Now is the time to invest in early childhood
Guest Columnist
Kathy Buckman Gibson
Kathy Buckman Gibson is the founding board chair of First 8 Memphis. She is president and CEO of KBG Technologies – the only woman-owned, full-service specialty chemistry provider for pulp and paper. She has served in leadership roles for national Girls Inc., United Way of the Mid-South, Mid-South Reading Alliance, the Women's Foundation for a Greater Memphis and the National Civil Rights Museum.
Local data from pre-K this year shows the effectiveness of high-quality early childhood programs. Eighty-five percent of the 7,800 children who attended finished the year "ready for kindergarten," and more likely to read on grade level in third grade.
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