Yes. Families, students and young adults across South Carolina can work with a dedicated Blackburn mentor by video. All of South Carolina is on Eastern time, three hours ahead of our Los Angeles team, and sessions are scheduled in your local time with text and phone check-ins in between.
Upstate, Midlands, Lowcountry
South Carolinians usually describe the state by region. The Upstate, around Greenville, Spartanburg and Anderson, sits in the foothills of the Blue Ridge. The Midlands center on Columbia, the capital. The Lowcountry runs along the southern coast through Charleston, Beaufort and Hilton Head. The Grand Strand around Myrtle Beach and the Pee Dee around Florence fill out the northeast, and Rock Hill and Fort Mill are part of the Charlotte orbit.
The drive from the mountains to the coast takes several hours, and many families live in rural counties between the metros. Online sessions put everyone a click away from the same mentor.
A fast-changing economy
South Carolina has become a major manufacturing state. The Upstate has a large automotive and supplier base, and aircraft assembly operates near Charleston. The Port of Charleston is one of the busiest on the East Coast. Tourism drives the coast from Myrtle Beach to Hilton Head. Military installations, including Army basic training near Columbia and Marine Corps recruit training near Beaufort, are part of life in those regions. Agriculture, from peaches to timber, remains important in rural counties.
Many families have moved to South Carolina in recent years for jobs, lower costs or retirement, and plenty of teenagers are adjusting to a new school and a new state at the same time.
Schools and the college decision
South Carolina’s public schools are organized by county or into districts within counties, with independent schools in the larger metros. The state has public research universities, several regional public universities, a technical college system with campuses across the state, and private colleges. State lottery-funded scholarships help many residents attend college in state, while others leave for North Carolina, Georgia or farther. The state also attracts many out-of-state students, especially to campuses near the coast and in the Upstate.
Where a mentor helps, by stage
- High school: a weekly plan for classes, sports and a job, and practice running it without a parent managing every step. A parent joins the intro call and gets regular updates. See mentoring for high school students.
- College: steady accountability for routines, deadlines and keeping scholarship requirements in view. See mentoring for college students.
- Young adults: direction for a first job in manufacturing, health care, logistics or anything else, or a reset for someone who feels stuck. See young adult mentoring.
- Families who just moved: one consistent adult helping a teenager settle in. See mentoring for families.
Hurricane season and the routine
From June through November, storms can close schools and send coastal families inland for days. Because sessions are online, they can move, pause or continue from wherever the family is, and the mentor helps the student get back on track afterward.
Pages for areas in South Carolina
We have pages for Charleston, Greenville and the Upstate and Columbia and the Midlands. Families in York County may also find Charlotte helpful, and Savannah is close to the southern Lowcountry. Our online mentoring page explains how video sessions work, and mentoring by state lists other states.
Related
- Online mentoring in Charleston
- Online mentoring in Greenville
- Online mentoring in North Carolina
- Online mentoring in Georgia
Common questions
What time zone are South Carolina sessions in?
Eastern time, statewide. A 4 pm session in Columbia is 1 pm for a mentor in Los Angeles, and evening sessions are easy to arrange.
Can a mentor help a student keep up with scholarship requirements?
A mentor can help a student track grades, credits and deadlines that a scholarship depends on and build habits to meet them. Questions about eligibility belong with the school or the program.
Is your team in South Carolina?
No. Our team is in Los Angeles, and South Carolina clients work with their mentor by video.
We moved here from another state. Is that a good time to start?
It can be. A move is a natural point to set new routines, and a mentor helps a student build them while keeping parents updated.
Get started
Want to talk through what someone in South Carolina needs? Call (888) 305 5422, email contact@blackburnmentoring.com or start with a short assessment. A member of our team reviews every assessment personally and sets up a free intro call.