The achievement gap is a problem not only for African American students and their families and communities; it affects the well-being of the entire country. But because social science research has focused primarily on group deficits rather than factors that have stymied progress, it has provided few clues as to how to construct support systems, even where there is a genuine wish to do so. This article reviews the root causes of the achievement gap, then offers insights about educator preparation and priorities that would yield differently prepared teachers, as well as differently successful children.