The reauthorization of the Individual with Disabilities Education Act of 2004 strongly encourages the use of a response-to-intervention (RtI) model to reduce the number of students identified as learning disabled, to increase student achievement, and to close learning gaps between subgroups of students. RtI is based on the systematic assessment of students' responses to high-quality research-based instruction and interventions. The implementation of a research-based school-specific intervention model, such as RtI, may result in significant change for schools and districts. The purpose of this study was to describe perceptions of the level of change the implementation of RtI represents in a school district and perceptions of school and district leadership practices used to implement RtI. The literature on organizational change and learning, the role of principals and district leaders in school reform, and the effect of leadership behaviors on the ability to influence change form the theoretical basis for this study. This mixed-methods study is descriptive in nature. Data were gathered through the administration of a leadership-behavior assessment measure and focus-group interviews. The sample included seven elementary schools in a large school district in west-central Florida. The results of this study suggest that the implementation of RtI is perceived as a second-order change by most stakeholders. The findings point to the need for principals and district leaders responsible for implementing RtI to employ leadership practices needed for second-order change, paying particular attention to practices that have been identified in the literature as having a negative association with second-order change. It is recommended that districts consider the use of a collaborative process in order to develop nonnegotiable strategic and specific, measurable goals for the implementation of RtI. In addition, districts and schools responsible for implementing RtI should consider benchmarking their practices against practices identified in this study to identify the strategies needed to scale-up district-wide reform and promote sustainability.

The purpose of this study was to examine a novel campus-based multi-tier systems of support (MTSS) framework. The framework included a standard-response protocol approach to response to intervention (RTI), integrated with a reversed process to professional learning communities, to support learning for students who were struggling to learn. Using a causal-comparative research design, a secondary analysis of quantitative data from one Title I school of approximately 500 students during the 2016-2018 school years was conducted to determine the level of impact MTSS had on reading achievement. Independent and paired samples t-tests were used to analyze iStation indicators of progress reading scores, resulting in statistically significant results. Kindergarten through 5th grade students' reading scores were significantly higher after one year of MTSS intervention than students who did not receive MTSS. One year of MTSS intervention had a statistically significant impact on both early and intermediate readers. Early readers, who began below grade level, performed significantly higher in reading achievement after just one year of MTSS as well. Intermediate readers, who began on or above grade level did not perform significantly higher in reading achievement after one year of MTSS, however. Possible long-term implications for MTSS were analyzed by comparing one year to two years of MTSS intervention. A consistently significant increase in reading scores occurred, suggesting growth that took place from one year of MTSS was enhanced by an additional year of MTSS. This novel MTSS framework could be used by campus leaders as an intervention to provide equitable learning for all students and yield statistically significant results in reading achievement in one school year. Additional research examining the impact of MTSS on Tier 1 intermediate readers receiving enrichment is recommended.