This book consists of nine papers that were originally delivered at the First Annual International Conference on Magnet Schools, which was held in Dallas in March 1977. In addition to discussing the rationale for magnet schools and the history of their development, the various papers examine how to initiate and plan a magnet schools program, how to determine which magnet schools to implement, how to interest parents and students, and how to finance magnet schools. The papers include "History and Philosophy of Alternative Schools," by Mario Fantini; "Legislative Implications of Magnet Schools," by John Glenn; "The Revolution in Technical Education and Its Impact on the Concept of Educational Options," by B. Frank Brown; "Alternatives: Strategies for Getting Started," by John Davis, Jr.; "Magnet Schools from the Student and Parent Perspective," by Gail Fullington; "Alternative Schools: Program Marketing and Student Recruitment," by Donald Waldrip and Edgar Lotspeich; "Legal Implications of Magnet Schools," by George Edwards; "Educational Options: What's Happening Today?" by Vernon Smith; and "The Dallas Story," by William Taylor, Jr. (Author/JG)