Budget cuts reduce Ohio Head Start by thousands
Associated Press
CINCINNATI
The number of spots for low-income children in Head Start’s preschool learning programs in Ohio will drop by more than 1,800 during this school year because of automatic federal spending cuts.
Hundreds more children will lose opportunities to participate in the programs that provide health care and other benefits besides early education. Federal figures released Tuesday estimated that nearly 2,800 Ohio children will miss out because of the cuts. The federal figures include an estimate of children who would have been able to join the program during the year because of openings created by turnover.
The federal Office of Head Start says preschool ranks are being cut by more than 57,000 children nationwide this year. More than a million children are served each year by the programs, which help prepare them for elementary school and provide meals and health care. The cuts also mean no services will be available through the program for nearly 200 Ohio babies and their families.
“This is the first real cut we’ve ever had,” said Barbara Haxton, executive director of Ohio Head Start Association Inc. She said the cuts also mean no services, including health care, for nearly 200 Ohio babies and their families.
“People should care because there are 2,000 or more children whose educational future is at high risk,” she told The Cincinnati Enquirer. “We just left ... them out in the cold.”
Haxton told The Associated Press on Tuesday that 49,702 Ohio children, including babies in what’s called Early Head Start, were in Head Start in the last year for at least 45 days. Thousands move off waiting lists during the year because of turnover in the 39,106 annual slots available for Ohio children. Children entering Head Start get health, dental and mental health exams, which she said are “front-loaded benefits” that some children will now miss out on because of the cuts.
Nearly all the Ohio Head Start preschools and affiliates have cut teachers and added to student waiting lists.
In Hamilton County, 181 children will lose places in program preschools, and some 300 workers have been laid off and hours cut for 90 more to offset a $1.2 mil- lion cut, The Enquirer reported. In neighboring northern Kentucky, an official said busing will be cut for 400 to 500 preschoolers.
“It’s reducing options for the children who are most in need,” said Florence Tandy, executive director of the Northern Kentucky Community Action Commission.
To be eligible, a family’s income must be below the federal poverty guideline, which is $23,550 for a family of four. Head Start prepares 3- to 5-year-olds for kindergarten and elementary school, while offering families and children health, nutrition, education and social services. It also supports pregnant women.
Some critics for years have questioned the quality, cost and long-term impact of the program that dates to 1965. Advocates say it makes sure children’s brains are stimulated with learning at key early stages of development and prevents them from falling behind.