Addressing Economic Issues in Milledgeville Montana Phalan Faculty mentor: Amanda Reinke Georgia College & State University
43% of the population within Milledgeville lives below the poverty line, higher than the national average of 13%. A decade ago, Milledgeville was surging with employment. In a few years, more than 1,800 jobs were dissolved. Because of this, economic infrastructures, such as money lending offices and other businesses have become visible. These businesses provide a much-needed financial infrastructure by offering monetary resources to those with limited options. Despite their widespread use, little data has been collected to understand the impacts of these loans on business owners who operate them, their clients, or the community’s economic wellbeing. Using interviews, mapping techniques, and archival data, the goal of this research is to determine the ways lending businesses provide economic opportunities to individuals who have few options but may capture their clients in a cycle of debt. This project will illuminate a pervasive economic issue by examining business owners’ and clients’ perceptions and experiences with money lending.
Montana Phalan is from Loganville, Georgia and is a Philosophy major and an Anthropology minor. After graduation, Phalan plans on working for an NGO and travelling doing field work.
