Summit County is One of the Best Counties in the Country for Income Mobility for Poor Children

We all know Summit County is a great place to grow up. We have great outdoor activities. We have good schools. It also appears that Summit County is among the best counties in the U.S. in helping poor children move up the income ladder… in fact it is does better than 98% of counties in America according to a recent Harvard study. A child spending 20 years growing up in Summit County will make about $6,000 more annual household income at age 26 than if they grew up in an average place. Duchesne County is even better at $8,100 added to annual income.

The researchers found five factors associated with upward mobility: less segregation by income and race, lower levels of income inequality, better schools, lower rates of violent crime, and a larger share of two-parent households.

Of course, here at the Park Rag, we never like to paint too rosy of a picture. That gives us nothing to work for. So, what’s the bad news that may end up impacting you? For rich kids in Summit County, on average they will earn $130 less per year than average because they grew up here (that equates to 73% of counties being better than us). For the ultra-rich, they make $3,000 less (96% of counties are better).

But I’m not going to weep the 1%-ers. They’ll just have to grow up in Malibu instead. It’s interesting to wonder why though.

Here is the New York Times article which allows you to check different counties.