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A minimum of 57 Head Begin applications across the nation serving greater than 21,000 youngsters nonetheless couldn’t entry federal funding as of Thursday morning, in line with leaders from the Nationwide Head Begin Affiliation.
Their issues stem from a Trump administration order on Jan. 27 that froze all federal grants whereas officers seemed for indicators of “Marxist fairness, transgenderism, and inexperienced new deal social engineering insurance policies.”
Amid widespread confusion and a number of lawsuits, the White Home withdrew the funds memo that ordered the freeze, whereas indicating applications that run opposite to the brand new administration’s govt orders may nonetheless have their cash withheld. Since then, nonprofits, well being care facilities, and different organizations have continued to report issues accessing wanted federal funds. The lawsuits looking for to dam the freeze proceed.
Federal officers mentioned the funding freeze was by no means supposed to use to Head Begin, which supplies free preschool, youngster care, and different companies to youngsters from low-income households. However many Head Begin leaders reported issues accessing the federal fee portal after the freeze was ordered. For some, the issues ended on Jan. 28, the day earlier than the White Home rescinded the funds memo. However others continued to be locked out.
The funding cutoff has actual world penalties. A minimum of two Head Begin applications — in Wisconsin and New York — have been compelled to shut their doorways briefly, and extra are poised to take action, together with in Michigan, in the event that they don’t obtain their federal funds by Friday, mentioned Tommy Sheridan, deputy director of the Nationwide Head Begin Affiliation.
“Youngsters and households are going to be simply left completely stranded,” he mentioned. “Dad and mom are going to must both not work … or be confronted with looking for final minute youngster care choices, or leaving youngsters in doubtlessly unsafe environments.”
Nationwide, there are 1,600 Head Begin grant recipients serving about 800,000 youngsters, he mentioned.
Andrew G. Nixon, a spokesperson for the U.S. Division of Well being and Human Companies, mentioned by electronic mail on Wednesday there have been “technical points” with the fee portal final week.
“The system is again up and working now, however customers could also be experiencing lags because of the excessive quantity of requests,” he mentioned.
Sheridan mentioned one Head Begin program in Waukesha, Wisconsin that had shuttered final week acquired its federal funds early this week and has reopened.
He mentioned the affiliation has gotten phrase that a number of different Head Begin applications have been lastly capable of entry funds, too. On Wednesday, 65 applications reported in a Nationwide Head Begin Affiliation survey that they have been nonetheless locked out. By Thursday morning, the quantity had dropped to 57, he mentioned.
Sheridan mentioned the funding uncertainty is destabilizing for Head Begin program leaders, who ought to be targeted on serving households and kids who face among the “most difficult uphill circumstances in class in and in life.”
Ann Schimke is a senior reporter at Chalkbeat, overlaying early childhood points and early literacy. Contact Ann at aschimke@chalkbeat.org.