December 13, 2006

Your Association Is Working for You!

Letter from Channell Wilkins on Fundraising Rules
We are delighted to send you this wonderful letter from Channell Wilkins in response to our letter regarding the recent IM on fundraising. It addresses many of the concerns you shared with NHSA over the course of the year. The letter makes it clear that you can continue your wonderful work with Head Start parents around fundraising including the Dollar per Child Campaign.

To view the two letters please go to http://www.nhsa.org/press/CW_letter.htm

More Continuing Resolutions
Last week Congress reconvened and put all domestic spending programs on another continuing resolution until February 15. This means that all programs for children and families, including Head Start, will be flat funded. When the new Congress returns, they will have to finish appropriations for 2007 and then immediately turn around and begin dealing with funding for 2008.

Key Action Step: Set Up a Meeting with Your Member of Congress
If there is one action step you should take right now it is to set up a meeting with your elected officials before the new Congress convenes in January. We are already receiving reports from directors, associations, and parents who are setting up meetings with their representatives during the month of December. In your meetings be sure to discuss the following:

The impact of budget cuts to the children and families you serve. Let your member of Congress understand how services have been reduced to children and families and ask them to fight for more funding for the program. NHSA is seeking a $234 million increase for 2007 just to keep pace with inflation.
The impact of budget cuts on your program’s ability to attract and retain good teachers. Any final reauthorization bill will include language requiring B.A. degrees for Head Start teachers. You need to speak with your member of Congress about the potential cost of these new mandates and your program’s difficulty in retaining good teachers. Tell them that you support increasing degree requirements so that at least 50 percent of Head Start teachers have at least a B.A. degree, but any new requirements should be directly tied to new funding.
The benefits of strong parental involvement and shared governance. As discussions around reauthorization begin to take place next year, the issue of the policy council will still be front and center. You should discuss with your member of Congress why maintaining the full authority of the policy council is so important to the success of the program. Ask them to support maintaining the full authority of the policy council in next year’s reauthorization.

Please let us know if you have any meetings or if your elected official visits your program or center. This information should be sent to Joel Ryan at jryan@nhsa.org

Please circulate this document to all Head Start programs, staff, and parents.