SPARTANBURG COUNTY, S.C. (WSPA) — The nonprofit organization, Spartanburg Academic Movement (SAM), is launching Movement 2030, a plan to connect residents with educational resources.
“Our goal is that by 2030, the percentage of students who are ready for kindergarten will move from 48 percent, currently, to 65 percent,” Dr. Russell Booker, the CEO of Spartanburg Academic Movement, said. “Right now, 59 percent of our high school kids are enrolled in college. We’d like to see that number at 70 percent. We would like to see an additional 500 high-value certificates each year.”
To implement Movement 2030, SAM is investing $100 million throughout Spartanburg County. The funding came from the following investments:
- Blue Meridian Partners: $50 million
- Duke Endowment: $25 million
- Local contributions: $25 million
Over the next seven years, SAM will partner with local organizations that work to support the community. For example, if a parent notices that their child is not ready to start school, they can contact SAM. SAM will then connect the parent with an organization that can provide resources to help the child. If an adult wants to go back to school, they can contact SAM to help them begin the application and enrollment process for higher education.
“There’s something in here for everyone in our community,” Booker said.
SAM plans to focus some of their work in the Highlands and Northside neighborhoods. They hope their work there can prepare children for school and, in turn, prepare them for higher education.
“The truth is that they lag behind the county in just about every metric,” Booker explained. “Through this plan, we’re going to be providing a number of services — everything from family navigation, academic success coaches that are going to be embedded within the community, school support and expanding full day 3K to some of our highest poverty schools in the county.”
To learn more about Movement 2030, click here.
