On July 2, 2014, Jamie Barnett spoke on a panel entitled "Plenary Session: Investments in Pre-K Pay Off" at the Education Commission of the States’ (ECS) National Forum on Education Policy on behalf of Mission: Readiness. Mission: Readiness consists of 450 retired admirals and generals who advocate for early childhood education and nutrition as a matter of national security.
Nearly 500 governors, legislators, state chiefs of education, U.S. Department of Education officials, teachers and administrators, and others attended the panel discussion. Barnett’s co-panelists included John Pepper, a former CEO of Proctor and Gamble and Greg Hamilton, the Sheriff of Travis County, TX.