There is growing momentum all across the country for substantial change to the accountability provisions of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB). Pending Congressional reauthorization of the NCLB Act presents an opportunity for change. At the same time, the Obama administration has signaled its understanding of the need for change by proposing regulations requiring a vastly simpler set of metrics that schools must meet to win federal "Race to the Top" grants for school improvement efforts. The Washington state Legislature directed the State Board of Education (SBE) to develop a simpler, fairer, more informative accountability index to identify schools that deserve recognition and those that need additional support or intervention to improve. This new Accountability Index could, if approved by Congress, replace the current NCLB requirements. The federal Department of Education could also grant a waiver that allows Washington state to use this system in place of the one required by NCLB. The SBE and the Office of Superintendent of Instruction (OSPI) intend to use this new, locally created Accountability Index to assess the quality the state's schools beginning in 2010. This paper provides an overview of this new Accountability Index.