The federally supported Comprehensive School Reform Demonstration (CSRD) Program provides a minimum of $50,000 to local schools to engage in a comprehensive change process facilitated by the development and adoption of a comprehensive school reform plan, including technical assistance from an external model developer. This report summarizes the research design and progress of Mid-continent Research for Education and Learning's (McREL's) study of the implementation of CSRD programs in schools serving Native American communities. This study is part of a larger project involving three regional educational laboratories and selected CSRD-funded schools that serve a high percentage of Native American students. The purpose of this study is to investigate how these schools use the CSRD initiative to meet the needs of American Indian students and the different ways that tribal cultures have or have not influenced the adoption and adaptation of reform models. The progress of reform implementation will be examined by addressing the following research questions: What are the major contextual factors that influence outcomes? How did the model developer address the Native American context? What schoolwide reform model was chosen and why? and What has the school accomplished since beginning this initiative? Two rural K-12 schools in tribal communities have been selected and baseline data collected. Data will be collected via: document reviews; interviews with families, community members, and model developers; and observations of classrooms, schools, and communities. Future activities are discussed, and a final report will be completed by September 2000. (TD)