According to state data, Michigan’s private schools employ nearly 8,000 teachers. Within the private school teaching force, 82 percent hold a Michigan teaching certificate or permit. Another 2 percent hold a teaching certificate from another state. Fourteen percent of private school teachers hold a bachelor’s degree, but not a Michigan teacher’s certification. All told, 98 percent of private school teachers in Michigan have at least a bachelor’s degree and the overwhelming majority are state certified. According to CEPI data, in 240 private schools, or 40 percent, all teachers have a Michigan teaching certificate.[6]
The remaining 2 percent of private school teachers without a bachelor’s degree or teaching certificate have at least a high school diploma. There are no private schoolteachers with less than a high school diploma. Neither CEPI data nor survey data provided information on the number of private school teachers with a two-year degree, graduate degree or other type of certification.
The average teacher-pupil ratio for private schools, based on state data, is one teacher for every 14 students.