Newspaper headlines from across the United States reflect the turmoil in public education today, with some states protesting federal requirements for testing, some states lowering proficiency requirements, other states raising proficiency requirements, and even kindergarten and preschool children facing higher academic expectations. These headlines, reflecting the accountability pressures of higher standards and high-stakes tests, are having predictable effects upon educators in schools. The author's home state of Hawaii is no exception. "Teachers say they're the ones being left behind," stated a headline in the "Honolulu Advertiser," while the line below read, "Morale low, frustration high among many" (DePledge, 2004). This article presents a discussion of the author's experiences with school change in response to higher standards: how she became involved in this work and the insights she gained about working at the school level, scaling up the change process, levels of implementation, and school results.