[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 177 (Thursday, November 15, 2007)]
[Senate]
[Pages S14476-S14477]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                PASSAGE OF HEAD START CONFERENCE REPORT

  Mr. REID. Mr. President, I am pleased to speak today about the 
conference report for the Improving Head Start for School Readiness Act 
of 2007.
  I appreciate the efforts of Chairman Kennedy, as well as Senators 
Enzi, Dodd and Alexander, for working together to lead this effort.
  This bipartisan legislation reauthorizes the Head Start program, 
something the Congress has not done since 1998.
  In 1965, President Johnson launched a summer program for low-income 
children and their families called Project Head Start.
  The program's mission was simple: to prepare low-income, preschool-
aged children for success in school.
  Today, Head Start serves children and their families in urban and 
rural areas across the United States.
  Since its inception, more than 20 million children and families have 
benefited from the Head Start program.
  Nevada's eight centers range from a Head Start and Early Head Start 
Center in rural Ely, to larger, more urban centers in Reno and Las 
Vegas, to a Tribal Head Start center in Gardnerville.
  Each of these programs is unique, because they focus on the needs of 
children and their families in the communities they serve.
  Today, more than 40 years since its inception, Head Start provides 
comprehensive early education and health services to almost 1 million 
low-income preschool children to help them prepare for and succeed in 
school.
  Unfortunately, this is only a fraction of the number of children that 
could benefit from Head Start services.
  In Nevada alone, nearly 10,000 3- and 4-year-olds are eligible for 
Head Start programs. But, last year, only about one quarter of those 
eligible were able to participate.
  This legislation will expand access and eligibility for low-income 
children and families, which will open the doors to Head Start to tens 
of thousands of children in Nevada and across America.
  The bill also makes a number of other important changes to the Head 
Start program.
  It gives children the tools they need to start school by aligning 
Head Start standards and services with State and local school standards 
and requiring new research-based standards and assessments.
  And, to ensure that Head Start programs are serving children as 
effectively as possible, the bill requires greater accountability 
through improved governance and recompetition for poor performing Head 
Start centers.
  Finally, the bill strengthens the Head Start workforce by setting new 
education and training goals for Head Start teachers and curriculum 
specialists.
  With proven and lasting results, Head Start is a wise investment in 
our future.
  I urge all of my colleagues to join me in supporting this important 
legislation.
  (At the request of Mr. Reid, the following statement was ordered to 
be printed in the Record.)
 Mr. DODD. Mr. President, I rise to celebrate the passage of 
the Improving Head Start for School Readiness Act to reauthorize the 
Head Start program yesterday. This legislation is a great 
accomplishment for the Congress and improves opportunities for nearly a 
million young children and their families. Head Start represents our 
understanding that our children must be a top priority. While as 
children represent one quarter of our population, they represent 100 
percent of our future.
  I would like to thank Senators Kennedy, Enzi and Alexander for their

[[Page S14477]]

leadership on this bill and their strong bipartisan work to complete 
this conference report. I also commend Chairman Miller and Ranking 
Member McKeon in the House of Representatives and Congressmen Kildee 
and Castle for their work on this reauthorization. Since 2003, the 
Senate HELP Committee and the House Education and Labor Committee have 
worked to reauthorize this legislation. As a result of more than four 
years of bipartisan efforts, the conference report we adopted yesterday 
improves and strengthens the already successful Head Start program. I 
am happy with the unanimous passage of the bill and look forward to its 
enactment into law.
  Since 1965, Head Start has provided comprehensive early childhood 
development services to low-income children. The evidence is clear: 
Head Start works for the more than 900,000 children enrolled in its 
centers throughout the country.
  This conference report bolsters the comprehensive nature of Head 
Start that aids in the social, emotional, physical and cognitive 
development of low-income preschool children. The program is successful 
because each center works to address the needs of its local community. 
Head Start is more than just a school readiness program; it addresses 
the comprehensive needs of children and their families by providing 
health and other services to enrolled children.
  The role of parents as essential partners and decisionmakers in Head 
Start is also strengthened in this legislation. Families play the most 
important role in ensuring the success of their children, and our bill 
maintains an integral role for parents in the decision-making and day-
to-day operations of the program. Parent involvement is a centerpiece 
of Head Start and I believe this bill strengthens their critical role.
  Expanded eligibility, improved accountability, strengthened school 
readiness for children and enhanced teacher quality are some of the 
essential elements of this legislation. In addition, collaboration and 
coordination with other early childhood development programs and 
outreach to underserved populations is greatly improved. The 
legislation before us significantly increases resources for Indian Head 
Start and Migrant and Seasonal Head Start. In addition, Early Head 
Start is prioritized, so that thousands of additional infants and 
toddlers will be served. We know that major brain development occurs in 
the first 3 years of life and I am thrilled that we are putting 
research into practice by expanding Early Head Start.
  The conference report will enable more low-income children to get a 
head start by allowing programs to serve families with incomes up to 
130 percent of the poverty level, while ensuring that the most 
vulnerable families below the poverty level are served first. This is 
important for Connecticut and other States where the cost of living is 
especially high and many working poor families aren't able to access 
services because they earn just above the poverty level.
  Although we do not go as far as I would personally like to see in 
funding for Head Start, we do authorize additional resources in this 
bill. Despite the tight budget situation, we authorize an increase of 
six percent from $6.9 billion to $7.35 billion in fiscal year 2008, to 
$7.65 billion in fiscal year 2009 and to $7.995 billion in fiscal year 
2009. I continue to be gravely concerned about the lack of resources 
for Head Start--funding levels have been essentially flat since 2002. 
Currently, only half of eligible children are served in Head Start and 
fewer than 5 percent are served in Early Head Start. The increased 
funding authorized by this bill will help us to begin to close this 
gap.
  Across the country, Head Start providers are reporting rising costs 
in transportation health care premiums, facilities maintenance and 
training for staff. Rising operating costs are coinciding with 
decreasing state, local and private contributions to Head Start 
programs. We address these needs by ensuring that all Head Start 
programs receive a cost of living increase, tied to inflation, each 
year that funds are available.
  Research shows that child outcomes are directly related to the 
quality of the teachers and professionals who work with them on a daily 
basis. I am pleased that in the bill we establish strong educational 
standards for Head Start teachers, curriculum specialists and teacher 
assistants. In 6 years, all Head Start teachers will be required to 
have an associate's degree and 50 percent of teachers will be required 
to have a bachelor's degree. I will continue to work toward increased 
funding to assist teachers in pursuing additional educational goals.
  When Head Start began more than 40 years ago, it was the only 
preschool program available for low-income children; now there are many 
approaches. Collaboration and coordination with other early childhood 
programs is also an essential piece of this Head Start bill, reducing 
duplication and encouraging opportunities for shared information and 
resources.
  This legislation represents an important step forward and I welcome 
our continued focus on the needs of our Nation's children.

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