Gov. Evers Announces Two Wisconsin Head Start Programs to Cease Services as Federal Government Shutdown Continues

MADISON — Gov. Tony Evers today announced that two Wisconsin Head Start programs will cease services in November due to a lack of federal funding caused by the federal government shutdown in Washington. Beginning November 1, the pause in services will leave over 275 kids without child care and programming and 82 staff without paychecks in Wisconsin until the federal government shutdown ends and a new grant is issued.

“At a time when working families are already struggling to make ends meet and access basic food necessities, we should be focused on keeping Head Start and child care center doors open and making sure child care is affordable so parents and loved ones can stay in our workforce. Each day Republicans in Congress continue this shutdown and refuse to work across the aisle to get the federal government back to work, the more we will see the direct consequences on Wisconsin’s kids, families, seniors, veterans, and so many others across our state,” said Gov. Evers. “Families are going to be scrambling to find care and 80 dedicated staff will have to go without paychecks at a time when they need them most. It’s reckless and this shutdown has to end—Republicans in Congress must step up and start putting America’s and Wisconsin’s kids and families first.”

The Southwestern Wisconsin Community Action Program (SWCAP) plans to close nine Head Start classrooms on November 3, leaving 114 children in Iowa, Lafayette, Grant, Green, and Richland counties without programming and 34 staff without paychecks. The Sheboygan Human Rights Association plans to close its Head Start classrooms on November 14, leaving 172 children in Sheboygan County without programming and 48 staff without paychecks.

For decades, Head Start has been an essential resource for families across the United States, offering free learning and developmental services to kids and families. Promoting family and parent participation, Head Start works to support strong educational and developmental foundations for more than 750,000 kids across the nation, helping ensure all families have access to high-quality early-childhood education and the tools to pursue economic stability.

Head Start programs are primarily funded via federal grants that are issued on an annual basis. According to the National Head Start Association, SWCAP and the Sheboygan Human Rights Association are two of 140 programs across the nation serving 65,000 kids that are awaiting grants due November 1. This number will grow significantly as the shutdown continues, with three Wisconsin Head Start programs serving over 1,100 children awaiting December 1 grants and four Wisconsin Head Start programs serving over 1,250 children awaiting January 1 grants to have funding to continue providing programming in communities across the state.

This comes on Day 30 of the federal government shutdown as Congressional Republicans have refused for weeks to negotiate with Democrats to extend Affordable Care Act enhanced premium tax credits that are set to expire at the end of the year. As Gov. Evers announced earlier this week, if Republicans fail to extend these enhanced premium tax credits, many Wisconsinites and their families will see their premiums double—with many folks and families paying hundreds or thousands more for coverage a year and some seniors seeing an increase of over $30,000 per year. Additionally, as the federal government shutdown continues, nearly 700,000 Wisconsinites who rely on FoodShare are just days away from losing access to basic food necessities, despite the Trump Administration having tools available to prevent that from happening.

Gov. Evers encourages Wisconsinites across the state to contact their congressional representatives and urge support for ending the federal government shutdown, extending key programs that help lower healthcare costs, preventing hundreds of thousands of Wisconsinites from going hungry, and ensuring kids and families don’t have to go without child care. Wisconsinites can go to www.congress.gov/members/find-your-member and enter their address to find the contact information for their congressional representative and senators.

Families that are impacted by Head Start closures are encouraged to contact their local Child Care Resource & Referral Agency for personalized assistance in finding temporary child care that meets their needs, and apply for the Wisconsin Share child care subsidy program to receive assistance in paying for child care.

NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.