PLANS ARE UNDERWAY TO PROVIDE RACIAL BALANCE THROUGHOUT THE PUBLIC SCHOOL SYSTEM OF SYRACUSE, NEW YORK. OF THE APPROXIMATELY 31,000 CHILDREN ENROLLED IN THE SCHOOLS, 18 PERCENT ARE NONWHITE. WHEN AFTER THREE YEARS A WELL-RUN PROGRAM OF COMPENSATORY EDUCATION FAILED TO PRODUCE ANY MEASURABLE ACADEMIC IMPROVEMENT AMONG STUDENTS AT THE THREE PREDOMINANTLY NONWHITE SCHOOLS, ADMINISTRATORS BEGAN TO BUS SMALL NUMBERS OF NEGRO PUPILS TO HIGH-ACHIEVING WHITE SCHOOLS. THE 30 PUPILS WHO WERE BUSED MADE SIGNIFICANT ACADEMIC PROGRESS AND, WHEN INTERVIEWED, IMPLIED THAT IT WAS THE ATTITUDE AND MOTIVATION OF THEIR WHITE CLASSMATES WHICH MADE THEM ACHIEVE MORE. TWO OF THE THREE NEGRO SCHOOLS WERE THEN CLOSED AND PUPILS BUSED TO INTEGRATED SCHOOLS. COMPARED WITH STUDENTS IN THE REMAINING NEGRO SCHOOL, THE TRANSPORTED PUPILS DOUBLED THEIR ADVANCES IN READING ACHIEVEMENT. HOWEVER, WHEN IN RESPONSE TO PRESSURES FROM THE NEGRO COMMUNITY PLANS WERE FORMULATED TO CROSS-BUS WHITE PUPILS INTO THIS MAJORITY NEGRO SCHOOL, THE WHITE COMMUNITY OBJECTED. RECENTLY, A PROGRAM OF COMPULSORY REASSIGNMENT OF CERTAIN NEGRO PUPILS TO INTEGRATED SCHOOLS HAS BEEN BEGUN. ALSO PLANNED IS AN INTEGRATED "EXCEL" SCHOOL FOR GIFTED PUPILS. IT IS ESTIMATED THAT BY SEPTEMBER 1968, NO SYRACUSE PUBLIC SCHOOL WILL BE MORE THAN 50 PERCENT NEGRO. NEVERTHELESS, FOR THIS TO HAPPEN THERE MUST BE A "CAMPUS PLAN" OF ELEMENTARY SCHOOL COMPLEXES AND MORE EFFECTIVE SCHOOL BOARD LEADERSHIP. THIS PAPER WAS PREPARED FOR THE NATIONAL CONFERENCE ON EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITY IN AMERICA'S CITIES, SPONSORED BY THE U.S. COMMISSION ON CIVIL RIGHTS, WASHINGTON, D.C., NOVEMBER 16-18, 1967. (LB)