This study examined how recent federal, state, and district policies shape the design and implementation of schoolwide programs for Title I students in the Chicago Public Schools (Illinois). Four inner city elementary schools were selected for the study. Two had academic outcomes higher than expected, and the other two had lower academic outcomes than expected. A comparative case study method was used to study how the schools designed and implemented schoolwide Title I projects, how state and district reform affected the implementation of the Title I programs, and how standards were being implemented in schools with schoolwide projects. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with principals, teachers, Title I coordinators, and teaching assistants. In Chicago, schoolwide Title I programs were scarcely distinguishable from the regular instructional program. Schools in Chicago no longer identify Title I students or pull them out of the regular classroom for instruction. By allocating additional funding to schools with high concentrations of poor students, schools are able to design programs that address the special needs of these students. Schoolwide programs increased the flexibility schools had to design programs that reduce curricular and instructional fragmentation. However, schools differed in how they allocated Title I resources. Study findings show that the policy environment in which schools operate influences how they design and implement their Title I schoolwide programs. (Contains 3 tables and 14 references.) (SLD)