Head Start programs that help
prepare young children from
low-income families for school
serve more than 700,000
households across the country and
16,000 children here
in Wisconsin.
But Head Start, funded by the U.S.
Department of Health and Human
Services, could be eliminated
by federal cuts.
The regional office that serves
Wisconsin was already closed.
The Head Start program that serves
four counties in western Wisconsin
is anxiously awaiting the
other shoe to drop.
Joining us is Tangbui Duquette,
Director of Head Start for the
Western Dairyland Community Action
Agency.
And thanks very much for being here.
Thank you so much for having me.
What do you know about continued
funding for your Head Start Program
and have you already seen cuts
to your program?
At this time we haven't seen any
cut yet.
We are expected to,
we, our program is entering
our fiscal 2025
budget May 1st.
So at this time, we are expected
to be fully funded for
our fiscal 2025
program.
However, beyond that, it's
uncertain right now.
Because how many children do
you serve?
So we are currently serving
a total of 442
children.
We are in four counties
in Western Wisconsin.
So we're in Buffalo, Jackson,
Trumbullo, and Eau Claire counties
in nine different centers.
And out of the nine
centers, only three
of them are in urban
areas.
And then the remaining six
centers are in...
Rural communities and
many of them we are the only
licensed providers in that
community.
Were you surprised to learn of the
possible elimination of
the program?
Absolutely, I was surprised.
I was devastated to
hear that that is the,
that is part of the proposal
in the president budget.
What would that mean for the
children and families that you
and other Head Start programs serve?
Honestly, the impact is clear.
It will be devastating for
every community across Wisconsin
and frankly, our country.
Hundreds of thousands of children
will not have access to a safe
and nurturing environments.
Our parents, our families will have
no one to care
for them. They cannot go to work.
And that will really create a major
label disruption.
You know, when you think about it,
it's already in a market where
employers already are struggling to
find workers.
And ultimately this
will hurt rural communities the
most.
You know that I am in
this community.
I see the struggles that they
face every day, scarce
resources.
There's very few employment
opportunity and it
will put more children and families
into poverty.
And in the long run, it will end up
costing taxpayer even more money.
Recent survey results of
child care providers
across the state say one in four
could close their doors with the end
of the child care counts
program.
How devastating would kind of both
these things be?
Honestly, it will be an economic
disaster because
Head Start is an important
pillar of the child care
infrastructure.
So Head Start and Child Care works
together as two entities
that support working families.
And so in addition to the
potential of Head Start losing its
funding and losing
access to child care account for
child care providers.
I would say the majority of
the Wisconsin workforce wouldn't
have no place to send their children
to and then they can't go to work.
And so that would be an
economic disaster.
Apart from the economics
of it, how successful is Head
Start in helping young children with
early learning?
I think there's a reason why
we have had 60 years of
bipartisan support, right?
Because it works.
You know, there have been research
done that have shown
children from low-income families
who have gone through Head Start are
more likely to graduate high
school, are more to go
further with their education to
secondary education, and
are less likely to end up into
the criminal justice system.
When you think about the first five
years of life, those are the most
important part of
any children's brain development.
And Head Start provide that
stability and the support
for the children and the families.
And for our program,
96% of the children that we
serve are either homeless,
they are in foster care, they are
living below federal poverty,
or they are receiving public
assistance.
These are families that
will not be able to
have access to the support,
nutrition, health
services that we provide.
And we have proven success about
families who've gone through Head
Start are more likely to
be out of poverty and less likely
to rely on public assistance
in the long run and
are a saving to
the economy.
Well, we need to leave it there but
we will be watching this
and thank you for your important
work.
Thank you so much for having me.
For more on this and other issues
facing Wisconsin, visit our website
at pbswisconsin.org
and then click on the news tab.
That's our program for tonight.
I'm Frederica Freiberg.
Have a good weekend.
Thank you.
Cut funding for such a vital
program.
I would agree.
It's a great program and
I love it.