A PRELIMINARY, SYSTEMATIC PICTURE (CENSUS) WAS DEVELOPED OF THE STATUS OF SCHOOL INTEGRATION IN EIGHT NORTHERN CITIES OF THE UNITED STATES IN COMPLIANCE WITH THE 1954 "BROWN" DECISION OF THE SUPREME COURT. THE PURPOSE OF THE PROJECT WAS TO CORRECT THE DISTORTED VIEWS OF SCHOOL INTEGRATION STATUS, RESULTING PRIMARILY FROM NEWS MEDIA REPORTS OVER A PERIOD OF YEARS. PRINCIPAL STUDY DATA WERE GATHERED THROUGH INTERVIEW RESPONSES AND THE PERSONAL FILES OF APPROXIMATELY 200 PERSONS, INCLUDING SCHOOL BOARD MEMBERS, SCHOOL ADMINISTRATORS, PUBLIC OFFICIALS, NEWSPAPERMEN, AND HEADS OF CIVIL RIGHTS GROUPS. THESE DATA WERE USED TO DEVELOP A CASE STUDY FOR EACH CITY CONSIDERED, DESCRIBING HOW THE DESEGREGATION ISSUE WAS RAISED, HOW IT WAS DEBATED, AND HOW IT WAS (OR WILL BE) RESOLVED. CITIES COVERED IN THIS INVESTIGATION WERE ST. LOUIS, LAWNDALE, BAY CITY, NEWARK, BUFFALO, BALTIMORE, SAN FRANCISCO, AND PITTSBURGH. AN OVERALL REVIEW OF THE EIGHT CASE STUDIES WAS ALSO MADE IN ORDER TO DEVELOP A GENERAL PICTURE OF THE TYPICAL INTEGRATION DECISION, COVERING THE DEMANDS OF THE CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT, THE RESPONSES OF SCHOOL BOARDS AND SUPERINTENDENTS, AND THE REACTIONS OF THE MASS OF WHITE CITIZENS. IN THREE OF THE CITIES STUDIED, SCHOOL INTEGRATION HAD BEEN RESOLVED, AND DEMONSTRATIONS, IF THEY EVER OCCURRED, WERE A THING OF THE PAST. PLANS WERE BEING IMPLEMENTED IN TWO OTHERS WHICH SHOWED PROMISE OF RESOLVING THE ISSUE. IN THOSE REMAINING, WORK STILL NEEDED TO BE DONE. NO ATTEMPT WAS MADE IN THIS STUDY TO RECOMMEND SOLUTIONS FOR THIS LATTER GROUP, AS THE PROJECT PURPOSE WAS ONLY TO REPORT FACTS AND POSSIBLE SOCIOLOGICAL EXPLANATIONS OF THESE FACTS. (JH)