No child in Africa, and in fact anywhere in the world, should be denied education.

Teachers need our active support and encouragement. They are doing one of the most necessary and exacting jobs in the land. They are developing our most precious national resource: our children, our future citizens.

2/3 of our management associates come from our hourly ranks. We put in place academies to help people with education. We've put a dollar a day college program in to help people get college hours if they want to advance their degrees.

Ten years ago, we committed to investing in our associates through higher wages, new training opportunities, and changes to our scheduling and education programs. It was a step grounded in the belief that putting people first is always the right thing to do. These investments sparked momentum in our stores that we still see and feel today.

In my travels all over the world, I have come to realize that what distinguishes one child from another is not ability, but access. Access to education, access to opportunity, access to love.

Educating all of our children must be one of our most urgent priorities. We all know that education, more than anything else, improves our chances ofbuilding better lives.