(Editorial writers in Mississippi are concerned about poverty and the lack of pre-K)

Editorial writers in Mississippi are continuing to notice and push for improvement in the state's dismal showing in important child development areas.

An editorial in the Mississippi Press noted the state's 50th overall rank in a the Kids Count study conducted by the Annie E. Casey Foundation , and pointed out that the state is one of the last to begin focusing on the critical early years of a child's education.

It's important for editorial writers to stay on top of efforts in Mississippi, where the states neediest children are served by Head Start but where there is no state funding for pre-kindergarten, even as neighboring states boost new programs and spending initiatives. Pre-K Now has kept an eye on Mississippi's laggard status as "the only southern state in the Pre-K Wilderness.''

Republican Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour has been no fan of publicly funded pre-kindergarten, noting that he does not see it happening in the state's future. Mississippi has the highest poverty rate in the country, and efforts to improve programs for young children have hit setbacks this spring, notes Sara Meade of Early Ed Watch.