For years, researchers have been working in school districts conducting studies that produce findings. Because educational research and the practice of education are centered in very different institutions with different expectations, incentives, and cultures, the connections have been tenuous at best. Meanwhile, there is increasing demand for data-based decision making--careful analysis of information on what works and what doesn't. A shift toward using systematic research to guide practice requires new kinds of connections between the institutions in which researchers and practitioners work. It means creating new partnerships, new capacities within these institutions, and a new, shared culture. This article shares a decade of experience doing just that. The two institutions are the Graduate School of Education at Stanford University and the San Francisco Unified School District.