Although educational researchers are beginning to recognize the influence of organizational culture on organizational productivity, the term "organizational culture" has been defined from a variety of perspectives. This paper presents findings of a case study that investigated the cultural characteristics of a junior high school recognized for its effectiveness. The school was located in an urban school district with a 40-50 percent dropout rate. Data were collected through document analysis, observation, and interviews with 25 students, 11 teachers, and 2 administrators (a random sample from a population of 771). Kluchohn and Strodbeck's organizational-cultural paradigm (1961) is used to describe the school's basic assumptions about: (1) humanity's relationship to nature; (2) the nature of reality and truth; (3) the nature of human nature; (4) the nature of human activity; and (5) the nature of human relationships. Teachers expressed the following core values--trust, achievement, openness, innovation, networking, involvement, and recognition. A conclusion is that school culture is a sequence of complex shared behavior patterns that connect the artifacts, core values, and underlying assumptions that form a cultural paradigm. This culture will sustain itself over time as long as the linkages help the school survive. (LMI)