Whose job is it to improve student achievement? Much has been written about initiatives that can be undertaken in schools and classrooms to increase student proficiency. But increasingly, practitioners engaged in school reform are coming to understand the significant role school districts play in this important effort. As researchers Togneri and Anderson (2003) state, the efforts of heroic principals, innovative charter schools, and inspiring classroom teachers who single-handedly turn around low-performing schools or classrooms are to be zealously applauded and encouraged, but ultimately their efforts produce "isolated islands of excellence." Large-scale improvement requires systemic effort of the kind that can best be accomplished at the district level. This month's newsletter highlights seven actions school districts can take to improve their own effectiveness and better support the efforts of their schools to improve student achievement. These recommended actions are pulled from recent research into school districts that took action to improve and are seeing positive results. The seven actions are: (1) Take a Systemwide Approach to Improving Instruction; (2) Create a District Curriculum Aligned With Standards and Assessments; (3) Make Decisions Based on Data; (4) Redefine Leadership; (5) Implement Strong Accountability Systems; (6) Embed Professional Development; and (7) Commit to Sustaining Reform. [This document was produced by The Center for Comprehensive School Reform and Improvement, administered by Learning Point Associates in partnership with the Southwest Educational Development Laboratory (SEDL) and WestEd, under contract with the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education of the U.S. Department of Education.]