Leaders within the professional practices of law, medicine, business administration, and school leadership share the common challenge of designing, implementing, and evaluating programs of study that integrate sophisticated levels of knowledge of content and deep understanding of the strategies and skills required for practice problem solving. This paper presents findings of an evaluation of an innovative Ed.D. program within the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis at the University of Missouri-Columbia. The program is structured around four thematic focus blocks rather than the traditional course design. The evaluation, the first two phases of a 3-year action-research project, focused on students' perceptions of the effects of instructional Themes 1 (fall semester 1995) and 2 (winter semester 1996). Data were collected from three sources: (1) a survey of cohort program students; (2) interviews with cohort faculty; and (3) interviews with faculty and administrators from the regular on-campus educational leadership program. Findings indicate that the program has had a positive impact on students' cognitive growth and professional development. Content, instructional strategies, and experiential learning activities for both Theme 1 and Theme 2 were well received by students. Faculty members' and administrators' perceptions of the program's impact on their own practice and on the department's on-campus instructional programs varied with their own level of involvement with the cohort program. Two tables are included. (Contains 16 references.) (LMI)