The purpose of this guide is to assist school districts that might wish to form a consortium in understanding how to do so, how to decide which activities to undertake, and how to ensure success for the consortium. The ideas and suggestions contained in the guide come primarily from the 17 program improvement consortia in operation during the 1978-79 school year and from the state department of education and county office staff members who worked with them. The program improvement consortia are clusters of school districts working together to provide leadership and support for the schools in their districts that are involved in the process of improving programs for their students. A listing of the consortia operating during the 1980-81 school year is presented in an appendix. (Author/IRT)