A study traced the establishment and implementation of the Reading Recovery program on the North Coast of New South Wales (Australia) in 1991. Teachers at the 12 schools involved in the program, key personnel at the New South Wales Department of School Education and the Catholic Education Office, and the Reading Recovery Tutor were interviewed. Reading Recovery teachers kept journals and completed short surveys at the beginning and end of the year. Results indicated that: (1) the impetus for undertaking Reading Recovery was the concern by schools about children not mastering basic skills; (2) schools anticipated immediate benefits from the program; (3) by the end of term one, the majority of the teachers were enjoying working with individual children; (4) children who had been withdrawn and non-participative at the beginning of the year were confident, participating members of their class performing at or above average; (5) only one of the six teachers who combined their classroom role with that of Reading Recovery was prepared to continue in the program; however, all of the teachers who had not carried classroom responsibilities in addition to their Reading Recovery duties intended to remain in the program. Recommendations include thoroughly assessing the school need for Reading Recovery; opening the Reading Recovery teaching position to applications from all staff; and concerted support for the Reading Recovery teacher. (Contains five tables of data and 12 extracts from teachers' journals; a sample teaching load (consisting of teacher comments on four students) is attached.) (RS)