“This book is vivid, richly textured, and reads like a novel. School leaders concerned about sustaining public schools committed to diversity, inclusion, and integrated learning will find a wealth of understanding and applications.”
—Carl Glickman, President of the Institute for Schools, Education, and Democracy, Inc.

“Unlike other writers who simply call attention to all the components of effective contemporary education, Dr. Kugelmass actually provides a practical roadmap for implementing them in a real school. This is a major addition to the literature.”
—Margaret D. LeCompte, Professor of Education, University of Colorado–Boulder

How do schools sustain a collaborative, inclusive culture in these times of high-stakes testing and standardization? Through the story of a progressively minded public elementary school, the author shows how committed educators can collaborate to maintain a creative, inclusive educational environment and still rise to the demands of state-imposed standards. Featuring the voices of teachers and administrators, this timely volume:

• Explores the 15-year evolution of a “school in chaos” to a highly regarded school serving a diverse student population.
• Brings together vital themes of inclusive education, constructivist practice, and school reform.
• Demonstrates the complexity of creating and sustaining schools where children from racial, cultural, and linguistic minorities and those with special educational needs can be successfully educated in the same classroom.
• Examines the conflicts between imposed reforms focused on accountability and reforms focused on social justice.
• Describes administrative and teaching innovations that work.

Judy W. Kugelmass is Associate Professor in the School of Education and Human Development, Binghamton University (SUNY).