Tracy Yarchi and Jim Slosson are experienced high school educators. They have worked in high schools long enough to see dozens of change initiatives, school reforms, promising practices, and silver bullets. Once they found the right tools, they were both able to work toward transformation. I had been a high school English teacher for 15 years when my district trans- formed two traditional high schools into 10 small schools of choice. I want to share how the staff of one small school, with the help of professional development and a true sense of empowerment, created a small school culture and aligned school’s work to positively influence student achievement and learning. In the beginning of this change process, I remember saying I needed time to reflect.