The idea to do research in the area of school construction planning came from this writer's experience in a district that was still using a high school that was built in 1914 and the community was happy with that fact. During this writer's time the district had gone to referendum to ask the voters to approve a $67 million building project that would have led to the building of a new high school on an 84 acre piece of land and significant rehabilitation to all of the district's buildings. All of which were in need of renovation. The referendum failed by more than a 2 to 1 margin. The community felt the district was "out of touch" with the needs of the community. The public demanded more say in the future planning for the community's schools. The task force concept was born. Planning a School Referendum: A Case Study of a Small Rural School District in Southern New Jersey, is the story of that task force project. The board of education solicited participation of community members for the project. A matrix representing all segments of the community was created. As people submitted letters of interest the matrix was filled. Once it was filled the project began. The board of education and superintendent needed to be as far away from this project as possible. The committee members had to have the ability to speak freely without the board's influence. This writer, the business administrator, along with a professional facilitator was chosen to facilitate this committee. The case study that follows documents this task force's journey and the resulting school referendum. As a result of the task force process the community members had their say in shaping the future of their school facilities and the district gained allies of what used to be their most outspoken critics. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800)1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2222/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]