The Federal Executive Institute was established in 1968, a time of tension and challenge in the nation, as a staff college for roughly 10,000 people at the top of the Federal Civil Service. Its lofty mission was to equip these public offi cials for leadership in a more active, responsive government. From the outset, however, there were many misunderstandings of this goal. Th e attacks were both on programs and organization arrangements. Within eight years, by 1976, the original concept was already undergoing change, with the momentum growing in succeeding years. In 2010 the Federal Executive Institute continued to exist but as a major management training center for levels below the Senior Executive Service. This study is as much concerned with the theory that governed the early FEI as ith the events that brought its decline. In addition to the ditor, 15 participants in the undertaking provide their perspectives, ending with the 25th anniversary in 1993.