The major thesis of this paper on declining resources and enrollment is that the management of decline, or, as the author calls it, "contraction," is not simply an economic and technical problem; it is basically a conceptual and political one. The author first considers the effects of contraction on schools, buildings, and courses, touching on the problems of school closure and the risk, at the college level, of such competition for students that it distorts the mission of the university. Effects on teachers and the career of teaching are considered, including the aging of the teaching force and a need for increased inservice training. He also briefly identifies effects on teacher recruitment and selection and on educational opportunities for the disadvantaged. Several procedures for dealing with decline are suggested, including short-range and long-range planning, and re-examination of the styles of management that worked well during periods of growth. It will also be important to guard against irresponsible rhetoric and to take care not to overemphasize the horrors of decline. (Author/JM)