The United States Congress enacted the Educational Partnerships Act in 1988. The Educational Partnerships Program (EPP) stimulated the creation of educational partnerships to demonstrate their contribution to educational reform. The Office of Educational Research (OERI) provided funds to 30 educational partnerships. This document contains five case studies, each of which focuses on one aspect of an educational partnership: an integrated-services partnership, a health-and-social-services partnership, a storefront program for dropouts, a school-to-work transition partnership, a curriculum-and-instruction-focused partnership, and a multifocus partnership. Some of the lessons learned include: (1) Outside funding stimulates action; (2) each participating organization is challenged to change policies and procedures; (3) partnership approaches require adaptation to fit each community, school district, and school; (4) organizational mavericks need support to strengthen the program; (5) a shared vision and deep commitment among partners can overcome program design weaknesses; (6) leadership is critical in a complex partnership; and (7) educational partnerships may be used to leverage additional funding for activities or to garner support for school reform in a community. The appendix lists members of the educational partnerships study group. (LMI)