NOTE: POST A MESSAGE TO MAKE SUGGESTIONS!

WHEREAS, since Head Start was introduced in 1965, the program has helped more than 20 million low-income
children be ready for school by providing high quality early childhood education and health services and by strengthening families through parent education and linkages with community resources; and

WHEREAS, Head Start services are provided in all 95 counties of Tennessee through 37 locally-based programs
with 360 centers that served over 17,000 three and four year olds in Preschool programs and children from birth to age three in Early Head Start programs during 2001-2002; and

WHEREAS, Head Start is a Federal to local program, housed in the Department of Health and Human Services for
almost 40 years, designed to ensure that decisions about program priorities and design are made at the local and community level in order to maximize flexibility while meeting Federal Performance Standards; and

WHEREAS, over the history of the Head Start program, national advocacy organizations as well as bipartisan
members of Congress, and state and local advocates and authorities have repeatedly acknowledged the "Head Start is a success, It works", and have increased funding for the program even in tight economic times in the nation; and

WHEREAS, Head Start Program Performance Standards, originally developed in 1975, defined high quality
comprehensive services, which served as a model for state and local early childhood initiatives with long-term research confirming the benefits to children and families; and

WHEREAS, 1998 Head Start Performance Standards were strengthened and a recently released study on
longitudinal findings on program performance documents that Head Start:
• Narrows the gaps between disadvantaged children and all children in vocabulary and writing skills during the Head Start year;
• Improves the social skills of Head Start children; and
• Leads to continued improvements in word knowledge, letter recognition, math skills and writing skills relative to other children during the kindergarten year; and

WHEREAS, the parent involvement component of Head Start enables parents to be true partners in a process that
helps them develop the skills to support their children throughout childhood and provides leadership training for parents since they are an integral part of decision-making Policy Councils. The same study quoted above found that:

• Parents of Head Start children reported extremely high levels of satisfaction with Head Start, consistent with findings from the 1999 American Customer Satisfaction Index, in which Head Start parents gave the program the highest rating of any government program;
• Parents reported increases in educational attainment and employment during their time in Head Start, and also reported a decline in the number receiving welfare assistance; and
• Parents reported a greater sense of control over their own lives at the end of Head Start than at the beginning; and

WHEREAS, Head Start is due to be reauthorized by Congress in 2003, and national advocacy organizations as
well as most state Head Start Associations, including the Tennessee Head Start Association, oppose a proposed transfer of Head Start from the federal Department of Health and Human Services to the federal Department of Education, and, also oppose a proposed block grant to the states, citing the following possible damages:
• Loss of National standards and Federal monitoring,
• Loss of an effective national training/technical assistance network that has complemented Head Start continuing quality improvement initiatives,
• Possible dilution of funds directed toward the neediest children,
• Possible loss of maintenance of effort,
• Possible reduced parent involvement and training, and
• Possible loss of the comprehensive nature of services.

NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that TCSW applauds the impressive results obtained over many years
for the children and families who have had the opportunity to participate in Head Start programs; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that TCSW has examined literature, studies, and numerous statements from
across the state and nation including the Tennessee Head Start Association, the National Head Start Association, and many respected advocacy organizations, and TCSW supports retaining the current locus of Head Start in the federal Department of Health and Human Services and opposes block granting the Head Start funds to states; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that TCSW will educate our membership about the Head Start program and
monitor, inform, and advocate for the reauthorization of Head Start, encouraging Congress to give additional consideration to:
• Increasing the access to high quality, research-based professional development programs and assuring resources and flexibility to provide, select, and implement the programs in Head Start that best meet the needs of their staff and community; and
• Authorizing funding levels so comprehensive Head Start services can be made available to all low-income children who need the program.