This research evaluated South Carolina's Program of Alternative Certification for Educators (PACE). Specifically, the study analyzed this nontraditional teacher preparation pathway's outcomes: to recruit, train, and retain effective beginning teachers who fill the growing teacher vacancies in rural South Carolina. From an in-depth review of the literature that has addressed alternative certification pathways since mid-1980, criteria were developed to identify effective characteristics of successful programs. Survey instruments were researched and applied to assess the pedagogical content knowledge by participants and K-12 administrators. Post-employment performance-based evaluation scores of PACE participants were compared to the survey results. Five recommendations were proposed to assist the PACE program to prepare effective teachers for the classroom. One major recommendation included the need to add more depth and frequency to targeted areas of the PACE curriculum such as classroom management, long-range planning, and development of assessments.