In this overview of the Planning Educational Environments for Cleveland Children Project a comparison of selected change principles is made. These principles were taken from the change literature and were incorporated into the project design. The key features identified in the literature include: (1) the unit of change, (2) staff participation in planning, (3) goal clarity, communication and consensus, (4) change agents, (5) consultants, (6) staff retraining and reward, (7) resources necessary for successful change, (8) resistance to change, and (9) support of the bureaucracy. The paper also discusses the implications of productive and counterproductive elements generated by this project for renewal and reform in urban school districts. The counterproductive and productive effects, while unique to this specific project, suggest implications for renewal and reform in urban districts. For example, it is clear that organized, planned programs of change must be implemented. It is also clear that at least six critical prerequisites need to be considered to support such reform efforts. These include provisions for financial bases, role clarification, bureaucratic support, knowledge bases, staff retraining efforts, and planning a development and evaluation model. In this study, momentum for change appeared to be significantly linked to these prerequisites. (Author/AM)