This report is the first in a series of publications emanating from a four year research effort designed to further knowledge of admissions testing and handicapped people. The report is divided into three major sections describing (1) the development of the research program, (2) a context for conducting that research, and (3) major research issues and activities for addressing those issues. The history of the research program is linked to Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and a study by the National Research Council, which recommended a substantial research program. The present program is a response to that recommendation. The context for research on admissions testing presented in the paper concerns the definition of handicapping conditions and the characteristics of handicapped people. That the characteristics of handicapped people differ in significant ways from those of the general population raises important issues for admissions testing, such as the extent to which disabled individuals currently have access the admissions testing process; the fairness of test content to handicapped examinees; the extent to which admissions tests equivalently predict academic success for handicapped and nondisabled populations; and whether the preadmission identification, or flagging of scores emanating from modified tests, can be avoided. (Author/BW)