The impetus for this report is new evidence that state department of education work to align instruction with standards may make a difference for teachers' practices and understanding about their state standards. Using data from the RAND American Teacher Panel, the authors found that Louisiana teachers were more likely than other teachers to consult resources that address their state standards, and they reported teaching--and thinking about teaching--in ways that differ from U.S. norms and that are more aligned with Common Core State Standards. In this report, the authors examine Louisiana Department of Education strategies that could be contributing to these results, including a coherent academic strategy focused on alignment and quality across systems supporting standards, transparent and regular communication about academics across layers of the education system, and support for local decisionmaking and ownership of change by districts and teachers. This report is intended to provide guidance to states about sensible state systems that give educators coherent messages and concrete tools to help students meet high academic standards.