This paper describes what has happened in Cleveland, Ohio, over the past 18 months as various community leaders and organizations have focused on a possible court order to desegregate the city schools. It focuses on the actions and reactions of various groups and the specific activities undertaken to prepare the community. The paper notes several themes involving the community preparation process that may be generalizable to other communities. They are: (1) The established community leadership-- political, business, civic -- becomes involved in community preparation reluctantly, if at all. (2) Religious leadership can initiate activities and encourage others to join but probably cannot be the central organizer of the total preparation process. (3) Labor leadership nationally provides very positive support for community preparation. Local labor leaders may vary from enthusiastic to reluctant followers of national policy. (4) School officials will tend to respond to community-initiated efforts at preparation cooly. (5) A reliable source of unbiased information on the law, desegregation plans and events in other cities is a critical element in the pre-liability phase. Seven other themes are discerned and discussed. (Author/JM)