crayons

Credit: EdSource Today

(This story has been updated with newly released data.)

Thousands of children across the country will exist shut out of preschool in September as the federal sequestration cuts to Head Showtime take effect.

The across-the-board reductions to large portions of the federal upkeep were triggered in March, when Congress failed to reach an agreement on balancing the budget past raising acquirement or making specific cuts. Head Get-go, the national kid care and education program for depression-income children, received a five.27 percent cut that is just catching upward to local programs now. It's forcing most to enroll fewer children, lay off staff, shrink the school agenda and, in some cases, even shut facilities.

In El Dorado Canton, 5 spots have been cut from the 125-child program. In Long Beach Unified, 178 fewer students volition be served this autumn. In Ventura County, 72 fewer children will receive services. And in Fresno County, 76 fewer children volition brainstorm at a Head Start preschool this autumn.

The Los Angeles Canton Role of Education Head Start and its affiliates served 22,000 children in the 2012-13 school year. They'll serve 900 fewer children in the upcoming schoolhouse year – cutting off a vital resources for needy families, said Keesha Woods, the director of the Los Angeles County Office of Education'southward Head Offset program.

"This may have been the only feel they would have of a hot meal and a research-based curriculum" before starting kindergarten, Forest said. "By the states cutting services for that kid, in that location are no other services in the canton that parents can beget."

Update: Caput First programs across California will serve v,611 fewer children this school year, according to data released Mon by the U.Due south. Department of Health and Human Services, which oversees Head Kickoff. Nearly 112,000 children were served in Head Outset last year. The California Caput Start Association had previously predicted that 6,000 to 7,000 fewer students would be served this year. "The biggest surprise is that at that place's no surprise," said the clan'due south executive director, Rick Mockler.

The cut is likely to lengthen programs' waiting lists. At least 74,600 more children were eligible for services based on their family's annual income final yr than were served. Head Start programs exist in every county in California.

Enrollment restrictions are just ane impact of the cut, however. Many programs are also laying off staff, endmost facilities, reducing salaries and shortening programs.

"We're a fairly small plan that runs pretty lean already, then we don't have some of the layers that other Head Starts might have," said Lynne Moore-Kerr, program director of Head Start and Early Caput Start in the city of Alameda, which served 298 children terminal twelvemonth.

Moore-Kerr and the Alameda parent advisory committee take closed ane site, laid off an associate director and 5 teachers and reduced hours from 40 per calendar week to 32 for nearly every employee. For classroom teachers already living on wages of $10 to $19 per hr, the cuts have meant that several are now looking for other work, Moore-Kerr said.

But all the financial gymnastics weren't plenty to maintain the size of the program. Eight fewer children will exist served this year and 56 spots will be converted from full-day to half-day services. Moore-Kerr said some parents are considering leaving piece of work or schoolhouse so they can intendance for their children because the program can no longer provide them with full-day care. And center-based intendance is just 1 role of what Head Kickoff offers to families living beneath the poverty line, Moore-Kerr said. The program likewise offers health screenings and meals to children up to age 5 and social services and parenting support to their families.

"It'southward merely incredibly deplorable when I have a parent who's calling looking for support we used to provide and I have to tell them, 'I'm so incredibly sad but we don't have the funds to provide what you demand to assistance your kid,'" Moore-Kerr said.

The Migrant Caput Start program based in San Luis Obispo County will serve the aforementioned number of children next year, simply had to cut two weeks off its class schedule to maintain enrollment of 2,000 children across eight counties, said programme deputy director Ellen Pezo. The cut will have a significant impact on the community she serves, Pezo said.

"It'due south huge," Pezo said. "Part of what nosotros practice is proceed children safe when parents are working. Now parents are leaving kids home with a relative (and children are) not having the education and socialization that'southward just so critical."

California Head Start leaders said they wished Congress had spared what they see every bit a worthwhile investment in the land's poorest children and families.

"At that place has to be something different we tin can practice than attacking our nigh vulnerable population," Woods said. "If we go along robbing our cradle and so we are non going to be a sustainable nation."

Lillian Mongeau covers early on babyhood education. Email her or follow her @lrmongeau.

To become more than reports like this ane, click here to sign upwardly for EdSource's no-price daily e-mail on latest developments in education.