By NEAL WAGNER / Managing Editor

Multiple local school districts have some of the best teachers in the state, according to a listing recently compiled by a national school ranking website.

Five school districts serving portions of Shelby County earned spots in the top 50 of the Niche.com 2019 listing of the “Districts with the Best Teachers in Alabama.”

“Explore the districts with the best teachers serving your area,” read the website. “Ranking based on student and parent ratings of teachers, teacher salaries, teacher absenteeism, teacher tenure, student-teacher ratio and the Niche Academics Grade for the district.”

The website based 30 percent of the rankings on academics, 25 percent on parent and student surveys on teachers, 15 percent on teacher absenteeism, a total of 15 percent on teacher salaries, 10 percent on the number of first- or second-year teachers and 5 percent on student-teacher ratio.

Hoover City Schools ranked the highest of the local school districts, coming in at No. 6. HCS earned an overall Niche.com grade of A+, a teacher grade of A and had a student-teacher ratio of 15-to-1, according to the website.

Hoover has an average teacher salary of $58,374, and 21.8 percent of teachers were in their first or second year.

Vestavia Hills City Schools, which serves a small portion of Shelby County students, came in at No. 9 on the list, with an overall Niche.com grade of A+, an A for teachers and a 17-to-1 student-teacher ratio. Vestavia teachers make an average of $64,025, and 6.7 percent of the city’s teachers are in their first or second year.

Pelham City Schools came in at No. 16 on the list, posting an overall Niche.com grade of B+, a teacher grade of A and a student-teacher ratio of 18-to-1, according to the website. About 2.8 percent of Pelham teachers are in their first or second year.

Alabaster City Schools came in at No. 34 on the list, posting an overall Niche.com grade of A-, a B+ teacher grade and had a student-teacher ratio of 18-to-1. About 3.8 percent of teachers are in their first or second year, according to the website.

Leeds City Schools, which also serves a small portion of Shelby County students, came in at No. 42 on the list, with an overall Niche.com grade of B-, a B+ for teachers and a 22-to-1 student-teacher ratio. LCS teachers make an average salary of $61,511, and 21.6 percent of the city’s teachers are in their first or second year.

To view the entire listing, visit Niche.com/k12/search/best-teachers-school-districts/s/alabama.