If fundamental change in education is to be lasting and effective, it must be a systemic transformation that pervades all aspects of the organization. The New American Schools Development Corporation (NASDC) mission requires rapid, comprehensive change. The Community Learning Centers program described in this document features systemic change with a paradigm shift toward learning and away from teaching. In July 1992, NASDC awarded a 5-year grant to Public School Incentives (PSI), a Minnesota-based nonprofit organization supporting school improvement, to develop the Community Learning Centers (CLCs). This publication presents 24 principles and design elements of the Community Learning Centers program, some of which include: (1) Each CLC site must negotiate with the local governance authority to achieve charter- or contract-school status; (2) CLCs have well-articulated missions, beliefs, and assumption statements to guide their development; (3) standards for student attainment must be world class and derived from community input; and (4) curriculum is designed from outcomes. The publication also presents a vision/mission statement and describes other key elements of the program--standards and assessment, curriculum and instructional strategy, professional development, technology, school organization and governance, community services and supports, public engagement, and the implementation process for new schools. (LMI)