Epilogue: Impressions from a Senior Evaluator

As a senior evaluator working alongside the contributing authors in this book, my former colleagues believed I was in a unique position to write this epilogue. After all, it would not be the first time that I would pronounce judgment on work they had conducted. So, Editors Egelson, Bingham, and Howard asked me to write the epilogue, and I accepted. First, allow me to contextualize my experience, both as a public-school educator and SERVE professional (Peshkin, 1988). Then, I will offer reflections and-commentary on my colleagues’ retrospective on school improvement interventions.

My entrée into the field of education was roundabout. I was majoring in psychology and eager to work in the field. My advisor informed me that I had better be prepared for graduate school. There was no way I was going to do that! So, I entered the “pipeline” to go into early childhood education.