Schools across the country are seeking creative ways to meet the high demands of school accountability. For example, in Montgomery (AL) Public Schools, "turnaround specialists" work at the direction of the local system's board of education. The district decided to treat turnaround specialists as partners who work with school principals to improve low-performing schools instead of replacements for the school principals. That decision has required the school district to create an environment in which collaborative relationships can develop in a short period of time. As Montgomery County's turnaround specialist, this author has assisted one school to successfully meet the Alabama's adequate yearly progress (AYP) goal after seven years of being in need of school improvement. Making Chisholm Elementary School one of the district's model elementary schools required the collaboration of an academic administrative assistant, an at-risk interventionist, and other corrective action team members from local and state agencies. The collaboration and support of the turnaround specialist changes the perspective of school leaders who may not have such experienced collaboration. That is the case with Lorenza Pharrams, who is the principal at Paterson Academy of Creative Education, a secondary alternative school in Montgomery Public Schools. The announcement that none of the nine goals had been met for the 2008-09 accountability report was a shock for Paterson Academy, which had worked hard to improve academically. As was the case with Chisholm Elementary school, dramatic changes had to take place at Paterson Academy and take place quickly. In this article, the author shares how she helped turn around Paterson Academy's circumstances.