Ann Arbor named most educated city in US, according to WalletHub
(CBS DETROIT) - Ann Arbor is receiving recognition as the most educated city in the United States, according to a study from WalletHub.
The city was named the top in education among the 150 largest metropolitan statistical areas surveyed. Data used included adults aged 25 and older with bachelor's degrees or higher, the quality of the public school system, and the gender education gap.
Other Michigan cities named are Lansing-East Lansing area (No. 34), Grand Rapids-Kentwood area (No. 62), Detroit-Warren-Dearborn area (No. 77), and Flint (No. 125).
Click here to read the full report from WalletHub.
The study shows Ann Arbor ranked No. 1 in the percentage of people with a high school diploma and the percentage of people with associate's degrees or college-experienced adults.
"Highly educated people increase labor force productivity, and they invest heavily in the next generation. Because they see the fruits of their knowledge and skills, highly educated people typically view education as the golden ticket for children's success," said Molly Martin, associate professor at Pennsylvania State University, in a statement. "Thus, communities with affordable, high-quality childcare options and quality public schools can better attract highly educated people interested in raising children."
When it comes to education, experts say the biggest issue is teacher retention.
In a December 2022 report from the National Center for Education Statistics, 18% of public schools had one teacher vacancy, while 27% had multiple teaching positions open.
"There is a serious shortage of teachers and substitute teachers across the nation. Even worse, there are states that have lowered the requirement for substitute teachers to a high school diploma due to the teacher shortage. Clearly, the quality of teachers has become a serious problem," said Kuzey Yilmaz, associate professor at Cleveland State University, in a statement.
"There should definitely be public conversations about how colleges are preparing our nation's teachers and how those colleges are recruiting prospective teachers to enter the profession in the first place. Another significant issue is COVID learning loss. As a result of school closures and online education due to COVID, many students are lagging behind and have moved up to higher grades without learning the material from previous grades. 'Catching kids up' is going to be a big challenge."