This paper describes the elements of strategic planning and applies them to educational reform and improvement. The paper also describes how a planning model, Strategic Planning for Educational Reform and Improvement (SPERI), was used by Rural Assistance Councils (RACs) in Pennsylvania and Delaware, with technical assistance from Research for Better Schools (RBS), the Regional Educational Laboratory for the mid-Atlantic region . Important SPERI elements include: (1) preliminary planning; (2) focused issues assessment; (3) targeted research; and tailored policy analysis. Preliminary research involves the establishment of a committed and informed planning team and a contract detailing the planning effort. The focused issues assessment is the process of creating a finite list of issues to be addressed. The process begins with the articulation of a mission statement and ends with a research agenda for examining the issues. Targeted research is the gathering of quantitative and qualitative data to confirm or revise the team's understanding of the issues, with a goal of developing a set of alternative scenarios and contingencies. The objective of the tailored policy analysis is to analyze current policy and adjust it to meet new objectives. Tailored policy analysis requires scrutiny of the research and alternative scenarios, resulting in policy recommendations for implementation. RBS began working with the SPERI model by setting up RACs in Delaware and Pennsylvania. The RACs used SPERI to identify and confront rural education issues relating to economics, staff, programs, administration, and families and communities. The paper emphasizes that SPERI is important, not as a product, but as a process controlled by those using it. The Appendices present the rural education issues instrument and results. The paper contains 31 references. (TES)