By Steuart Pittman
Our work to eliminate the opportunity gap can’t be done by county government, Anne Arundel County Public Schools, or community leaders alone. It will take all three working together on our Joint Commission on the Opportunity Gap. We are all in.
We will need specific goals, and today I announced the first: 76 by 26. Today, only 46% of Anne Arundel County students are assessed as ready to begin kindergarten. I commit to reducing by half the percentage of children who don’t meet that standard. 76% of our kids will be ready for kindergarten by 2026.
That’s my commitment and it’s my challenge to this commission. I want to thank all of the appointees for committing their time, experience, and knowledge to addressing the opportunity gap in our county. The impacts of structural and systemic racism begin affecting children at birth, and result in inequitable outcomes for our students inside and outside of our schools.
To learn more about the commission, review our list of members, and tune in for their first meeting tonight, visit aacounty.org/jcog.