It is hard to win passage of a school construction bond--whether through a citizen referendum or the vote of a town council or general town meeting. Property owners' resistance to tax increases remains strong. Sizable segments of any local community--senior citizens, childless adults, parents who send their children to private school, and others--tend to see public school construction projects as unrelated to their own interests. It can be difficult to win them over. To overcome the hurdles that school bond proposals face and mount a successful school-bond campaign, districts have many strategies available--energizing potential "yes" voters; crafting memorable campaign messages; cultivating good relationships with local media; timing votes to suppress potential "no"-voter turnout; reaching out to senior citizens; and even ensuring that high school students of voting age make it to the polls. All are good ideas, and such strategizing is recommended, but the success of a school construction bond may hinge on more subtle issues--a set of behind-the-scenes factors that are hard to quantify, anticipate and control. These are: (1) the amount of money appropriated upfront to support development of a school construction proposal; (2) having an architect (and perhaps a construction manager) who will assess a district's needs, help create a proposal and participate in a campaign; (3) the personality, attitude and reputation of the district superintendent and the school board; and (4) recruiting and cultivating the community leaders that will spearhead the bond campaign. It is essential to attend to these factors when putting together a school construction proposal and bond-issue campaign.