In an effort to explore significant supply and demand variables that affect the teacher labor market in the Southeast, a qualitative research study was undertaken to examine the market patterns of initial career choice, position availability, recruitment and selection, turnover, and mobility of public school teachers. An ethnographic investigation of schools or departments of education at six universities and six school systems in two southeastern states used document analysis, on-site observation, and interviewing to collect data for analysis of labor market variables. Five categories of inquiry guided the study: (1) background and contextual variables; (2) position availability, need, and turnover; (3) paths to education and teaching; (4) identification, recruitment, and selection of teachers; and (5) employment conditions and teacher alternatives. Following a review of the related literature and a description of the methodology, findings in each of these areas of inquiry are reported for the 12 sites studied. Then an overall synthesis of the findings is provided, along with a discussion of the implications for teacher labor market policies in the Southeast. A 34-item bibliography is included, along with two appendixes: (1) distribution of informants in school systems and universities, and (2) school system and university interview guides. (TE)