[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 85 (Wednesday, May 18, 2022)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E531]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             RECOGNIZING THE 57TH ANNIVERSARY OF HEAD START

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                       HON. BRIAN K. FITZPATRICK

                            of pennsylvania

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, May 18, 2022

  Mr. FITZPATRICK. Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize the 57th 
anniversary of the Head Start program and the invaluable services it 
makes available to children and families in need.
  In 1965, President Lyndon Johnson commissioned Sargent Shriver with 
the establishment of a comprehensive child development program that 
would assist underserved communities meet the needs of preschool 
children. With the help of education, psychology, and child experts, 
the U.S. government initially launched ``Project Head Start'' as an 
eight-week summer program that reached 561,000 children. Finding early 
success, the program was expanded in the fall of 1965 to provide 
services throughout the entire school year. In the subsequent decades, 
Head Start has further grown to include bilingual and bicultural 
programs, as well as services for disadvantaged infants, toddlers, and 
pregnant women through Early Head Start grants.
  The initiative has now reached over 39 million children in its 
history and serves nearly 1 million children and their families 
annually in urban and rural areas in all fifty states, the District of 
Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. territories. Head Start's 
exceptional dedication to our children is admirable, and this year, as 
it celebrates its 57th anniversary, we express our appreciation for the 
impact that it has had on communities across the country and especially 
in Bucks and Montgomery counties.

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