The study evaluated two early intervention programs for rural preschool handicapped and developmentally delayed children to determine the degree of integration into the community and program-community interaction. Analysis of 6 months of observation in the two programs resulted in the following conclusions: (1) administration of early intervention programs is accomplished largely through the controlled distribution of special knowledge about the program to the staff, participating families, local political structures, and the general public; (2) the more centralized a program administration is, the less the program will be responsive to traditional or changing community needs, and the absorption of the program into the existing network of community services will be reduced; (3) federal early intervention policies will be adapted by local political structures to meet local needs for control over program operation and evaluation and for community support; (4) early intervention programs will not necessarily serve those children and families for whom the programs were intended; (5) regardless of intended goals, centrally funded/locally administered programs are conducted so that program design is determined by perceived program needs rather than perceived family needs; (6) the local allocation of early intervention resources is determined by political and economic factors in those communities eligible for the resources rather than by an assessed need for such services; and (7) there is no difference in degree of program-community integration between programs under public school sponsorship and those under private nonprofit sponsorship. (DB)