Negative school culture is a barrier to teachers striving to help students reach their literacy goals. Students who attend urban schools with negative cultures often receive poor literacy instruction and have low literacy achievement. Negative school culture could also contribute to low community and parental involvement. The purpose of this qualitative descriptive study was to explore teachers' perceptions of school culture and its effect on their ability to help students achieve literacy goals. The social cognitive theory was the study's theoretical framework. In-depth interviews via Zoom occurred with five teachers who taught literacy in low-socioeconomic, public schools for kindergarten through fifth grade in the Southeastern United States. Inductive thematic analysis commenced per Braun and Clarke's six phases to identify patterns and themes within and across the participant interviews. Five themes emerged: (a) descriptors of culture, (b) the impact of leadership on culture and literacy, (c) student home-life and parental influences on learning through culture and literacy, (d) the building of literacy through culture, and (e) the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on culture and literacy. The data showed that whether positive or negative, school culture has an impact on student achievement. School culture influences how students learn and the atmosphere in which they learn. Enhancing the field of education requires educators to define, understand, and implement positive and supportive cultures in all learning environments to improve achievement and provide students with meaningful support. The recommendations for future practice include implementing professional developments to establish a positive school culture involving all stakeholders. The recommendations for future research include conducting qualitative studies on the perceptions of teachers, students, parents, and administrators on school culture with large sample sizes and diverse data collection tools. [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.bibliotheek.ehb.be/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]