This research report from the National Center for Teacher Residencies examines the return on investment offered by the teacher residency model, in which aspiring teachers spend a year learning alongside an expert mentor teacher while completing community-based, practice-oriented, and clinically aligned coursework. This report addresses challenges related to teacher preparation, workforce diversity, and equity in public schooling. It finds that residency-trained teachers are considered more effective, with 98% of principals rating them above other pathways. It also finds that residencies attract a more diverse pool, with 62% of residents identifying as people of color, compared with 22% of new teachers nationally. It further documents stronger retention, with more than 85% of graduates staying at least three years in their partner district. District leaders, preparation program faculty, and funders can use these findings for investing in residencies, weighing the long-term cost of teacher turnover against the upfront cost of stronger preparation, and guiding decisions about designing, expanding, or funding residency programs.