The United States’ educational system, including teacher preparation programs and the Educative Teacher Performance Assessment (edTPA) used to evaluate candidates’ readiness, must undergo an ideological shift that places asset thinking and an inclusion of diverse linguistic and cultural backgrounds embedded in culturally relevant pedagogy at their center. Asset versus deficit thinking is examined, and the edTPA, a widely-used assessment for teacher readiness in the United States, is critiqued. This discussion emphasizes how culturally relevant and sustaining pedagogical practices must be explicitly taught, practiced, assessed, and implemented in every preparing institution and classroom in the United States.