NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION COMMENTS ON HEAD START BILL PASSED BY U.S. HOUSE
NHSA Warns of Religious Discrimination Amendment and Disenfranchising of Parental Role in Head Start Governance
WASHINGTON,
D.C.///September 23, 2005//Commenting on the passage of HR2123 by the U.S. House of Representatives yesterday, NHSA President and CEO Sarah Greene said today:
“The National Head Start Association (NHSA) and its members see both good and bad in the passage by the U.S. House of Representatives of HR 2123 to reauthorize the Head Start Act. We were victorious in halting the controversial National Reporting System (NRS). We also helped to stop an ill-conceived amendment that would have allowed for-profit Head Start operators to use federal tax dollars for profit taking. NHSA supported much of the House bill, which was not nearly as divisive and controversial as it was in 2003 when state block grants were introduced into the program's reauthorization efforts.
We backed a number of measures and improvements incorporated into the 2005 bill, such as enhanced homeless outreach; greater set asides for migrant and seasonal workers and Native Americans, as well as Early Head Start programs; and the addition of a ‘seamless service’ provision that allows programs to convert Head Start slots to Early Head Start slots under certain circumstances. NHSA also endorsed the limiting of recompetition to failing Head Start programs.
However, the bill also was flawed by one amendment that died and another that prevailed. We were pleased to see Congressman Mark Souder (R-IN) introduce an amendment to restore power to Head Start parent policy councils. Although his amendment was defeated, it was a valiant effort on behalf of Head Start parents everywhere. We also were disappointed to see that steps were not taken to make sure that the BA requirement under the bill got the proper financing and that undue restrictions on travel and training funds remained in place. Lastly, NHSA made it clear this week that we would oppose HR 2123 on final passage if the religious discrimination amendment was attached to it, as it was. We don’t think Head Start children should be taught that discrimination is a good thing – just because Congress favors it.
We look forward to continuing a positive relationship with the House Education and Workforce Committee to ensure that the best possible bill for Head Start emerges from the conference committee.”
ABOUT NHSA
The National Head Start Association (http://www.nhsa.org) 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 900,000 children, 200,000 staff and 2,700 Head Start programs in the United States. You can read about Head Start success stories on the Web at http://www.IGotaHeadStart.org.
CONTACT: Ailis Aaron, (703) 276-3265 or aaaron@hastingsgroup.com.
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