This report is the culmination of a yearlong effort to study the efficiency of the nation's public education system and includes the first-ever attempt to evaluate the productivity of almost every major school district in the country. In the business world, the notion of productivity describes the benefit received in exchange for effort or money expended. This project measures the academic achievement a school district produces relative to its educational spending, while controlling for factors outside a district's control, such as cost of living and students in poverty. The aims for this project are threefold: (1) to kick-start a national conversation about educational productivity; (2) to identify districts that generate higher-than-average achievement per dollar spent, demonstrate how productivity varies widely within states, and encourage efforts to study highly productive districts; and (3) to encourage states and districts to embrace approaches that make it easier to create and sustain educational efficiencies. A summary of findings is presented, as well as recommendations for education policymakers. The hope is that the findings and recommendations highlighted in this paper will prompt a new way of thinking about educational success, one that does far more to guarantee that all schools and districts have the necessary data, tools, and incentives to be efficient with their school dollars. Appended are: (1) Select tables and figures; and (2) Frequently asked questions. (Contains 5 tables and 45 endnotes.)