The Research Secretariat on Social Services and Community Development was one of the five Hispanic research task forces funded by the Ford Foundation to determine Hispanic research priorities. Its three major purposes were the following: (1) to develop an Hispanic research and policy agenda which recommends research activities and prioritizes them; (2) to identify networking models through which this research can be done; and (3) to recommend procedures to the Ford Foundation to encourage and support such research. The Secretariat recommended the following areas for research priority: (1) community development with special emphasis on area studies; (2) income security; (3) community services, which include social services, municipal services, criminal justice services, and media and information services; and (4) health and mental health, which include substance abuse, domestic violence, counseling services, public and environmental health, health care and maintenance, and mental health issues and services. All four of these areas were found by the Secretariat to be extremely under-researched. The Secretariat identified various networking models for research and policy analysis efforts and also made recommendations for appropriate funding allocation and administration. A 27-page bibliography on social services and community development is appended, as are a list of Secretariat members and an outline of the major themes of the Secretariat field meetings. (GC)