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Winners of Head Start grant re-competition announced
Every one of the four California Head Start operators required to compete for their federal grant in a new process aimed at improving program quality was told Tuesday that their grant had been renewed. But some of those grants will be smaller next year, as the money will now be divided between additional grantees. The most notable change will be in Los Angeles County, where the Los Angeles County Office of Education has for many years maintained the largest Head Start grant in the country, serving more than 30,000 children. Now they could share their Head Start and Early Head Start funding with 14 other organizations, according to the list of preliminarily selected grantees released by the national Office of Head Start. A finalized list is expected in July, according to the … Read entire article »
Filed under: Head Start, Quick Hits
Migrant program offers lessons for reaching Latino preschoolers
HUGHSON – Long before President Obama triggered a new national interest in universal preschool earlier this year, a Central Valley-based Head Start program for children of migrant workers has been breaking down barriers that have kept Latino families out of early learning programs. Data suggests that Latino children, who now make up more than half of children under 5 years old in California, have historically enrolled in early education programs at lower rates than their peers … Read entire article »
Filed under: Achievement Gap, Early Childhood, Featured, Head Start, Kindergarten and Preschool, Poverty, Race, Ethnicity, Reporting & Analysis
Head Start programs across the state cut services, children
(This story has been updated.) As the federal sequestration budget cuts kick in, Head Start providers across California are struggling to decide how to absorb the shortfall without hurting children. For most programs, it boils down to a question of whether to cut school days or serve fewer children. “It’s kind of like a ‘Sophie’s Choice,’” said Rick Mockler, the executive director of the California Head Start Association. “Do you diminish everyone’s education a little bit (by cutting … Read entire article »
Filed under: Early Childhood, Funding and Taxation, Head Start, Reporting & Analysis
Federal officials provide some details on Head Start sequester
Six days after budget cuts mandated by the federal sequester went into effect, details on how and when the cuts will affect Head Start programs in California are trickling in. It’s not good news. Yvette Sanchez Fuentes, director of the federal Office of Head Start, held a conference call for Head Start administrators on Friday, March 1, to help local programs begin planning for the 5.1 percent cuts that are going to affect all of the primary funding streams Head Start uses to keep its doors open. Sanchez Fuentes also verified that local programs would not be cut until their current fiscal year ends, and their funds are renewed. Head Start programs have varying grant renewal dates that can fall on the first of the month throughout the year. Programs must operate with those … Read entire article »
Filed under: Head Start, Quick Hits
Head Start administrators get little guidance on impact of sequester
UPDATE: March 5, 2013 – Five days into the sequester, Head Start administrators are still reporting that they have had no communication from the federal government about how or when the cuts will begin to affect their programs. EdSource Today will continue to follow this story. Just weeks after President Barack Obama proposed a massive expansion of preschool in his State of the Union address, Head Start administrators are bracing for sequester cuts that could reduce … Read entire article »
Filed under: Early Childhood, Featured, Funding and Taxation, Head Start, Reporting & Analysis
Head Start requires three more programs to compete for funding
Three more Head Start programs in California must compete for grant funding that has previously been renewed in a non-competitive process: Colusa County, an hour north of Sacramento; El Dorado County, which stretches from Sacramento to South Lake Tahoe; and Kedren Community Health Center in Los Angeles. Going deeper More on the Head Start Re-competition. This is the second round of a funding competition spurred by the 2007 Head Start Re-authorization Act in an attempt to raise the quality of Head Start programs. Yet another Head Start study, released in December by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, has found that the positive effects of Head Start often fade by the time children reach third grade. The 122 programs across the country that were pegged for re-competition in this round “had … Read entire article »
Filed under: Head Start, Kindergarten and Preschool, Quick Hits
Head Start requirement boosts college degrees for early childhood educators
Through a concerted effort over the past five years, California is on track to meet a national requirement that 50 percent of Head Start lead classroom teachers hold a bachelor’s degree by the end of September. While only 27 percent of Head Start lead teachers held a bachelor’s degree in the 2007-08 school year, 48 percent now hold one, and an additional 11 percent are enrolled in a baccalaureate program. “Most [program] directors are feeling confident … Read entire article »
Filed under: Featured, Head Start, Preparation, Reporting & Analysis, Teachers
EdWatch 2013: Head Start funding and transitional kindergarten
Head Start in Los Angeles County, the largest provider in the nation, could be broken up into a cluster of smaller programs under a new grant process aimed at improving quality in the federally-funded early childcare program for low-income families. For the first time in Head Start history, grantees whose programs did not meet certain quality standards in federal inspections have been required to reapply for their funding and to compete with new applicants for the available funds. Grantees, … Read entire article »
Filed under: Featured, Head Start, Reporting & Analysis
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