The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) new classification system for location of public schools and the NCES databases will provide new opportunities for rural education researchers. NCES developed a coding system called "Johnson codes" based on zip codes and Census definitions both of rural and nonrural places and of metropolitan and nonmetropolitan counties. The system locates all public schools on a continuum of seven "types of locale" from the most extreme rural location to the most concentrated urban location. In an effort to improve use of and access to its databases, NCES is gathering new data, producing new products, providing technical assistance, and conducting training activities. NCES produces public-use files and restricted-use files. In the past, mainframe computer tapes constituted the principal format for the NCES databases. Now, NCES has begun to make data available in CD-ROM format. The National Data Resource Center, operated by NCES, is a source of free technical assistance for the educational research community. NCES envisions a substantial effort to train those interested in accessing and using its data and new products through training seminars and possibly a national conference. This article describes the following NCES statistical databases in terms of type, scope, format, kinds of data, and contacts for information: (1) Common Core of Data; (2) School District Databook; (3) National Educational Longitudinal Survey of 1988; and (4) Schools and Staffing Survey (SASS) and SASS Teacher Followup Survey. (KS)