This 22nd edition of "Quality Counts" offers a fresh take on the annual top-to-bottom ranking of the nation's school systems on a state-by-state basis published by "Education Week". The first of three "Quality Counts" reports being rolled out over the course of the year, "Grading the States" aims to illuminate what the high-performing states did well, how low-performers are approaching improvement, and lessons for boosting the quality of K-12 education overall. Articles in this issue include: (1) Nation Mired in "Average" Range on Multifaceted Report Card (Sterling C. Lloyd); (2) Making the Most of State Advantaged (Daarel Burnette II); (3) What Will It Take to Turn Marginal Gains Into True Momentum on School Quality? (Daarel Burnette II); and (4) Sharing Similar Challenges (Andrew Ujifusa).