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Survey: Head Start At “Breaking Point”

March 25, 2008

Renton , WA – Head Start programs in Washington and around the country are at a breaking point, according to a new survey from the National Head Start Association. The program works with pre-school kids and families in at-risk situations to help make sure children are ready for school.

The survey finds that local programs are stretched between funding shortfalls and new federal mandates. The results show that 77 percent of programs surveyed said they were "at or near the breaking point," and many are cutting staff and services. Cheri Stefani is the director of Head Start in the Puget Sound area; she says state programs are feeling the crunch.

"Specifically, for our program we've had to cut staff hours, both the family support staff and the teaching staff, in order to balance our budget every year, and so every year we're chipping away at staff positions."

Stefani says there are areas in the state with long waiting lists for kids and families wanting to join the Head Start program, but with flat funding, there's no way to bring them on board.

"When there's no money to expand services or serve more children, then of course you have children who are entering the school system at sometimes quite a deficit."

A recent federal Head Start law requires higher levels of education for Head Start teachers and assistants. Stefani says better training for Head Start teachers is a good thing, but with no new funding to train and hire those teachers, the requirement will drive out many current Head Start workers.

Chris Thomas/Kevin Clay, Public News Service - WA

Killing Head Start softly

Our view: Congress should restore painful cuts                 March 25, 2008

Talk about being penny-wise and pound-foolish. The Bush administration has proposed some of the most drastic cuts to Head Start in the program's 43-year history. It's all for the dubious purpose of reining in domestic spending, while the cost of defense goes up and up. But few things could be more important to the nation's future than putting low-income children on an early path to educational success.

Head Start gives needy children a boost by providing intellectual and social stimulation along with healthy meals. Despite its many benefits, the program has struggled to reach full potential because constant underfunding has kept supply from meeting demand. Mr. Bush is now proposing cuts in 2009 that the National Head Start Association estimates would result in more than 14,000 fewer slots for children - the first time a president has formally budgeted for such a reduction since the program began.

Head Start officials rightly insist that new rules and less money amounts to an unfunded mandate - one that a majority of centers across the country cannot handle without painful cuts in quality. A local Baltimore program has had to cut teachers' work hours while increasing family caseloads from a recommended 36 families to 51.

Congress needs to step in. About $470 million is being sought in a supplemental 2008 appropriation to help recover some ground. Granted, a lot of domestic needs are unfulfilled, but stanching Head Start's wounds should be a top priority.

Copyright © 2008, The Baltimore Sun

Story published at magicvalley.com on Tuesday, March 04, 2008
Last modified on Tuesday, March 4, 2008 12:13 AM MST

Head Start gets JFAC support

By Andrea Gates
Times-News writer

Head Start preschool programs have won some support in Boise following months of funding fears from the local front.

The Legislature's Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee recommended last week that federal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families ( or TANF) money be allocated through the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare to Head Start at the same level as last year, for about $1.3 million.

Idaho law lets state public school money be spent on children 5 and older, so most early childhood programs are private or federally funded.

JFAC's move surprised and delighted local Head Start officials.

"We are so thankful," said South Central Head Start Director Mary Marshall. "My hats are off to the Joint-Finance and Appropriations Committee. Thank you to them for including families living in poverty in the state."

It also surprised Head Start advocates in the Legislature.

Before JFAC's decision, Sen. Diane Bilyeu, D-Pocatello, was concerned. "I believe that at this time, Head Start will not (be) receiving any TANF funding," she said in an e-mail to the Times-News Feb. 26, the day before JFAC approved Head Start funding. "I will continue to be a strong voice against this reduction."

But it's not a done deal until the rest of the Legislature signs on.

"We have a bit of a ways to go but it looks the best it's looked in a long time for us," Marshall said.

Head Start is a federally funded poverty prevention program, which gives kids ages 3 to 5 structured preschool with health and nutrition services, along with home visits to bring parents into their kids' education. There are 10 centers with waiting lists in nine Magic Valley counties, Marshall has said.

Losing $1.3 million in TANF money would eliminate 200 Head Start slots statewide, with 22 of those in south-central Idaho, Marshall said.

Fear of program cuts were rooted in budget proposals from Gov. C.L. "Butch" Otter and the Department of Health and Welfare. Both recommended pulling about $1.8 million in TANF in the 2009 fiscal year, according to the Fiscal Year 2009 Idaho Legislative Budget Book.

Some state officials were under the impression that TANF funds could no longer be used for Head Start.

"There was previously a ruling, or an interpretation of a ruling, that it (TANF funds) couldn't be used for Head Start," said Sen. Dean Cameron, R-Jerome, a JFAC co-chairman. "We have since come to understand it could be used."

Head Start funding fears resonated with JFAC decision-makers.

"We have heard the concerns," said Cameron. "We recognize the importance of the program."
   


 

 Reporter: Nisha Gutierrez
Head Start Program Funding Reviewed

Posted: Feb 28, 2008 05:38 PM MST

There had been some talk about federal funding for the state's Head Start Program being in jeopardy, but it looks like it will still have the funding it has had in the past. Nisha Gutierrez reports.

For decades, School District 25's Head Start Program has given three- and four-year-olds a chance to get ahead.

Sherry Young, Head Start Director: "By the time they get to kindergarten, we hope that they've learned how to sit still for a few minutes and learn how to work in a group, learn how to take turns."

The Head Start Program was created to get children from low-income families better prepared for a school setting.

During their four-hour days, Head Start teaches students essential skills like language development and literacy. It also caters to specific educational areas.

Sherry Young, Head Start Director: "We individualize our teaching in every classroom dependent upon the child and their needs."

But some programs like Head Start were recently put in jeopardy when the Governor's office began looking at pulling TANF - or Temporary Assistance for Needy Families - funding. Some were saying the funding was used inappropriately.

But officials say further review by the federal government showed it is being used properly and on Wednesday the Joint Finance Appropriations Committee addressed the TANF funding issue.

Stan Burton, Idaho Head Start Association: "The Idaho Head Start Association is gratified to learn that the Joint Finance and Appropriations Committee of the Idaho Legislature has seen fit to recommend the ongoing continuation of the TANF funding for Head Start low-income children and families at the same levels of last year."

Officials say the Head Start program also focuses on families. So the program funding is also used to assist parents with getting their GEDs, parenting classes and finding employment.

Sherry Young, Head Start Director: "If the family is strong then that gives the child a much better chance for their success in school."

School District 25's Head Start Program consists of 11 classes that currently serve 186 students and has a waiting list of 97 students - which could grow if funding is ever discontinued. 

Sherry Young, Head Start Director: "And loss in any kind of funding means that many children and families in Pocatello will go without any kind of these services."

The next step is for the House and Senate to vote on the budget that was recommended by the Joint Appropriations Committee which includes the funding for the Head Start program.

 

 Natural Resources
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New compendium describes measures of quality in early care and education settings

  Quality in early childhood care and education settings: A compendium of measures, from the Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation, Administration for Children and Families, reviews measures of the quality of early care and education settings to provide comparable information on existing measures that may be useful to researchers, practitioners, and policymakers. Profiles describe the purpose of the measure; the population and setting for which they are intended; procedures for administration; psychometric properties; as well as underlying constructs and scoring. View the document at http://www.researchconnections.org/SendPdf?resourceId=13403

 

 

    

Copyright © 2008 Idaho Head Start Association
www.idahoheadstartassoc.net
Last modified: 04/11/08