On September 22, the House approved, 231-184, a bill (H.R. 2123) to reauthorize Head Start through FY2011. The House Education and the Workforce Committee approved the measure on May 18 (see The Source, 5/20/05).
Sponsored by Rep. Mike Castle (R-DE), the School Readiness Act of 2005 would give states a greater role in local Head Start programs, broaden safeguards against financial abuse, and establish higher educational standards for teachers. The bill would authorize $6.9 billion in funding for Head Start in FY2006 and such sums as are necessary for FY2007 through FY2011.
During consideration of the bill, the House approved, by voice vote, a manager’s amendment by Rep. Castle, which, in addition to making technical changes, would require a Head Start or Early Head Start program to obtain written parental permission before providing any health service to a child.
An amendment by Rep. Charles Boustany (R-LA) that would allow faith-based Head Start grantees to hire staff based on religious affiliation was approved, 220-196, after a contentious debate. The amendment is identical to language included in a similar bill (H.R. 2210) passed by the House in the 108th Congress (see The Source 7/25/03).
Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-VA) stated, “Not allowing those organizations, who have proven they are some of the best at feeding the hungry, healing the sick, and housing the homeless, to provide early childhood education for our children is just wrong. A secular group, such as Planned Parenthood or the Sierra Club, that receives government money is currently free to hire based on its ideology and mission, but still use Federal funds for certain programs and activities they provide. Yet, groups that are religious in nature are not allowed to hire according to their ideology and mission?”
Rep. Lynn Woolsey (D-CA) argued, “This is an amendment that allows Federal funding to support discrimination. It is paid for by Federal tax dollars. It will strip civil rights protections by allowing religious organizations to discriminate in hiring on the basis of religion for Head Start positions, and I repeat, using Federal taxpayers’ money.”
Also approved, by voice vote, was an amendment by Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MS) that would direct the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to provide “technical assistance, guidance and resources to Head Start agencies in areas in which a major disaster has been declared” and to agencies “providing Head Start services to children affected by Hurricane Katrina.” It also would permit HHS to waive documentation requirements until March 31, 2006, for children in Head Start and Early Head Start programs who have been affected by the hurricane.
An amendment offered by Rep. Bob Filner (D-CA) that would require a study “to assess the impact of new Head Start teacher qualification and development regulations upon teacher retention” was approved by voice vote. Committee report language states: “Improved academic achievement in Head Start cannot be accomplished without well-qualified Head Start teachers who are trained in child development, utilize research based literacy techniques, and understand the importance of a language-rich, interactive environment for children.” H.R. 2123 would, within three years of enactment, require all new Head Start teachers to have an associate’s degree or be enrolled in a program working towards that degree. By 2011, half of all Head Start teachers would be required to have a bachelor’s degree.
Other amendments were approved by voice vote, including:
The committee report accompanying the bill highlights the “increased focus on academic performance” and states that “Head Start, a program to enhance school readiness, has historically placed an unbalanced emphasis on providing health and social services to children and their families, which has resulted in Head Start children not making the cognitive gains necessary to begin school with an equal opportunity to succeed. The Committee recognizes the importance of all domains of development in order for a child to be school ready, however Head Start is not making good on its promise if Head Start children are not fully prepared to enter school.”
The committee report acknowledges that “homeless children also face substantial barriers when it comes to gaining and maintaining access to Head Start services,” adding that H.R. 2123 “attempts to address this issue” by increasing outreach to homeless families and easing restrictions on documentation for homeless children. The committee directs the secretary “to create regulations that prioritize homeless children for enrollment.”
Highlighting “the valuable role that parents, grandparents, and kinship caregivers play in the success of the Head Start program,” the committee report explains how Head Start strengthens parental involvement: “Most importantly, Head Start programs help parents learn strategies to maintain parental involvement in their children’s academic progression as the child transitions from Head Start to elementary school. These provisions are further strengthened by a new provision to ensure that Head Start grantees actively encourage fathers, grandparents, and other kinship providers to take a strong interest in their children’s lives and education.” Head Start’s family literacy activities also are highlighted by the committee. The report states that, since 1998, more than 8,500 Head Start staff have been trained to provide comprehensive family literacy services, “nearly 50,000 children’s books have been placed in Head Start classrooms,” and almost 2,000 parents “have received training to better prepare them to support their child’s language and literacy development and to encourage other parents to do the same.”
Early Head Start was established in 1994 to serve the needs of children under three and pregnant mothers. According to the committee report, the secretary of health and human services would be allowed to increase the current 10 percent allocation of funds for Early Head Start at his discretion. The report also notes “the dearth of trainers available with expertise in infant and toddler development” and calls on Early Head Start staff to “seek effective professional development opportunities that focus specifically on the needs of infants and toddlers.”
Finally, report language affirms that “sexually abused and neglected children are at a higher risk for academic failure” and notes that H.R. 2123 “builds upon provisions already existing in the Head Start statute that provide for 1) home-based services to Head Start children and their families, 2) staff training in working with children who experience violence, 3) training to parents in parenting skills and basic child development, and 4) collaboration with other agencies and organizations involved in child and family services.”
Similar legislation (S. 1107) has been approved by the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee (see The Source, 5/27/05).
