Statement of Congresswoman Mazie K. Hirono of Hawai‘i
in the U.S. House of Representatives
In honor of The Week of the Young Child, and
In support of Head Start and CCDBG
April 14, 2008
Madam Speaker,
I rise today in support of increased funding for Head Start and the Child Care and Development Block Grant – two federal programs supporting our youngest children.
Congress got it right when it created Head Start 43 years ago. This is an example of a government program that families depend on every day and that really works, thanks largely to the many talented and dedicated teachers throughout our nation.
I want to take a moment to commemorate the life of one such teacher – Mrs. Leona Stevens, who served as the lead teacher at several Maui Head Start centers for over 15 years. She passed away unexpectedly recently and will be deeply missed by all. Mrs. Stevens was known for valuing students’ creativity and continually asked them ‘why do you think that?’ and ‘what do you think will happen?’
She was equally passionate about improving the quality of Head Start by training new early education teachers and furthering her own education. She went back to school to get her Associates Degree in Early Childhood Education, and spent seven years working in partnership with Maui Community College to train new Head Start teachers.
Last year, while Leona was mentoring new young teachers, Congress worked hard to pass a Head Start reauthorization bill, which was signed into law. The bill made many improvements to the program, but the single most important thing we did was to increase the amount of money authorized for Head Start.
Of course, we all know the difference between authorized levels and appropriated funds. This year we must put our money where our mouth is. The fact is, only half of all eligible children are served by Head Start, and a measly three percent of eligible infants and toddlers are served by Early Head Start. This means hundreds of thousands of low income families are without access to high quality early education opportunities for their children.
Speaker Pelosi hosted a Summit for America’s Children last year in which we heard from neuroscientists, police chiefs, and business leaders, all of whom told us in unequivocal language that it pays to invest in children before they turn six. I chaired a hearing on early education in the Education and Labor Committee earlier this year, and we heard the same message from state level advocates and policy makers. I talk to parents, kindergarten teachers, and business leaders in Hawaii every week who tell me that we must increase access to high quality early education and child care opportunities.
Certainly, this year, like every other year, Congress will face many difficult spending decisions. We will fund our veterans and troops, fund health and alternative energy research, fund our public schools. I will support increases in all of these things. But this is not a zero sum game, and we cannot afford to let our youngest children slip through the cracks. We should increase funding for Head Start by at least $1 billion and increase funding for CCDBG by $874 million.
It is a matter of fairness. Every child deserves a shot at success. We know, however, that many children from low income families start kindergarten with half the vocabulary of their wealthier peers. High quality preschool can close much of this gap.
It is a matter, also, of economic prosperity. Our small business community, our science and technology community – all need educated workers. Low income children who go to a high quality preschool are more likely to graduate from high school than their peers that did not go to preschool.
Finally, it is a smart investment of federal dollars. Research shows that every dollar invested in high quality early education programs returns somewhere between $2 and $17. Even at the very low end of that spectrum, it is a worthwhile investment.
Parents, police officers, business owners, and teachers across Hawaii and the rest of the country are asking us to make children a priority. I know that Maui’s beloved Mrs. Stevens would join them. I urge my colleagues on the appropriations committee to provide real increases to these vital programs.
Thank you.
