country going huh yeah I know I know yeah it looks like they've got us all set to
go
as the government shutdown became the longest in US history the impacts piled
up across Wisconsin early learning head start programs had to close down
shuddering child care programming for hundreds of children one of them covers
five counties and is run by the southwestern Wisconsin community action
program it closed nine head start classrooms at the start of this month
we're joined now by the director of head start programs there Tawny
Hardeman and thanks very much for being here thank you so I see that you are
joining us from one of your empty classrooms how hard is this for you to
see happen
I'm very difficult even though this is out of our control we we feel really
responsible for our families and the children and the impacts that we make
within their lives and so it's really hard to have told the families this after
you've encouraged them to you know come to your center enroll in your program
to see the empty classroom is hard but there these are three and four-year-old
children here at the center they have fun every day we have great teachers here
and we just worry about you know what do they do and we miss them yes so children
and staff in nine classrooms how many children are now without this early
learning that portion of our grant funding serves 145 preschool children ages
three and four across like I said nine different classrooms at seven different
locations across rural southwestern Wisconsin so and we have 34 staff for
load as a result of the lack of a grant how disruptive is this in the lives of
the families whose children are there it's extremely disruptive you can imagine
as three and four-year-old children it takes a little while to transition into
a classroom and to get accustomed to things and then suddenly this routine
that they've been in every week ends and they're kind of wondering what's going
on additionally with families they rely on these classrooms for child care
while some of the families go to work or school and they have when they came to
our program in September they would have let go of a different enrollment spot
potentially at another child care provider this area is also a child care
desert in many of our communities so they were having struggles trying to find
other arrangements for their children if they don't have family or friends that
are able to help them another thing that impacts the families is that these
children receive breakfast lunch and snack at our centers every day kind of
through the same program that children receive foods through elementary you
know middle school high school and so families were able to rely on that part
of their food security and now with the upheaval although it sounds like it's
turning around but the upheaval with the snap benefits many families were really
wondering about their food security additionally how are they dealing with
that do you know
and I'm in as much contact with families since the shutdown they were very upset
very worried scrambling you know wondering what were they going to do
asking our staff if they would be available to watch their children while
they went to work you know so yeah they just kind of feel like the rug was
yanked out from underneath them they had a routine going they had made
arrangements like I said to work or go to school and then in the middle you know
right at the end of October we had to let them know that our funding has not
been approved for the next 12 month grand cycle so as you mentioned your
staff are furloughed going without pay are you worried in that child care
desert there in in Southwest Wisconsin that you'll lose staff because they just
can't hang on
oh yes absolutely we have lost one staff person already that was you know
fortunately for that staff person another opportunity came into you know
landed in her lap right away and I just said well you know I understand you
you're gonna have to go and do that and there will be other staff yes we had
three staff that were set to start new hire orientation on Monday November the
third and we had already you know completed all of the background checks
all of those safety things that we have to for our child care centers and those
folks had notified their employer at the time that they would be leaving and
resigning and coming to our agency so I don't know if we'll be able to retain
those staff we had another three staff that we just hired mid-October so they're
in the same thing they just left a former employer and came to our agency and
then it just you know I just wonder if they're gonna feel like we're a good
agency to be employed with if this has happened right after they've arrived or
right as they were planning to come has this kind of disruption ever happened
before with this program no this has not to my knowledge this program has
been in existence since the 60s and so I don't have all of that historical
knowledge but in the you know more recent past 20 25 years no this has not
happened how valuable are the benefits of Head Start programming for these
children oh they've they learned so many things as they get ready to enter
kindergarten you know one of the biggest things that kids learn are some social
skills like how do I how do I learn to listen to instructions how do I learn
to follow the routines of school how do I make friends you know those things
are so much even more important than the ABCs and 123s it's just learning how
to listen when when do I sit still when do I get up to go and this might be
their first experience away from home so it gets them prepared for what that
environment would be like at the school and they have a lot of fun we have a
really beautiful outdoor playground and we do have routine and structure but it
is a play-based learning environment so they're completing art every day reading
books there are there's a block center dramatic play we know how kids love to
dress up especially we just had Halloween so they're just gaining so many things
so much confidence so we had in this particular classroom we have 14 children
and we had three at the beginning there that just were heartbroken right they
hadn't been away from home before and they cried and so that part has ended
for them they are adjusted they're used to coming and now we're worried if the
shutdown happens you know for a long period of time how difficult will it be
for them to transition back into this setting even if or when federal funding
resumes will you be able to kind of seamlessly bring your programming back
up to speed it won't be as quick as what a person might think so when the federal
government shut down our regional offices the national offices that support
programs those staff were furloughed on October 1st so we have grant applications
as I said our grant cycle runs from November 1st October 31st and that grant
application is in there in the system waiting to be awarded so once the
government opens back up they will have to recall those federal well those regional
and national workers for Head Start they'll have to review our application
again and then we have to wait for the notice of award so we've our
understanding is that could take about one to two weeks and then once we receive
the notice of award it hopefully it will be for the full amount that we have you
know requested then we would put together a plan recall staff give them a
little bit of time in the classroom to get things back up and running such as
getting food groceries for breakfast lunch and snack and the contact families
so it's going to take us at least probably three weeks would be my guess
even after the government reopens hmm Tony Hardeman thanks very much for
explaining to us what your program does oh thank you for the opportunity I bet
you miss all those little faces too oh I do they're so sweet they have you all
the time you know hi when I because my office is here and when I walk by the
classroom they say hi and if you're having a bad day there's not a better
place to be than to come in take a break and read a book to a child yeah yeah
well again thank you I think it really sheds a lot of light on the real world
impact of all of this yeah thank you well yeah well thank you for the
opportunity have a great day you too good luck going forward thanks bye bye
bye thanks you too bye bye