Sensemaking in the Program Stream: How Local Leaders Re-purposed the “ALL In Virginia” Policy

School and district leaders are challenged to comprehend and translate policy into practice, a process shaped by cognitive, social, and political dynamics. This study offers a conceptual analysis of Virginia's post-COVID-19 “ALL In” policy, which directed nearly half a billion dollars to school districts, primarily for high-dosage tutoring. We examine ALL In VA implementation through the intersection of two frameworks: the multiple streams framework and sensemaking theory. This dual approach allows us to theorize how school-level actors, as street-level bureaucrats, navigate ambiguity, institutional signals, and organizational constraints as they interpret and enact policy.

Given the exploratory nature of our study, we used a multiple case study design to understand how school level actors interpreted and implemented the ALL In policy across three school districts. We conducted 21 in-depth interviews with district and school leaders responsible for ALL In implementation and cross-referenced qualitative data with policy documents.

Our findings show how local judgments about instructional fit and organizational feasibility shape the redefinition of policy problems as they move downstream. Across these cases, leaders interpret new policy demands through a lens of program relevance, prioritizing existing initiatives and locally perceived needs. We further distinguish between absorptive and adaptive sensemaking as two patterned responses within the program stream.

To bridge policy design at the state level and local implementation, policymakers must attend to feasibility constraints and priorities of local actors and create opportunities for lateral sensemaking that strengthens leaders' perceptions of what is possible.