POVERTY IN SPARTANBURG COUNTY

“What’s the difference between growing up in an affluent family and growing up poor? Yes, upper-middle class kids have more money. But they also have more attentive parents, stable families, good teachers – even more friends and acquaintances. As a result, well-off kids have more advantage … they have air bags in their lives.”

(Putnam, pp. 242-3)

“Social air bags offer the same kind of protection as car air bags: in a collision, you walk away unharmed. When affluent kids stumble, a parent or someone else often jumps in to help … by hiring a lawyer, paying for therapy … finding a tutor. A lot of poor kids don’t have access to help.”

It is interesting to note that the percentages of adults in Spartanburg County with “some college” and “bachelor’s degrees” in Spartanburg County are increasing year over year, along with earnings for these categories; though earnings for “high school” or “less than high school” are decreasing year over year.