ABSTRACT
The concept of professional learning communities (PLCs) continues to elicit varying responses in educators. Fullan identifies three main change stages - initiation, implementation, and institutionalization - and suggests that effective leadership enables permanent or sustainable change. On-site interviews of district administrators, including the Executive Director of Academic Achievement (EDAA), the Superintendent, and site principals, were utilized to establish a baseline understanding of the quantitative data and generate themes based upon expressed perceptions. The Whitnall School District spent three years in a pre-change stage where the district established a preliminary need for change and then committed to the change before moving into the initiation stage of the change process. The leadership practices and processes of the Whitnall School District reflect Hipp and Huffman's definition of a functioning PLC: Professional educators working collectively and purposefully to create and sustain a culture of learning for all students and adults.
