Models of social change: Community foundations and agenda setting

Abstract

This article focuses on a particular approach to large-scale, community-based educational change - Local College Access Networks in the state of Michigan. A multidimensional framework is developed for understanding social change, and especially the agenda setting function. The authors find that local agendas are influenced by both local pressures to adapt to the community context and state incentives and pressures to conform to a set of programmatic priorities. They conclude that those responsible for managing the change agenda must simultaneously be able to attend to both dimensions.