CHARLOTTE: FACING THE CHALLENGES OF ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY AND MOBILITY

Owen Furuseth, PhD, Associate Provost, Metropolitan Studies and Extended Academic Programs, UNC Charlotte

Presentation to Integrated Network for Social Sustainability 2016 ConferenceCenter City CampusUniversity of North Carolina at Charlotte

June 9, 2016

Charlotte is a great place to live and work

With good quality of life

Population is growing…and growth is expected to continue

315,474395,934

540,828

731,424

917,615

1,065,432

1,215,458

404,270

511,433

695,454

919,628

1,112,382

1,301,067

1,492,015

1980 1990 2000 2010 2020 2030 2040

Charlotte

Mecklenburg

Sources: Charlotte-Mecklenburg Planning DepartmentCharlotte Regional Transportation Planning Organization; US Census

Source: 2014 American Community Survey 1-year estimates

Immigrant Overview for Mecklenburg County, 2012 (Foreign-Born equals Immigrant)

Total Foreign-Born 13.6% (128,879)

Region of BirthLatin America 51.5%Asia 27.3%Europe 10.9%Africa 8.4%North America (Canada) 1.4%

Oceania 0.4%

Entered U.S.Before 2000 50.7%2000-2009 43.4%2010 or later 5.9%

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey, 3-year estimates (2010-2012).

But… ranked last in upward mobility

About the Chetty study

■ What are the chances for a child succeeding, independently of family status and the environment where she grows up? (inter-generational mobility)

■ Sample: children born 1980-1982

■ Child and parent pairs coded by 741 commuting zones

■ Compared adult children’s positions on the national income distribution with their parents’

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100

Kansas City

CharlotteRaleighAtlanta

Portland

Minneapolis

Salt Lake City

Income percentile

How do children from below‐median income families fare by adulthood?

Data source: Equality of Opportunity Project, 2014

Upward mobility is especially low across the south and parts of the rust belt

Data source: Equality of Opportunity Project, 2014

Average income percentile of children whose parents were in the 25th percentile  

opportunitycharmeck.org

A Community Task Force

Partners

thecommunity

+

5 Opportunity Indicators

Charlotte-Mecklenburg is challenged in all of the five

major indicators for economic mobility

We Are Segregatedby race and ethnicity

Our community is racially and ethnically

segregated. High levels of

segregation are connected to low

levels of community economic mobility.

Data source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2013 American Community Survey

We Are Segregatedby income

There are concentrated areas

of poverty and segregation by income level in

Charlotte-Mecklenburg, which are both indicators of low community economic mobility.

Data source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2013 American Community Survey

We Are Segregatedby family structure

Single-Parent Households 2014

0% - 19%

20% - 34%

35% - 59%

60% - 100%

Even with hard work and the drive to succeed, single parent households

face strong economic mobility

challenges that can endure over generations.

Data source: North Carolina Department of Instruction, 2012‐13

We Are Segregatedby educational achievement

Students who read on grade level by third

grade are 96% more likely to graduate high

school, a key economic mobility indicator.

Currently, 38% of Mecklenburg’s third

graders are not reading on grade level.

Data source: North Carolina Board of Elections

We Are Segregatedby levels of social capital

Voter turnout is an indicator of community

connectedness and social capital.

Lower social capital is

associated with lower economic

mobility.

Common Threads

National and localexperts, studies and

data point to common areas for focus.

This is a problem we can solve…together.

Lessons Learned (so far)

• Commit to the long haul• Think systems, not programs• No magic solution• Human, social, financial resources• Neighborhoods Matter• Support single parents• Critical factors

• Early childhood development• Quality childcare• 3rd grade reading• Family stability• Positive role models• Strong social connections

Access to jobs is critically important

Work Live

Top Areas Where Low-Wage Workers

Work Live

Source: US Census Longitudinal Employer-Household Dynamics

SCHOOLS COMMUNITY• Inadequate funding for and access to quality pre‐

school and lack of community will to elevate priority

• Re‐segregation of CMS schools and impact on student outcome

• Inequity of resources between low and high poverty schools

• Career counseling in high schools inadequate to prepare students for in demand careers and jobs

• Limited/unequal access to information about preparing for college

• College retention support for low‐income students

• Low minimum wage that has not kept pace with inflation 

• Hiring/employment practices, including employment for those with criminal record, irregular schedules, lack of benefits, etc.

• Limited affordable housing options and the zoning policies and lack of community will to change them

• Location of employment vs. public transportation access

• Concentrated poverty through segregated residential patterns

• Financial literacy education limited for adults and youth

• Limited work‐based learning opportunities in the business community for students

• Bias, racism and classism

System/structural/policy barriers (so far)

Timeline

May Jun July Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun July  Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb

2015

Community Input

Discovery Phase

Milestone #3

Final Report

Actionable recommendationsreleased to public

Milestone #1Discovery Report

What we have learned

Milestone #2Opportunity Dashboard

What we want to change and

measure

Strategy Phase

opportunitycharmeck.org

2016 2017

Discovery Report July 2016& Dashboard

Final Report & January 2017Recommendations

How do we address the history of racism that has limited opportunity for generations?

What does it mean to acknowledge the reality of privilege honestly and then talk about the difficult concept of sacrifice?

Are we truly a community that values shared progress for all?

HARDQUESTIONS

Questions/Comments?

Presentation is available at:http://mseap.uncc.edu/presentations

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