NHSA EXTENDS OLIVE BRANCH TO ACTING HEAD START BUREAU CHIEF, URGES FULL DISCLOSURE OF REPORT THAT LED TO HILL RESIGNATION
Freedom of Information Act (FoIA) Request Filed for OIG Report on Hill Abuses
WASHINGTON,
D.C.///June 1, 2005///Sarah Greene, president and CEO of the National Head Start Association (NHSA), issued the following statement today:
"The abrupt departure of Windy Hill from the Head Start Bureau at 4:30 p.m. on a Friday afternoon heading into a three-day federal holiday weekend is the latest and nearly final chapter in the scandal first brought to light by the National Head Start Association more than a year ago on April 13, 2004.
It is our hope that the departure of Ms. Hill will clear away the poisonous atmosphere that was created by the former associate commissioner, who conducted very public witch hunts even as her own hidden past as a troubled Head Start grantee was unraveling.
NHSA welcomes the opportunity to develop a warm and productive relationship with Joan Ohl, the acting Head Start Bureau chief. We already know of Ms. Ohl in her capacity as commissioner of the Administration of Children, Youth and Families. We have every reason to believe that we can all put the sorry chapter of Windy Hill behind us so that everyone can focus on the very important mission of Head Start.
To that end, we believe that the best way to make a clean break with the past is to publicly disclose what we understand is an unfavorable Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of Inspector General (OIG) report that led to departure of Ms. Hill. At the time NHSA exposed the cover-up of the Hill abuses, top HHS officials defended Ms. Hill and expressed their confidence that she would be vindicated by the OIG report. As such, it is incumbent upon HHS to reveal exactly what the investigation found. NHSA has filed a Freedom of Information Act (FoIA) request to get that information. We strongly encourage the Department to facilitate the healing process by coming clean in this matter now.”
ABOUT NHSA
The National Head Start Association is a private not-for-profit membership organization dedicated exclusively to meeting the needs of Head Start children and their families. It represents more than 1 million children, 200,000 staff and 2,700 Head Start programs in the United States. The Association provides support for the entire Head Start community by advocating for policies that strengthen services to Head Start children and their families; by providing extensive training and professional development to Head Start staff; and by developing and disseminating research, information, and resources that enrich Head Start program delivery.
CONTACT: Ailis Aaron, (703) 276-3265 or aaaron@hastingsgroup.com.
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