In the last ten years, colleges of education have pledged written support to addressing issues of diversity. Mission statements and revised syllabi have been common elements in this movement for inclusiveness, and teacher candidates in English language arts are part of the transformation. Literature often has been considered a quick and easy way to bring multicultural perspectives into the ELA classroom. Yet for effectual change, significant shifts in pedagogy prove more powerful than surface additions. In this article we focus on how a college of education's multicultural mission statement intersects with one teacher's life story. We used classroom experiences from Kristi's student and first year of teaching to explore the path that a commitment to diversity takes on both a personal and institutional level. We framed events when Kristi, as a developing teacher, realized that multicultural literature does not equal multicultural pedagogy. Through collaboration, analysis, and retrospection, we address how an early career teacher makes meaning of her students' reactions and interactions to what they read, how these experiences influence her content selection and pedagogical approaches, and how her understanding of the concept of multiculturalism develops. Particular pedagogical approaches such as culturally relevant teaching, reader response, funds of knowledge, multigenre teaching, and critical inquiry are highlighted as effective approaches for developing teachers committed to diverse learners. (Contains 2 tables.)