This handbook represents a major effort to establish current and consistent terms, definitions and classification codes to maintain, collect, report, and exchange comparable information about persons who work in education institutions from early childhood through high school. The selection of data terms reflects the best judgment of many individuals about the data that are useful in making appropriate, cost-effective, and timely administrative, programmatic, and staffing decisions. It is not a data collection instrument, nor does it reflect any type of federal data maintenance requirements. The terms and definitions can be used at all levels of the education enterprise and in all types of agencies. If data are collected and maintained according to standard definitions, they can be aggregated more easily from the school level to higher levels with the assurance that data are indeed comparable. A staff member is defined as an individual who performs specified activities for any public or private education institution or agency that provides instructional or support services to students or staff at levels from early childhood through high school completion. (Contains 83 references.) (SLD)