This report provides demographic, statistical, and other indicator data related to rural education in the Mid-Atlantic region of Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. The data are intended to aid state rural assistance councils in developing plans to improve rural schools. One obstacle to consistent policy implementation is the difficulty in defining a "rural" area due to demographic changes. Using school districts as the major unit of analysis, the report describes rural environments, educational policies and needs, characteristics of rural schools and students, and the scope and nature of service delivery systems, for each state and the region as a whole. Persistent problems include poverty, scarcity of resources, high dropout rates, and the difficulty of delivery of resource services to rural administrators and teachers. Areas of special concern to local administrators were instructional effectiveness, development of higher order reasoning skills, staff development, inadequate financial base, and equality of opportunity for excellence. This analysis is an initial step toward the formation of a coordinating agency for information exchange among the Mid-Atlantic states. Some national organizations addressing rural needs are listed. Appendices include the results of rural needs assessment surveys and selected data on rural schools and students for each state. Contains 25 references. (RAH)