The mental health status of African American adolescents who have been diagnosed with mild cognitive limitations was studied, and the variables that differentiated those who were well adjusted (resilient) from those who were poorly adjusted (vulnerable) are detailed in this presentation. Participating were 205 African American families, each with a child aged 13 to 16 years enrolled in a special education program. Individual interviews with the adolescent and the parents explored environmental stress, parental and child dysfunction, and family interaction. Resilient and vulnerable adolescents were identified, and 23 resilient and 25 vulnerable students in a subsample of 74 families were studied. Few differences were found in overall health status, but resilient students were happy and displayed better developmental adjustment. Vulnerable adolescents were more likely to be withdrawn or to have tried to kill themselves. Eight information sheets, suitable for handouts, and three figures supplement two pages of text containing an abstract of the study reported on at the presentation. (SLD)