When Somil Vinod came to Charlotte after moving from Minnesota in the summer of 2019, one thing caught his attention: the socioeconomic divide that was persistent in the city. He noticed that all the friends that he went to school with all lived in the same area of Charlotte: “The Wedge.” He did some research and found that in many studies, Charlotte was consistently ranked as a city with low socioeconomic mobility, a statistic that in his mind needed to be changed.

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            In March 2020, Charlotte Country Day School was closed due to the Corona Virus pandemic. With the extra time on his hands, Somil Vinod began to talk to his close friend, Raunak Mandal, about the socioeconomic divide in the city and how the Covid-19 would only exacerbate the divide. The two began to brainstorm solutions about how they could possibly help in their city.

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            A few months later, the death of George Floyd revealed the racial injustices that still exist in this nation today. Somil and Raunak quickly realized how interconnected the issues of race and socioeconomic mobility are. Historical oppression and systemic racism prevent so many from moving upwards on the socioeconomic ladder. With this realization, Somil and Raunak knew they had to create something to make their city a better place for all, and thus, RISE50 was born.

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            After working on the initiative all summer, they began to talk to David Lynn, a teacher and Director of International Studies at Charlotte Country Day School. David Lynn loved the idea and became involved in helping the two to build RISE50. Somil and Raunak had a long way to go before their goals for RISE50 could be achieved. They recruited their good friend, Janani Sundaram, to help with the process. Janani is equally passionate about the social issues in Charlotte. That along with her work ethic and enthusiasm to help made her the perfect fit for the team.

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            Now, the three students are working towards successfully building their platform in order to make real change in Charlotte. They plan on meeting with city council members and other influential individuals in the city. Using their social capital, they are trying to help others build theirs.