This paper was chosen for Smart Growth Network’s compendium, The National Conversation on the Future of Our Communities, in February 2013. The project’s aim is to start a conversation on thorny issues the smart growth movement has yet to resolve, issues that have received too little attention, and issues that have escaped us altogether. Our paper argues that planners—and particularly those that favor smart growth—already recognize the importance of workforce development and job creation, but too often fall short of extending their analysis and planning to a key foundation of strong regional economies: effective K-12 schools. We lay out a applied policy framework for remedying this reality.