Increasing numbers of special education teachers enter the profession via widely varying preparation programs, also known as alternative certification programs. This article describes a survey of 54 novice special education teachers from alternative certification (AC) programs. In this paper, the authors discuss both challenges and support needs and provide recommendations for administrators who are hiring these AC teachers. Participants reported some of the major challenges faced were, for example, classroom management and knowing what to teach (content/curriculum). In contrast, the participants reported little need for support in the areas of parent communication and entering the school community. (Contains 2 tables.)