In this research brief, the National School Boards Association's Center for Public Education looks at indicators of school board effectiveness. From this research, it is clear that school boards in high-achieving districts exhibit habits and characteristics that are markedly different from boards in low-achieving districts. In the most dramatic examples from this research, scholars compared districts with similar levels of poverty and disadvantage to determine factors that separate high-performing districts from those with low performance. In many cases, these differences included the approaches taken by local school boards. Much of the research cited in this research brief focuses on school board/district practices and approaches gleaned through interviews, surveys, observations and qualitative measures rather than in-depth quantitative information. Several studies also date back to the early 2000s or earlier; as a result, the data have limitations. Taken together, these reports provide a sound basis to explore the role played by school boards in student achievement. The pertinent studies for this paper fall into three general areas: (1) meta-analyses of education research, with a focus on the practices of boards, superintendents, and other school leaders; (2) case studies of high-achieving districts, with a focus on the evolving role of school boards; and (3) studies that compare school board practices in districts with similar demographics but substantially different student outcomes as reflected by annual assessments and other factors.