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GREENSBORO — A schools advocacy group will use a Tuesday forum to reinvigorate a local push to improve the preparation of young children for public education.

The 2007 Guilford County Education Summit, sponsored by the Guilford Education Alliance, will feature a panel discussion with state Superintendent June Atkinson, Martin Lancaster, president of the community college system, and Karen Ponder, former president of the N.C. Partnership for Children.

About 250 people have registered to attend, said Margaret Arbuckle, director of the Guilford Education Alliance.

"The purpose is to have conversation and increase the commitment to providing high quality care for our young (student) learning experiences," Arbuckle said.

The alliance released a report in June that tried to assess how ready children are for kindergarten and analyzed county health data, quality of child care, social and emotional development and maternal risk factors.

The report found that 72 percent of at-risk 4-year-old children in Guilford County were enrolled in high-quality pre-kindergarten programs last year, compared to 61 percent statewide.

Children with health or developmental problems entering kindergarten last year had high incidences of asthma and speech/language, vision, dental and attention/learning problems, according to the report.

The alliance will release a subsequent report on Tuesday that will give the public a tool for gauging community support for education and judging where Guilford County Schools stands on preparing children for success in their adult lives.

Robin Britt, director of Guilford Child Development, will speak on an initiative to train teachers of young children.

Also, the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation and Community Foundation of Greensboro will announce the winner of the Hubert B. Humphrey Jr. School Improvement Award.

The award, named after the late senior partner of the Greensboro law firm of Brooks, Pierce, McLendon, Humphrey & Leonard, rewards innovative high schools that improve student achievement.

Contact Morgan Josey Glover at 373-7078 or mjosey@news-record.com