This paper discusses the El Paso Collaborative for Academic Excellence and how it helps improve the literacy skills of all children in El Paso, Texas. The goal of the collaborative is to ensure that all children are successful in school and are prepared to enter and be successful in a four-year college. Its role is to expand leadership and knowledge in the schools. To help literacy leaders build their schools' capacities, the collaborative focused on developing their use of three resources: (1) state and national literacy standards; (2) nationally recognized content specialists; and (3) a flexible observation checklist to focus classroom visits. With these resources, literacy leaders and principals can identify classroom issues and challenges.