In recent years, school officials have observed that many of the novice, alternate route teachers hired into the educational staff of schools around the country have struggled with various aspects of the teaching profession, such as classroom management, implementation of classroom instruction and motivating students. Many times, alternate route teachers have not been successful and ultimately have left the field of education feeling as though they failed themselves, their administrators and their students. Knowing that many states have experienced a shortage of teachers, retaining alternate route teachers and making sure that they experience success in the classroom is paramount. The purpose of this case study is to assess the beliefs of alternate route teachers with little or no teaching experience regarding what they believe to be important when it comes to teaching knowledge, pre-service training and mentoring of new and prospective alternate route teachers. This study may provide valuable insights for alternate route preparation programs and to schools and districts' mentoring programs as schools engage in retaining novice alternate route teachers while also grooming them to become successful and effective classroom instructors. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]