A random sample of 400 urban public school systems having high school classes for the educable mentally retarded was surveyed to determine whether programs used a school-community work experience approach to the training and placement of mental retardates and whether these programs were keeping up with changing skill demands. A 22-item questionnaire was completed by 316 school systems. Secondary special class enrollments were approximately 66,373 and vocational placements approximately 11,368 during the 1965-66 school year; 225 systems began special class programs during 1957-66; of 308 systems, 68.5% awarded some form of high school diploma; and length of special class programs was evenly divided between 3 and 4 years. Findings indicated that work experience programs decreased with a decrease in size of urban population; 92.7% of these programs developed from 1957 to 1966; public agencies were important in the success of these programs; and the trend was toward an introduction, earlier than 10th grade, to work experience. Evidence suggested that retardates were successful in a variety of skilled and unskilled jobs and that training was taking place in newer areas of industry; service occupations were disproportionately emphasized. (MS)