The first phase of a study of the effects of new high school graduation requirements in Maryland was conducted in 1986. Interviews were conducted with 182 administrators, teachers, and students about their perspectives on new requirements instituted in 1985. Transcript records were analyzed for 249 students from 5 high schools. Interview data did not suggest that state initiatives had a large impact on local schools. An important finding of transcript analysis was that the program of studies had a significant impact on student choices. Specific recommendations for the Maryland State Department of Education staff and local school personnel focused on better communication and dissemination of information about the new requirements and in-depth examinations of school organization, course content, and approaches instead of concentration on numbers of credits and kinds of courses taken. Specific credit requirement recommendations were made. Appendices discuss the coding of transcript data and research design for future study. (SLD)