As year 4 of a 7-year initiative to implement the School-to-Work (STW) Opportunities Act begins, 37 states have received implementation grants and 105 direct federally-funded and over 900 state-funded local partnerships exist. In 1997, technical assistance is available to any of the remaining 13 states ready for full-scale implementation. Notable progress in STW can be seen through site visits to STW implementation states, first-year findings from a 5-year independent national evaluation, and a state-designed progress measures process. Data show that 1 million of approximately 13 million secondary school students participated in one or more school-based STW activity between January-June 1996. From December 1995-June 1996, the number of businesses participating in STW partnerships has increased from 135,000 to 200,000. Businesses have increased their capacity to provide work-based learning opportunities. As of June 1996, nearly all local partnerships have at least one postsecondary institution participating in some STW activity. State challenges are to bring about "scale" by fostering a substate structure and sustain STW after federal funding ceases. Federal supporting activities include the following: technical assistance; building linkages with education, employers, and organized labor; support in serving every student; and public awareness strategies. Future needs are to increase parental involvement, support growth of employer participation, ensure state commitment, and serve out-of-school youth. (YLB)