In this article, the author draws attention to the fact that in school evaluations, students will improve on state-mandated tests, but the improved scores will not influence a school's adequate yearly progress (AYP) status because those students' scores do not cross the proficiency point. A state's proficiency point on each of its standardized tests becomes the most significant factor--by far--in determining how many schools will stumble during that state's annual No Child Left Behind (NCLB) "sweepstakes." A major problem of a school evaluation system that does not take growth into account is that it encourages teachers to focus excessive instructional attention on students who are at the cusp of proficiency, that is, just above or below a test's proficiency point. The author advocates the adoption of a growth-based approach to NCLB school evaluation, but does not encourage the adoption of the "value-added" evaluative models used in Tennessee and other states. The U.S. Department of Education has appointed study groups to advise Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings on the best ways to incorporate growth models into NCLB's accountability requirements. The author hopes that Secretary Spellings takes their advice and stays clear of the value-added approach.