As a mother, a grandmother and the former head of The Anthony School, Kay Patton says that children and teaching are two of her greatest passions.
A graduate of Little Rock Central High, Patton earned her undergrad degree in history from Randolph-Macon Woman’s College (now Randolph College) in Lynchburg, Va., and her master’s degree in history from the University of Arkansas. She taught Western Civilization at the UofA before returning to Little Rock to teach middle school at The Anthony School.
Her love of teaching and passion for children’s advocacy is what propelled her into a role on the EMCC board, of which she was president by 1983. She couldn’t have joined at a better time.
“I joined the EMCC and they needed a new facility so bad that I ended up getting deeply involved in raising money.” Patton says they were just moving to the new 12th Street location when the state requested they start an adolescent center. Immediately, another capital campaign was launched to build a second building on 12th Street, the Sturgis Adolescent Center.
As a member of the Junior League of Little Rock, Patton also played a vital role in the creation of The Parent Center. “I was more than knee-deep in everything involving children,” she laughs.
While Patton admits the merger wasn’t always an easy process, she knows it has paid off. “We were able to expand hugely the number of children and families we were able to reach. We were also able to greatly expand the spectrum of problems and solutions we can explore,” she says. “Some of the major problems in our state are kids dropping out of school and teen pregnancy. Thanks to our expansion of services, not only do teen parents come to the parenting programs, but the whole family as well. There are tutoring sessions and study halls so that we are able to provide the services that make it possible for teens to go to school and stay in school.”