From Dream to Reality

Abstract

Part H of P.L. 99-457 (reauthorized in 1991 as IDEA) established “a new Federal discretionary program to assist states in developing and implementing a comprehensive, coordinated, interdisciplinary system of early intervention services for infants and toddlers with disabilities and their families.” Part H made considerable promises concerning the way the system was to be designed and the way services were to conceptualized, funded, and delivered. The challenges to such sweeping changes were predictable and extensive. This paper is a study of systems change and those forces that work for or against realizing visionary intent. It examines the process of moving from federal legislation to implementation in one state (New York). However, it is clear that the challenges that New York faced and continues to deal with are not unique to that state (Gallagher, Harbin, Thomas, Clifford, & Wenger, 1988; Gallagher, Trohanis, & Clifford, 1989; Garwood & Sheehan, 1989; Trohanis, 1991). Through an examination of systems change in one state, it is hoped that planners involved with Part H efforts in other states or those involved in other major systems change gain an understanding of the complexities of change and leadership. This paper looks at a pool of research that offers practical strategies to change agents in order to maximize successful systemic change.

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