A school district's board of education is a governing body that has the responsibility of creating vision and direction, setting policy, providing resources, and monitoring the results of student achievement initiatives for its district. The board and superintendent must work together as a leadership team for the district, modeling to the staff and community a shared commitment to continuous academic improvement. This book explores the "Key Work of School Boards" framework for systems thinking and action. Chapter 1 presents an overview of guidelines for board-superintendent role differentiation, a description of the Key Work dimensions, and a glossary of educational terms relating to student achievement. Chapters 2 through 9 look closely at the roles of the board and superintendent in relation to each of the Key Work elements. Chapters 10 through 21 present profiles of board-superintendent teams making a positive difference in the quality of education in their districts. This book is intended to serve as a stimulus for dialogue, inspiration for building relationships, and a framework for mutually developed teamwork. The book concludes with a list of resources on board-superintendent relations, notes about the authors, acknowledgements, and lists of publications by the National School Boards Association and American Association of School Administrators. (RT)