When Superintendent Dennis Vespe came to Somerdale Park School District, he was very interested in strengthening teachers' capacity to track student growth and progress. To do this, he knew the district needed to enhance its "ability to accurately assess and accurately drive instruction." But years of experience had taught him that new tools and assessments require teacher engagement, as well as a shared vision for how to use these resources to help students learn. This kind of engagement defined the process of choosing a new interim assessment from the very start -- teachers were the key decision-makers. By giving teachers ownership of a major initiative, Vespe quickly earned teacher buy-in. For Somerdale teachers, the top priorities for a new assessment were a reliable measure of student growth and data to inform instructional decisions. After piloting six different assessments, the teachers selected MAP® Growth™ from NWEA™.