Many states are attempting to identify schools that perform better than schools with similar populations. Such "beating-the-odds" schools offer opportunities to identify promising practices that can be implemented by other schools serving similar populations. This study uses data from the Michigan Department of Education to demonstrate how methodological decisions affect which schools are identified as beating the odds. Policymakers should carefully consider the methodology choices made to identify beating-the-odds schools to ensure that the lessons learned come from schools that really do perform better than expected. [This report was produced in collaboration with the REL Midwest Beating the Odds Research Alliance. For the full report, see ED554442. For the revised report, see ED558161.]