Each year, almost one-fourth of all public high school students, and nearly one-third of all blacks, Hispanics, and Native Americans, fail to graduate from public high school with their class. Course failures and high school dropout rates are nationally higher in the ninth grade than in any other high school grade level, and 19% fail to graduate. The purpose of this study was to research this unique ninth grade population further and most importantly, address the specific problem, the 19% drop out rate of ninth grade high school students. This qualitative interpretive/constructivist study was to determine teacher's perceptions of possible transitional tools which may exist explicitly with teachers of ninth grade only students at a separate, ninth grade only campus in a Southwest Texas community. The sample participants were drawn from the 38 professional staff members across the four core subject disciplines, Math, Science, Social Studies and English. The research questions for this study focused on the key factors in the transition process from the teacher's perspective. 1. How do the faculty at a ninth grade only high school campus perceive such a campus as a means of alleviating the stressors associated with the transition from middle school to high school and what tools may exist explicitly at this unique grade level? 2. What are the challenges and obstacles faced by students as perceived by teachers at a ninth grade only high school campus? The primary data consisted of interview data, which comprised approximately three one-hour audio semi-structured interviews, participant artifacts (classroom materials, personal reflective papers, and student-generated letters); participant survey; and the researchers (history, biography, experiences, observations, notes, and reflective journal). The four participants indicated that the process of maturation typically gained through learning by example or through natural consequences provided by older and more mature students did not exist at this ninth-grade campus but did, however, express positives associated with a smaller campus population of students and staff. Additionally, a recommendation that a repeat of this case study takes place at a traditional ninth through twelfth-grade high school campus to tap into the perceptions of those ninth-grade teachers. [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.]