Spartanburg Academic Movement receives $5.6 million investment to support equitable recovery and advance community initiatives

The SAM Board, staff, and community partners are excited to share this news with you! Please stay tuned as news media and our partners share more about the related work already underway due to this major investment in our community!

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The Spartanburg Academic Movement (SAM) has been awarded a $5.6 million investment. The funds will be used to increase the internal capacity of SAM and community partners to initiate coordinated Covid-19 recovery, while also expanding existing work to build economic mobility through neighborhood partnerships and equitable access to resources.

SAM’s mission is to improve economic mobility, anchored in building equity and academic achievement across Spartanburg County, SC. The investment is from Blue Meridian Partners, a national philanthropic group that finds and funds scalable solutions to the problems that limit economic mobility for young people and families in the US.

 “This significant investment begins unlocking the potential that has been building as a result of cross-sector partnerships developed over many years. Now, we are also addressing equitable pandemic recovery in this work. This funding will take our shared vision for a whole-child approach to building equity and economic mobility into deeper action that addresses needs right now as well as those that will impact our community for generations to come,” said Dr. Russell Booker, SAM Executive Director.

 The Spartanburg County Foundation will serve as SAM’s fiscal agent for the use and distribution of the funds.

A portion of the two-year investment is earmarked for education-based Covid recovery. Booker has met with Spartanburg’s seven Superintendents who are creating district-specific plans for funds now available to them.  Funding has also been earmarked to support childcare stabilization and community organizations who are supporting children and families during this time of recovery.  In total, up to $1.4 million will be allocated towards equitable recovery. Funding to districts will be awarded in the coming weeks.  Rapid grants will also be announced to support organizations during the month of January.

“Our recovery efforts are an extension of the Bringing Back the ‘Burg comprehensive recovery plans that are currently underway.  As we coordinate our work across sectors, we were pleased that OneSpartanburg, Inc., had already initiated a community-wide recovery effort.  SAM is pleased to align our recovery efforts with those currently underway,” Booker noted.   

Supporting families is a major focus of the investment. As announced on Nov. 30, 2020, SAM has hired Dr. Jennifer Parker to lead the non-profit’s emphasis on child and family initiatives with a focus on health and well-being, expanding the organization’s whole-child, two-generation approach to improving educational achievement.

“The efforts underway within the Northside community, in partnership with Purpose Built Communities, played a key role in bringing about this place-based investment. Aligning our efforts in these communities, where specific impact strategies and master plans are in place, allows us to move the work forward faster. As we track impact in these neighborhoods, we can look toward scaling successful practices into other areas of our county,” Booker added. Planning with strategic partners in the Northside and Highland communities for the most effective use of this funding has begun.

Tracking results using data systems has been a SAM focus since the organization’s launch in 2013. SAM’s recently launched data dashboard is already informing community action.  This investment will also support the planning, technical assistance, and launch of a community-wide data lab expanding our data capacity and building on the legacy of Spartanburg’s current and past data systems. The data/policy lab will be charged with creating policy agendas, narrative‐style reports from data insights, and a spotlight of best practices – all centered on whole community. 

“An investment of this magnitude is an affirmation of the collaborative work of SAM with community partners and becomes a catalyst. From here, we build a brighter future across Spartanburg – from work already being done, on new initiatives, and the ability to leverage additional support to continue the work after this initial funding,” said Jennifer Evins, SAM’s Board President.

“We are excited to be investing in Spartanburg, partnering with SAM and the Spartanburg County Foundation,” said Tomeka Wigginton, Managing Director at Blue Meridian Partners. “We were compelled by SAM’s strong track record, their established relationships with place‐based and neighborhood organizations, and the demonstrated commitment of the broader community for more equitable opportunity and outcomes. We look forward to supporting their vision moving forward.”  

Central to this work is an expanded focus on supporting children and families who have been disproportionately impacted by systems that have impeded their ability to progress economically and socially – namely black, brown, indigenous and poor communities.  As such, racial equity is a core component of SAM’s efforts. This investment honors the work that SAM has already done and provides a major boost to accelerate it.

“Spartanburg is receiving national attention for what we, as a community, have been doing, but there is much more to be done.  Aligning the many collective impact efforts currently underway in our community is central to this work.  As we use these resources and technical assistance to codify our efforts across partnerships and build a shared vision, we are confident this partnership will serve as a key step in doing so.  This tremendous investment in our community brings us great hope for what is to come,” said Booker.

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The Spartanburg Academic Movement is a nonprofit organization working to improve economic mobility, anchored in building equity and academic achievement across Spartanburg County, SC.

The Northside Development Group  serves to encourage and manage the redevelopment of the City of Spartanburg’s Northside community, honoring its past and expanding the opportunities for a mix of affordable and market rate housing, economic, educational, recreational, health, and social opportunities for its residents.

 Purpose Built Communities takes a holistic approach to achieve racial equity, improved health outcomes, and greater economic mobility in neighborhoods that have suffered from decades of disinvestment.

 StriveTogether partners with nearly 70 communities across the country to advance equity so local success stories can become the reality for every child, everywhere. Together, we transform failing systems with a collaborative improvement methodology and a proven, data-driven framework for change. We work to close disparity gaps in education, housing and so much more. The StriveTogether Cradle to Career Network impacts the lives of more than 12 million youth — more than half of whom are children of color — across 30 states and Washington, D.C. Learn more at StriveTogether.org.