Enduring political support from business may benefit schools much more than the material contributions they often seek. A study of school-business interaction in 23 U.S. cities reveals wide variation in the availability of corporate aid, the sophistication and organization of schools' initiatives toward business, and the results of the interaction. Because large corporate donors are concentrated in the Northeast and because different industries are differently inclined toward educational support, many school systems have difficulty obtaining contributions. Gaining access to untapped corporate resources may be expensive and time-consuming. Although schools more often than businesses initiate cooperation, their efforts are generally disorganized and poorly monitored. Fewer than half the districts surveyed have policies on school-business interaction; groups such as teachers' unions, school business administrators, and school boards, which might lend valuable support to policymaking, are rarely involved. Though recent activites have modestly enhanced school resources and created some prospects for stable political alliances, most public-private ventures have been narrow, episodic, and superficial. To meet current challenges, schools must take coherent action toward long-term partnership with business. (MCG)