Danger Zone One

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MAKING THE GRADE:
SUMTER ACADEMY
By Meghan Lindt

Criticisms

One of the foremost criticisms leveled at Sumter, and similar private academies, is that elite schools serve to breed class entitlement and entrench inequality. This line of thinking is popular among critics who view institutions like Sumter as a pivotal dividing line, or barrier, between the upper and lower classes.

Some have cited Sumter’s location, on the outskirts of Pallad City, as another example of the school’s very conscious effort to isolate itself from the less-than-affluent populace. Nestled in the picturesque Vadian District, Sumter Academy is surrounded by woods, nearby mountain trails, and wholly removed from the reality of inner city life. By car, the academy is only a ten minute drive from downtown Silica—a city with a much more favorable reputation than Pallad City.

On paper, Sumter views itself as “a forward-thinking school” and “an engine of social change.” However, with an institution designed to only admit a select, extremely wealthy few—while insulating students from any ‘unfavorable’ influences beyond the school’s gates—one may wonder just how “forward-thinking” Sumter really is.

Danger Zone One. Story by Midnight. Art by Salaiix.