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Study: Detroit Ranks As One Of the Nation's Top Cities For Teachers

By Dan Jenkins
@DanTJenkins

Add this to the list of things Michigan residents thought they would never hear: Detroit has been named one of the top cities in the entire nation for teachers.

According to research firm ValuePenguin, Detroit ranks third in the United States as a "best city for teachers" among cities with 500,000 residents or more.

Detroit fell just out of the top five and was ranked the No. 6 city overall. Warren and Kalamazoo were also ranked on the list of midsize cities -- 100,000 to 500,000 residents -- coming in at No. 5 and No. 6, respectively.

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(credit: ValuePenguin)

The study found the average annual salary of a Detroit teacher to be $54,290 and there to be over 4,200 jobs.

[MORE: Hundreds Of Detroit Teachers Shorted On Paychecks Due To 'Technical Issues']

The most interesting factor in the study is the "location quotient," which measures a city's demand for teachers' services.

"Location quotient measures the concentration of teachers in an area as a percentage of all occupations, and then compares that to the national average," the study explains.

Detroit's school system has been under state oversight since 2009. Gov. Rick Snyder has proposed breaking the troubled system into two entities to better manage a nearly $500 million debt in operating costs.

"We're fed up with the state's mismanagement of the district and destructive policies," Detroit Federation of Teachers President Steve Conn told WWJ Newsradio 950's Greg Bowman. "We want a lower class size for students. We want pay raises for the teachers, so we can attract and retain teachers needed to reduce the class size. We need books and supplies. We need public schools and not charters."

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