This policy analysis examines recent debates on teacher quality in light of the "Renee v. Duncan" (2010) decision, the Congressional response to the ruling through the Continuing Resolution bill, H.R. 3082 §163, and President Obama's "Blueprint for Reform." Using equity as a framework for the teacher quality debate, the authors explore policy configurations of teacher quality with particular emphasis on inspecting the teaching certificate as a valid and reliable indicator of teacher quality. Additionally, the authors review educational research highlighting the strengths of alternative certification programs and consider how these strengths might be used to leverage policymaking that targets teacher quality reform.