This may seem a little odd answering my own question, but here is the bottom line. It was not worth upgrading the Dell Inspiron 530s. I really leaned heavy on irish420311 suggestion on replacing the HHD for a SSD and adding RAM. I believe that this would have held up for awhile and worked just fine. However, after much research of upgrading vs buying a new PC. I found a third option of building a PC, which in the end is what I chose.
I believe that building my own PC will prove to be something I can continually upgrade and repair without having to buy a whole new PC every so often. Therefore keeping up with the essence of reducing electronic waste and repairing what I have over the long run. Also, if you have an old PC that you want to rid yourself of, instead of pitching it to the curb or selling it. Consider donating it to your local high school or vocational college for another generation to learn on!