From Tinkering to Transformation

Meredith I. Honig is professor of Education Policy, Organizations, and Leadership at the University of Washington, where she also founded and directs the District Leadership Design Lab. Lydia R. Rainey is a principal at the Center for Reinventing Public Education.

"From Tinkering to Transformation is a beautifully written book that is crystal clear about a new role for school districts that has so far escaped the attention of the most ardent reformers. The solution is nuanced and requires flipping the problem to determine what really drives transformation in learning. Honig and Rainey literarily and specifically help districts turn themselves inside-out, thereby providing a clear roadway and map to system change. Interesting to read, compelling to contemplate, and irresistible to the action oriented. Use this book now!" -Michael Fullan, professor emeritus, Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, University of Toronto "It is one thing to talk about transformation. It is another to do it. This book is for every educator who wants to be part of making systems that disrupt current inequities rather than reinforce them. Honig and Rainey offer research-based, practical ideas for how to do the right and necessary work of making school systems places for all children to thrive." -Elizabeth City, senior lecturer on education, Harvard Graduate School of Education "In From Tinkering to Transformation, Honig and Rainey address many classic district missteps, such as the way time is often spent on nonstrategic initiatives and the lack of staff connection to a unifying vision. But they don't leave us hanging. They share critical shifts needed to tackle years of deeply entrenched historical inequities. Honig and Rainey offer relevant, timely, and meaningful provocation and practicality asking us, 'What would it mean to start from a blank page?'"-Nancy Gutierrez, president and CEO, The Leadership Academy