In interviews with 22 community school district coordinators, the group found that scorn from classmates and educators seems to blunt the hopes of many homeless students.

For Ronald J. Schick, district coordinator of science for the Yonkers public schools, the project offers an opportunity to use the city as an open-air laboratory for the city's students.

And Ms. Packard, the district coordinator said, "We have not found any good information from this."

Dave Hanna, Mr. Tiahrt's district coordinator, said the campaign could easily match the nearly $1 million it raised in 1996.

The study included interviews with nine RLIS state coordinators and 43 RLIS district coordinators, and analyses of achievement data.

"A lot of times, kids do things without thinking about the consequences," said Michael Gulino, district coordinator for health education in Byram Hills.

Kudlow, working with Yale student Bill Clinton as well as many other rising young Democrats, was known as a "brilliant" district coordinator.

Pat Cosgrove, district coordinator of the school-to-careers program for the Bergen County technical schools, makes the point that technical-school students acquire skills that are useful in any job.

"The designation of a local instructional supervisor as a district coordinator in each district will accomplish precisely that."