Through a series of organizational and instructional changes, comprehensive planning aims to make it possible for all children to reach the same high academic standards. Educators and parents of American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) students, as well as other members of tribal communities, must participate in this planning to ensure that the needs of AI/AN students are considered at the local level. This digest briefly describes key federal legislation and initiatives calling for school reform: Goals 2000, Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, the renewed Indian Education Act of 1994, and reforms that promote parent involvement and professional development. Each description is followed by several questions that can help AI/AN communities closely examine local school reform plans and decide if these plans are designed to (1) ensure the academic success of AI/AN students and (2) reflect the views of their community. Current school reform emphasizes "locally determined" decision making, so each community will need to tackle the questions posed in this digest in different ways in order to address varying local circumstances and needs. (SV)