While most rural special education leaders agree on the universality of certain problems (funding inadequacies, personnel recruitment/retention, transportation, low-incidence handicapped populations, staff development needs, resistance to change) in rural areas, no agreement exists regarding generalizable solutions which will work in all rural areas. Relationships between leadership skills, resources, and community and school system infrastructures must be taken into account when solving such problems. Marrs' Law of Non-Absolutes is contained in two axioms which must be considered: (1) Everything in life is on a continuum, and (2) There is no such thing as a pure model. The leadership skills dimension includes 10 components, each possessed to some degree by most special educators: interpersonal skills, negotiation skills, creativeness, logical abilities, self confidence, assertiveness, proactive planning, organization development, communication, and self-renewing abilities. Consideration of community and school system infrastructures requires understanding of formal and informal organizational structures, communication networks, raison d'etre, service/social/professional organizations, and movers and shakers. The resources dimension includes not only four traditional resources (budgets, personnel, time, space), but also requires attention to external funding, collaboration, community involvement, flexibility, recruitment/retention strategies, and technology. Successful rural special educators integrate these factors to serve the best interest of the handicapped. (MH)