The Black Mesa Community School, serving elementary school children in an isolated district of the Arizona Navajo reservation, represents the first step in Indian self-determination for area Navajos. The school is the result of community efforts begun in 1972 with a petition to operate a full-time school program for grades K-4 at Kitsilee. Continued community efforts included the operation of a local satellite school for grades K-8 and the 1977 attainment of independent status for the school. Classroom teachers and a Title I reading and ESL teacher now serve the three regular classrooms: pre-kindergarten and kindergarten, grades 1-4, and grades 5-8. The individualized school program, based on gradual transition from Navajo to English intruction and from a Navajo to a global cultural outlook, attempts to provide students with the skills necessary to succeed off the reservation while supporting the culture and values fundamental to life on the reservation. Although some weaknesses still exist, including impassable roads, temporary facilities, and funding difficulties, the Black Mesa school has resulted in community development including water, sewer, and electricity services; greater home-school contact; increased community pride and satisfaction; and improved student self-images. (SB)