West Hartford Among 20 Best Cities For K-12 Teachers, List Says

FORT MILL, SC - Data analysts from GoodCall.com recently released its list of "Best Cities for K-12 Teachers" for 2017. The list outlines cities that offer the best backdrop for teachers to live and work for the third year in a row.

A total of 689 U.S. cities were evaluated on educational values, K-12 teacher salaries and job availability, amenities, affordability, and low unemployment and crime rates.

Notably dominating the top of the list this year were college towns and well-educated suburbs of Chicago and Detroit, according to a release.

The top 20 cities for K-12 teachers in 2017 are:

1. Bentonville, AR

2. Glenview, IL

3. Evanston, IL

4. Elmhurst, IL

5. Troy, MI

6. Southfield, MI

7. State College, PA

8. Burlington, VT

9. Plainfield, IL

10. Crystal Lake, IL

11. Boca Raton, FL

12. Downers Grove, IL

13. Novi, MI

14. Mankato, MN

15. Santa Fe, NM

16. Livonia, MI

17. Buffalo Grove, IL

18. Bend, OR

19. Kalamazoo, MI

20. West Hartford, CT

Outside of the top 20 for Connecticut, Milford ranked at number 33.

"Cities at the top of our list give teachers the best chance to find jobs that are professionally fulfilling and financially viable because they are thriving cities where people value education highly,” Goodcall.com Data Analyst Claire Etheridge said in a release. “Teachers who are looking to start a new job in these cities also benefit from the low crime rates and varied restaurant and
entertainment options."

Cities were ranked on 9 metrics:

• Job Availability - Number of available K-12 jobs per capita.
• Cost of Living - Housing, groceries, health care, etc.
• Amenities - Arts, entertainment and recreation facilities per 1,000 people.
• High School Education - Percentage of people ages 25 and up who graduated high school.
• College Education - Percentage of people 25 and up with a bachelor’s degree.
• Unemployment - Percentage of workers 16+ who are unemployed.
• Crime Rate - Violent crimes per 1,000 people.
• Restaurants & Bars - Number of food and drinking places per 1,000 people.
• Comparative Salary - Median salary for K-12 teachers divided by the median salary overall for the area.

Data sources included the U.S. Census Bureau, Indeed.com, FBI Crime Data and Sperling’s Bestplaces. The full report and methodology can be found here.

The core mission of GoodCall is to help people make easier personal finance decisions about college, careers, home buying and beyond. GoodCall provides tools, resources and data insights to make financial independence a reality for students, recent graduates, families and retirees.

Get the full list of cities at GoodCall.com.

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