Focusing on examination of the current status of small high schools, identification of the elements of successful programs, and formulation of a general program design, the report of the first year of the Small High Schools Project for Rural Alaska presents over 100 recommendations to help small high schools develop into effective institutions. How to achieve greater curriculum continuity, how to measure effectiveness of a high school program, how to reflect local culture in the curriculum, and the place of basketball in the schools are among the issues studied by field workers on-site for 8 months in 9 communities. Among successful program elements identified are strong community involvement and adaptation of standard programs to contemporary life in rural Alaska. The basis of a small high school program is seen as providing for the development of basic academic skills using experientially-oriented, project-centered activities emphasizing community resources; the program should be flexibly structured into a block schedule format and should revolve around three broad interdisciplinary study areas--communication arts, environmental studies, and human ecology. Other recommendations are that school districts recruit teachers carefully, and that information exchange networks and a "Small High School Program Development and Training Center" be established. (SB)