Head Start Leaders Have High Hopes for New President and Congress, But Budget 'Double...

Head Start Leaders Have High Hopes for New President and Congress, But Budget
'Double Whammy' Expected to Force Cuts of Up to 14,000 Child Slots Nationwide

Despite Outstanding Track Record of Program, Head Start Officials Bracing for
Worst Under Fiscal Year 2008 Budget; Advocates Look Forward to Working With
New President, Congress to Address Long-Term $1 Billion Budget Crisis.

WASHINGTON, June 19 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Faced with an effective $1
billion cut in funding since 2002, cash-strapped Head Start programs across
the United States will have no choice but to seek up to 14,000 child
enrollment cuts now that Congress and the Bush Administration have let down
America's most at-risk children twice in just over six months, according to
local Head Start leaders across the nation and officials at the National Head
Start Association (NHSA).

In December 2007, scores of costly new requirements were imposed on Head Start
programs even as the program was cut by $10.6 million. More recently,
Congress and the Bush Administration failed this spring to provide Head Start
with needed catch-up funding in the Fiscal Year (FY) 2008 supplemental
appropriations process. Despite the twin setbacks for what is considered to
be one of the most successful programs operated by the federal government,
NHSA and local Head Start leaders are optimistic that they can work with a new
President and Congress to turn around the Head Start funding crisis and get
the program back on track.

Head Start -- the nation's premier early childhood program serving more than 1
million children and their low-income families -- is a comprehensive school
readiness program that helps to reduce the achievement gap in the classroom.
Head Start children experience increased achievement test scores and favorable
long-term effects in terms of less grade repetition and special education, and
higher school graduation rates, according to one overview analysis of a series
of studies. Head Start's parent Policy Councils and family support services
empower low-income white, African American, Hispanic and other children and
families to gain skills needed to move out of poverty and pursue the American
dream.

The potential short-term enrollment cut for Head Start is based on the
assumptions contained in the White House's Fiscal Year 2009 budget, which
proposed cutting 14,065 slots in the face of flat funding outside of a
targeted increase for Head Start employee health care benefits.

National Head Start Association Board Chairman Ron Herndon, who also is
director of the Albina Head Start program (Portland, OR), said: "We will be
working to get the new President and the new Congress to send clear signals
that they are fully committed to Head Start and want it to get as many
children ready to learn as possible. Unfortunately, the Bush Administration
and some in the current Congress have decided to leave Head Start twisting in
the breeze, forcing us to scrimp, cut corners and now eliminate slots for
thousands of America's most at-risk youths. As a result, the next President
and Congress literally will be faced with the question of whether or not they
are prepared to do what it will take to ensure that we have a Head Start
program moving forward. We are confident that we can make a compelling case
for hitting the 'reset button' on Head Start to get things back where they
belong."

Julius Bennett, director, East Side House Settlement Head Start (Bronx, NYC),
said: "I have been the director for my program since 1969. One thing that
has never changed about the philosophy of Head Start is the importance of
giving young children the best start that we can in life. In the 43 years I
have been involved with Head Start, I would say the program is at its lowest
point ever. Head Start needs to be funded at a level that will allow it to
follow all the mandates and requirements, particularly those in the new
Reauthorization bill. Head Start has long placed a priority on providing a
quality education and well-rounded support structure for young children and
their families who are in need. I ask Congress and the President to please
allow the program to maintain this quality by providing adequate funding."

Dr. Mary Ellen Caron, commissioner, Chicago Department of Children and Youth
Services, said: "We ask federal lawmakers to provide us with the increased
Head Start appropriation authorized in the new Act, so we are able to provide
our disadvantaged children with the developmental and educational programs and
services they so desperately need."

Unfortunately, Head Start programs currently are able to serve less than 40
percent of eligible children, down from about 60 percent at the beginning of
the Bush Administration. Early Head Start programs (those serving children
under age three) now serve less than 2 percent of eligible children.

Hundreds of Head Start programs across the United States had no choice in 2006
and 2007 but to scale back days and hours of operations, bus service, support
staff, and other critical services and manpower. Many Head Start programs have
even had to eliminate health insurance coverage for their teachers and staff.
With cash-strapped Head Start programs already having slashed operations to
the bone (and beyond in some cases), the FY 2008 funding cut means that Head
Start programs have experienced a real decline in federal support of 11
percent since FY 2002 (inflation-adjusted). If federal support for Head Start
had kept pace with inflation over this period, it would have risen from $6.54
billion in FY 2002 to $7.77 billion in FY 2008.

On March 19, 2008, NHSA reported that underfunded and overburdened Head Start
programs across America are in crisis today, with more than three out of four
(77 percent) reporting that they are "at or near the breaking point" and
unable to absorb the FY 2008 budget cut and the cost of the hundreds of new
unfunded mandates imposed in the 2007 Head Start Reauthorization Act.

For more information, see the March 13, 2008 NHSA news release
http://www.nhsa.org/press/News_Archived/index_news_031308.htm and the January
24, 2008 NHSA news release at
http://www.saveheadstart.org/News/releases2.cfm?releaseID=53 on the Web. A
related statement for "the Father of Head Start," Professor Edward Zigler, is
available at http://www.saveheadstart.org/News/releases2.cfm?releaseID=54.

WHAT HEAD START NEEDS NOW

NHSA and local Head Start leaders say that Head Start needs a clear commitment
from Washington to fully restored funding, including action by the next
President and Congress as follows:

-- Take steps to restore funding to make up for the recent cuts to Head
Start programs, maintain the Head Start program's quality
(including all the new mandates) and expand enrollment by increasing
Head Start funding by $832 million in Fiscal Year 2009.

-- Further augment Head Start funding annually by $360 million above the
prior year's funding for Fiscal Years 2010 through 2013.

Ample evidence shows that Head Start is a government program that delivers
real results for America, which receives nearly $9 in benefits for every $1
dollar invested in Head Start children, according to the preliminary results
of a 2004 longitudinal study of more than 600 Head Start graduates in San
Bernardino County, California. These projected benefits include increased
earnings, employment, and family stability, and decreased welfare dependency,
crime costs, grade repetition, and special education. In addition, Head Start
has been shown to benefit participating children and society at large by
reducing crime and its costs to crime victims.

ABOUT NHSA

The National Head Start Association (http://www.nhsa.org) is a private
not-for-profit membership organization dedicated exclusively to meeting the
needs of Head Start children and their families. It represents more than 1
million children, 200,000 staff and 2,600 Head Start programs in the United
States. The Association provides support for the entire Head Start community
by advocating for policies that strengthen services to Head Start children and
their families; by providing extensive training and professional development
to Head Start staff; and by developing and disseminating research,
information, and resources that enrich Head Start program delivery.

CONTACT:Ailis Aaron Wolf, (703) 276-3265 or aawolf@hastingsgroup.com.

EDITOR'S NOTE: A streaming audio replay of today's telenews event will be
available as of 6 p.m. ET/3 p.m. PT on June 19, 2008 at http://www.nhsa.org.

SOURCE National Head Start Association, Alexandria, VA; East Side House
Settlement Head Start, Bronx, NY; Department of Children and Youth Services,
Chicago, IL

Ailis Aaron Wolf, +1-703-276-3265 or aawolf@hastingsgroup.com, for NHSA