Teresa Bunner works as the high school literacy coordinating teacher for the Wake County (NC) Public School System in Raleigh. In this article she discusses the concept of Culturally Responsive teaching as a pedagogy that recognizes the importance of including students' cultural reference in all aspects of learning. She describes how she and her colleagues introduced high school students in a Blue Ribbon Mentor-Advocate program (a program serving 120+ youth of color in grades 4 through 12) to a set of research-based culturally responsive teaching strategies. After reviewing the strategies, the students identified six key concepts they felt would be transformative for both teachers and students if the concepts were applied in real learning spaces. Six concepts are presented which build on one another. All of the six concepts detailed in this article require attention to create the kinds of learning environments for which students advocated. As the students explained, if every teacher and school wove these concepts into their learning and teaching efforts, they, as students of color, and their peers, would achieve more and feel more comfortable in their classrooms. After identifying the concepts, the students and teachers then worked to use the concepts as a framework to create professional development for the teachers in for their school district.