While recognizing the value of "vision," it could be argued that vision alone--at least in schools--is not enough to rally the financial and emotional support required to translate an idea into reality. A compelling vision needs to reflect substantive, research-based knowledge if it is to spark the kind of strategic thinking and insight capable of transforming a school. As a result of new technologies that image the human brain under various conditions of learning, a virtual "neuro-renaissance" is taking place. In some cases, this new wave of brain-based research--once the purview of neurologists, now being made available to educators--has changed and challenged much of what educators have held true for decades. Given these fundamental shifts, schools have an opportunity--even an obligation--to ground their strategic thinking in what scientific researchers are discovering about how children learn. These findings hold profound implications for improving how they teach and how they structure and design their schools. The author contends that educators, collectively, have a strong sense of what works for students, and what schools can and should do for their charges. The challenge, in order to attract and justify the allocation of precious and limited resources, is to ground their vision in research that is both substantiated and inspirational.