This article explains how communities of pastoral care work. It presents an empirically forged theory in action. We examined theoretical and empirical work across the targeted area of personalization for students. We also completed what Hallinger (2012) refers to as "exhaustive review" of the field of school improvement writ large. We treated the literature as qualitative data, inductively developing macro-level constructs, mid-level elements, and micro-level practices. We find that pastoral care for students has important effects on student learning. We conclude that the impact is mediated through two critical variables, institutional affiliation and student engagement.