Data governance in school districts is often a discussion involving district leaders and data teams, but rarely involving folks on the ground level who are actually entering data into source systems (e.g., teachers, administrative assistants). In implementing the Ed-Fi data standard with INsite member districts, we have discovered several important “lessons” that are essential not only for high-stakes data requirements such as state reporting but also for the accuracy of the data that are used for identifying students in need of interventions. These lessons are not necessarily about “human error” in data entry, but rather about understanding that different data points need to be entered consistently and in the right fields in order for the full benefits of a data standard and native integration to be realized. The requirements of the data standard offer a practical guide for data governance decisions in ensuring that your organization is sufficiently trained, at every level, to take full advantage of a standardized system. All of the lessons that we will cover are also applicable to data quality issues related to the Indiana DOE’s upcoming LINK/Data Exchange system requirements.