Through an examination of one institution's efforts to strengthen teaching and learning on campus, the author makes a strong case for the use of common examinations as a powerful form of assessment as well as a fruitful context for faculty deliberations. Providing a continuing occasion for faculty inquiry and discussion, insuring grade comparability across classes, making instructors more reflective about their grading practices, dampening the effects of grade inflation, and encouraging students to be more intentional about their curricular choices are significant benefits of common examinations that outweigh the increased time and effort required of faculty. A long-term effect, perhaps even more important, is the potential use of test results in professional development. By encouraging faculty to observe in action those instructors whose students repeatedly perform well above average on common examinations or on particular topical areas, the overall level of teaching of the institution can be raised, generating benefits to both teachers and students.