The purpose of case study was to examine the beliefs and practices of a successful teacher in a high poverty middle school. Specifically, the study examined the role of teacher beliefs and how these beliefs were enacted in a middle school classroom. This article, part of a larger study, focuses on 1 teacher in order to more thoroughly probe and explore her story. Data collection included classroom observations, audio-recorded interviews, teacher assignments and information from school, district, and state websites. Results revealed 3 major themes surrounding teacher beliefs and practices: (a) high expectations with follow through, (b) building relationships and classroom community, and (c) self-authored actions through agency. These findings suggested that successful teachers in high-poverty schools held and enacted beliefs that were centered on high expectations and social learning experiences. As teachers acted on their beliefs, they also enacted agency in order to "push back" against the contextual constraints, primarily in regard to curriculum demands and assessment mandates, discussed in this study as "nonnegotiables".