While California has made substantial progress in easing its teacher shortage and reducing the concentration of the least prepared teachers in the lowest achieving schools, the effort to strengthen schools for all students is hampered by the large number of teachers who leave the profession prematurely. Policymakers at the state and local levels need to do a better job of keeping more talented, skilled and experienced teachers in the classroom. In order to target policy that keeps great teachers in the classroom we might begin with the question: "Why do teachers leave?" Many Californians, or those in education or the policy community, might say that low pay and a lack of respect for the profession fuels high rates of teacher attrition. But new research challenges those assumptions. In "A Possible Dream: Retaining California Teachers So All Students Learn," Dr. Ken Futernick of the California State University's Center for Teacher Quality finds that "critical problems in the teaching and learning environment are literally driving teachers from the classroom." While more research on this issue is needed, Futernick's conclusions ring true. This issue of "CenterView" shares some of Futernick's findings.