A chorus of Massachusetts state lawmakers and education groups are pushing back against proposed changes to the federally-funded Head Start early education program, arguing the reforms would hurt both educators and the families that rely on it.
The changes would eradicate most of the performance standards that Head Start programs operate under, and introduce new caps on how much local programs can spend to administer their curriculum. Federal officials say Head Start is burdened by excessive regulation, and that these changes would grant communities more flexibility.
But opponents say the spending caps would make it harder to provide services to families, and lead to worse education outcomes for children.
"If they wanted to increase flexibility, make things easier for programs, they would be investing in the program and investing in the staff," said Michelle Haimowitz, Executive Director of the Massachusetts Head Start Association. "They wouldn't be pulling away and decreasing what programs can do and how they can serve."
Haimowitz sees the sweeping changes to Head Start as an existential threat to the program's mission: providing comprehensive education and support services to low-income families across the nation.
"Head Start is defined by being the gold standard, highest quality of early education and comprehensive services," she said. "Not by accident, but by design, because Head Start serves the children who need those services most."
Reforms include reducing the amount a Head Start program can spend on administrative costs from 15% to just 5%, eliminating degree and credential requirements for Head Start employees, and mandating that curriculum is taught to children in English. Haimowitz said the changes will lead to lower pay for Head Start workers, which could lead to employees leaving the program and make it more difficult to retain those who stay.
"The rule depends on a 6 to 9% salary cut for all educators because of fewer degree requirements," Haimowitz said. "and it would make the job within those programs harder. More children in the classroom, fewer mental health and behavioral supports, fewer service supports and reducing or eliminating all requirements for staff wellness and breaks."
Forcing educators to teach in English would also create new barriers for families in Massachusetts according to Haimowitz, as nearly 65% of all students in Head Start programs in the state come from a household where that is not the first language.
"Decades of science tells us that children learn best and acquire English faster when taught by bilingual educators," she said. "There is no scientific reason for this change. There is no reason to disallow the culturally appropriate services that we know how to provide."
In documents connected to the proposed changes, federal officials agree that by prioritizing education in English, families may lose access to services that would have otherwise been available to them.
"While the proposed change may promote English language acquisition and consistency in service delivery, it may also involve tradeoffs related to access to services," officials say in the 'Estimated Impact of Education and the Learning Environment Provisions' section of the proposal.
Haimowitz says the new rules follow a pattern from the federal government when it comes to Head Start, and echoes similar decisions to cut back on federal benefits like SNAP and Medicaid.
"Our federal office was closed early last year and it has been two years of pretty consistent attacks, not only on Head Start, but on so many of the services that the children and families we provide [for] rely on," she said.
She argues the foundation for those decisions is Project 2025, a conservative policy playbook published by far-right think tank the Heritage Foundation. The document has served as a blueprint for much of the policy decisions made by President Donald Trump in his second term, and recommends abolishing the Head Start program outright.
"It is certainly part of a coordinated set of policy objectives that the administration has been taking out," Haimowitz said.
The Massachusetts Head Start Association has submitted testimony in opposition to the proposed Head Start changes, alongside a coalition of Massachusetts lawmakers. Those are just some of the more than 32,000 public comments submitted on the proposal since it was unveiled in August. The public comment period ends at end of day on October 6th — federal officials are obligated to read all comments, but are not required to make any changes to their proposal based off that feedback.