A program development and implementation change agent must be a perceptive individual who: (1) can readily identify all facets of a given situation and can choose the most appropriate alternative available; (2) is knowledgeable about the day-to-day life and politics of small, rural communities; and (3) is perceived as belonging by the community people. In order to guarantee stability and permanence of a newly developed program, the change agent needs to involve as many community and school system staff members as possible in every phase of the change process. Community members can be useful co-workers when conducting community surveys, needs assessments, planning meetings, and public support campaigns. Professional staff members can be involved in identifying and writing program goals and objectives; identifying instructional materials and strategies which can be used in the program development process; establishing an instructional time sequence; developing a professional staff in-service training program; and determining the most appropriate evaluation strategy for the tasks at hand. Time is the most important commodity in the process of unfreezing (creating motivation to change), changing (developing new responses based upon new information), and refreezing (stabilizing and integrating changes). (NQ)