Phi Delta Kappa's CEO, Joshua Starr, points out that while school boards may tell their newly hired superintendents to be bold, visionary leaders, the job tends to include built-in incentives -- such as a pension system that rewards longevity -- to play it safe. If district leaders aim to challenge longstanding patterns of inequity in their local schools, they must be willing to take a stand against those who benefit from the status quo, even if that eventually costs them their job. Of course, not everybody can afford to do so.