While there are many factors critical to improving America's primary and secondary schools, strengthening teacher education is an essential part of any strategy likely to make a difference. When the Obama administration created the Race to the Top or RTT Fund--"to encourage and reward States that are creating the conditions for education innovation and reform"--and provided $4.35 billion through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act toward these goals, a key focus was teacher preparation. A crucial aim of the RTT initiative is supporting funded states to implement plans for "recruiting, developing, rewarding, and retaining effective teachers and principals, especially where they are needed most." Policy recommendations drawn from the analysis of the 12 funded Race to the Top initiatives in this paper are intended to maximize the potential for change through RTT: Develop high-quality state and data reporting systems; Pilot stronger measures of preparation program accountability; Foster innovative strategies to promote teacher and program quality; Find ways to support good work by states not funded through RTT; Monitor state performance. By asking states for new initiatives to build or expand high-quality teacher preparation pathways, it is clear that Race to the Top can be a powerful lever to improve teacher quality in the United States. (Contains 48 endnotes and 4 tables.)