This guide provides a map that schools can follow when implementing the Comprehensive School Reform Demonstration (CSRD) program. It is hoped that CSRD will help schools foster higher standards and ensure that schools help students meet these standards. The booklet describes the goals and benchmarks that must be established for student performance, including goals for model implementation. It outlines the need for staff members who support the project and offers suggestions on how to gain their support. It discusses the research-based methods that inform CSR and lists some of the problems that arise when a model is not carefully investigated before being chosen. The text portrays the need for external assistance when incorporating a CSR plan and gives some of the "best practices" that draw on such assistance. It discusses the importance of parental and community involvement and draws a connection between higher achievement and involvement. Also important to the process is staff development, such as giving new teachers a mentor; the coordination of resources when implementing the plan; and evaluating the project once it is under way. Finally, success can be tied to how well a school creates a coherent, high-quality learning environment by coordinating school and classroom management, curriculum, instruction, assessment, professional development, technology, and parental involvement. (RJM)