Transforming our public schools is undoubtedly the preeminent domestic public policy challenge of this century. We must continue to move strategically toward an educational landscape that redefines, retools, and reengineers how elementary and secondary education is delivered to school age youth in rural, suburban, and urban communities all across America. To be sure, the globalization of the marketplace and the information and technological explosion over the past few decades are sufficient evidence of the urgent need to transform schools so that youth are better prepared for an increasingly competitive and constantly changing world. The viable solutions for local schools are some combination of complete overhauls, innovative prototypes, higher standards, and greater accountability. Through collaboration, communities can develop clear strategies that incorporate some degree of each dimension. Young people are depending on us to develop formats and prototypes that will endow them with the tools and resources that they need to utilize their gifts and abilities en route to successful careers and lives.

The collaboration of parents, classroom teachers, policymakers, business people, clerics, social service providers, foundations, concerned citizens, corporations, academics, and school administrators from all of the sectors represents infinite possibilities for reform locally and nationally. Indeed, the half a million organizations that make up the nonprofit sector can offer significant input into how local communities can better serve school age youth. The financial and management expertise of private enterprise can elevate how public schools operate and manage their systems and resources. As a large majority of the 250,000 congregations nationwide expand their ministries to address public and social issues, their perspectives and influence become even more vital for improving local schools. The contributions of these professionals from different sectors can work wonders in public education while making life in the classroom much more fulfilling for the 3 million elementary and secondary teaching professionals who comprise a large segment of the public sector. The 50 million students nationwide are ample reasons for all sectors and professionals to join in transforming schools everywhere.

Our mandate is to divorce ourselves from political and ideological allegiances and embrace the reality that we must create relevant schools and educational systems and structures that respond to the specific needs of students in specific communities. The liberal response to reform---which leans toward throwing more dollars at broken systems and structures that are no longer capable of being effective---completely ignores the need for serious overhaul in many areas. The moderate position---which embraces innovation but only on a test basis, for fear of moving the paradigm too quickly---is actually too tepid. The lofty conservative proposals---which are almost always underfunded and poorly implemented---must be balanced against the constraints of state and local budgets, which are usually expected to share in the funding of federal reforms. As a village, our charge is to merge our disparate perspectives into a range of possibilities for producing substantive improvements in student achievement.