This study explores 16 novice, urban-trained teachers' evaluations of their current schools. Findings suggest that teachers used the perceived behaviors, values, and beliefs of students to measure how urban a student was and, therefore, to guide their expectations and satisfaction of their placements. The less urban the students were perceived to be, the more likely these teachers were to have positive expectations about their students and their schools. Conversely, the more urban the students were perceived to be, the more likely these teachers were to have negative expectations. Importantly, these terms, "urban" and "suburban," were tied to beliefs about race and, to a lesser degree, class.