As citizen boards who must be nonpartisan to be effective, state boards of education are uniquely placed to help eliminate the political divides that impede decisive action to end inequities in learning. Three state boards of education and education agency staff--in Nebraska, New York, and North Carolina--committed to joining a National Association of State Boards of Education (NASBE)-led network, the Leading for Equity and Excellence Program (LEEP) State Policy Network. By partnering with local officials, setting clear equity goals, convening multiple stakeholders, and posing meaningful questions at the board table, these state boards are pressing to change their state systems. This issue of "State Innovations" discusses how these three states each put together a LEEP team in 2020 to design work plans with clear equity goals; the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the focus of LEEP state networks; and how state boards are taking actions to address the racial inequities in the public education system.