This report examines the effects of early efforts to link the Elementary Secondary Education Act's (ESEA's) Chapter 1 (now Title I) programs to state and district education reforms, which are standards-based. The report focuses on how Chapter 1 standards and accountability requirements connect with new state-level standards, curricula, and assessments for all children; how new curriculum frameworks and higher standards are changing teaching and learning in Chapter 1 programs; how new state assessments track individual student progress and improve overall program accountability; and how successfully integrated Chapter 1 programs and evolving systemic reforms can provide lessons for Title I policy. Data were gathered during visits to five state departments of education and nine districts within the states of Arizona, California, Kentucky, Maryland, and New York. Reforms had been implemented at each site for three or more years. Key findings include the following: Leading-edge states and districts have attempted to link changes in Chapter 1 to their own reform efforts; the implementation of standards and new assessments is a slow and unstable process; the states have disseminated documents that outline achievement and expectations, but these vary in depth, breadth, and the amount of information they provide about curriculum and pedagogy; The Chapter 1 program is a valuable resource for capacity building in several states and districts; and local leadership depends on effective management and community involvement. Appendices contain an overview of program linkages in the case study districts, a table showing the status of new assessment development in case study states, and examples of data reported for state assessment and accountability programs. (Contains 67 references.) (LMI)