At the recent 2nd Annual Governor's Forum on Education & Workforce Training, Gary McCollum, Senior Vice President & General Manager, Cox Communications and former Chairman, Smart Beginnings South Hampton Roads, advocated to make early childhood education a priority among current business leaders. Consider the following points that Mr. McCollum made toward the need for quality early childhood education programs.
- Decades of brain research clearly establish that the greatest opportunity to impact a child's development is in their first five years.
- In VA, children who repeat grades cost taxpayers about $80 million dollars a year.
- 62% of VA's incoming 4th graders score below proficient reading levels.
- For every $1 we invest in school-aged children, only 23 cents are spent on preschool-aged children, birth to age 5.
- 1 out of 7 children are not ready for Kindergarten in VA.
It is evident that a skilled future workforce requires early childhood education. As business leaders, we have a powerful voice. We need to continue to raise awareness to the need for early childhood education programs, we need to advocate for greater support, and continually look for ways to improve the early childhood education system. One key factor to this is arming parents with the knowledge to prepare their child for school.
A child who starts behind, stays behind.
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