Teachers are not provided in-depth professional development opportunities to explore and understand college readiness. This problem has a direct impact on rural schools which are likely to experience increased college readiness barriers. The purpose of this hermeneutic, phenomenological study was to explore the perceptions of high school teachers on the implementation of college readiness programs in a rural classroom. This qualitative study was guided through the lens of the transformational leadership theory and its foundational concepts, which aided in the understanding of Conley's four keys model for college readiness. The data collection process for this study was accomplished through questionnaire results from 18 certified teachers employed at a rural Title I high school in southern United States From these 18 participants, 9 took part in the interview process. Only 16.67% of those interviewed learned about college readiness at work. The majority of these participants believed that using college preparation programs in their classroom impacts college readiness, but they unanimously agreed with the fact that ACT preparation courses alone do not prepare students to be college ready. Findings from this research may help enrich the current limited literature available. Publishing the results of this study will allow teachers, school leaders, and policyholders to read, apply, and replicate its contents to assist in making improvements on existing college readiness initiatives among high schools and higher education institutions. [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://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2222/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]