Bottom Up: A Story of School Transformation is both a story and a guidebook for changing the culture of a school. The book is meant to be read by a school staff to help address the needs of the students who struggle the most. It is a fictional story of a suburban high school with a great reputation and a largely unseen dark side.
With a new principal, the school undergoes a transformation and begins to address its underserved population, resulting in a more positive experience for the students and (most of) the staff. It is a story of organizational change that integrates research in neuroscience, behavior, and psychology.
The greatest challenge in education is change. By design, education is a system that is inherently stable and resists change - even when change is recognized as being necessary. Bottom Up guides a staff through change, addressing the systemic impediments as well as the reluctance of the adults to approach behavior and challenging students differently.