Calling on the Trump Administration and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to preserve funding and administrative support for Head Start, prevent program disruptions, and protect access to early childhood education for low-income families.

Calling on the Trump Administration and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to preserve funding and administrative support for Head Start, prevent program disruptions, and protect access to early childhood education for low-income families. WHEREAS, Head Start is a federally funded early childhood education program that has served more than 38 million low-income children and families since 1965, providing critical educational, social, and nutritional support; and WHEREAS, Head Start was established in 1965 as part of President Lyndon Johnson's War on Poverty, initially launched as an eight-week summer program designed to break the cycle of poverty by addressing the emotional, social, health, nutritional, and psychological needs of disadvantaged preschool children. Head Start has since expanded to include full-day and full-year services, with a variety of program options tailored to meet community needs; and WHEREAS, Head Start programs currently serve more than 1 million children and their families each year in urban, suburban, and rural areas in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and U.S. Territories, helping families experiencing poverty or homelessness, and providing essential childcare services that enable parents to work or attend school; and WHEREAS, Head Start programs prepare children ages 3 to 5 for school by supporting their mental, social, and emotional development, and providing health, nutrition, and other family support services.…