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At least some Head Start programs around North Carolina will close their doors at the start of November as federal funding comes to a halt due to the government shutdown.
The East Coast Migrant Head Start Project, aimed at providing early education for the children of migrant farmworkers, is set to temporarily lay off 258 employees across 12 North Carolina counties and suspend operations at nine child care centers in the state on Nov. 1, according to a filing with the NC Department of Commerce.
The Salisbury-Rowan Community Action Agency is also stopping all services at the end of October, including its Head Start programs as well as workforce development offerings. According to the program’s website, that will leave 408 children without care.
Head Start offers free, federally funded child care for children up to 5 years old with the aim of preparing them for school and helping them develop social skills, providing care to around 750,000 infants, toddlers, and children across the U.S.
Federal funding for Head Start programs is disbursed annually to local nonprofits at the start of each month. An estimated 140 nationwide were due to receive their year’s funding in October or November. Those programs provide child care to about 65,000 students across the country.
Gov. Josh Stein, joined by Lt. Gov. Rachel Hunt and State Superintendent Mo Green, wrote in an April letter to Congress that the Head Start program adds $290 million to North Carolina’s economy, creating thousands of jobs.
Roughly 19,500 North Carolina children depend on Head Start for their early education and care, according to the governor’s office. Rural counties could be the hardest hit by the freeze, as many depend on Head Start funding for more than 20% of their child care slots.
Some nonprofits dependent on Head Start funds are already reeling from the loss of other federal dollars.
Earlier this month, Gaston Community Action, which operates Head Start programs in Gaston and Lincoln counties, furloughed employees who were funded by the Community Services Block Grant, as that program is also on hold. The organization wrote in a Facebook post that its Head Start programs remain unaffected for now.
The Wayne Action Group for Economic Solvency, which provides Head Start care for 812 children across five North Carolina counties, has also halted services funded by the Community Services Block Grant, and wrote in an update on Facebook that its Head Start offerings may be impacted starting Nov. 14.
“Research consistently shows that children who attend Head Start are more likely to graduate high school and enroll in and complete college and are less likely to be arrested, enter foster care, or experience poor health outcomes,” Stein wrote in the April letter. “Without Head Start, our most vulnerable children will suffer — with likely ripple effects on our education, child welfare, health, and criminal justice systems.”
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