Abstract
This paper describes how the idea of avocational teaching took shape in one particular context. It begins with a brief institutional history and then outlines some of the decisions we made during the start-up phase of the project when we were inventing structures and shaping expectations. The heart of the paper is a discussion of five features that came to characterize the KI approach to avocational teaching and teacher development. The concluding section examines some lessons we learned about what it takes to sustain ongoing teacher development. These lessons go beyond concerns about avocational teaching to address broader issues of educational leadership and teacher learning. The paper draws on a rich archive of interviews, fieldnotes, and documents collected over a three year period.