rochester (New York) Teacher Association's commitment to union and school reform and examining the Teacher Union Reform Network (TURN). Created by the National Education Association and American Federation of Teachers, TURN redesigns teachers' unions so they can be more effective…

Reviews Cuban educational reforms, highlighting 1959, 1976, and 1980s initiatives. Compares Cuba's progress with John Kotter's eight-step process based on establishing a sense of urgency, creating a guiding coalition, developing and communicating the change vision, empowering broad-based action, generating short-term wins, consolidating gains, and…