In this report from the Learning Policy Institute researchers identified more than a hundred California school districts in which students across racial/ethnic groups are outperforming similar students in other districts. The researchers used quantitative analysis to identify factors that appear to distinguish these “positive outlier” school districts—those in which African American, Latino/a, and White students achieved at higher-than-predicted levels, controlling for their socioeconomic status. Positive outlier districts appear to have leveraged the state’s updated educational standards, funding, and accountability systems to support students in meeting more rigorous academic standards. They also found that, controlling for student and district characteristics, the most important in-school factors were the qualifications of teachers—in particular having fewer teachers on emergency permits and substandard credentials and more with greater years of experience.