During the Midwest & Plains Equity Assistance Center’s (MAP Center) 2019 Equity Leaders’ Institute (ELI) we acknowledged Ferndale Public Schools (FPS), from Ferndale, Michigan for being the recipient of our inaugural Equity Innovator Recognition. Ferndale was recognized for their ability and willingness to build capacity among school board members and district leaders in leading equity initiatives. In this edition of the Equity Dispatch, we will lean on the experiences and narratives of FPS to discuss barriers and opportunities that surface between district leaders and school boards working in tandem to center equity as a means of engaging in authentic, transformative change (Great Lakes Equity Center, 2016).