When families in southeast Iowa drop their kids off at Head Start each morning, they’re not just sending them to preschool to learn their ABCs and 123s.  

The federally funded program offers free early childhood education, meals, and health screenings to families who otherwise might go without these resources, but recent funding cuts have left centers fighting to maintain full-day, year-round services, according to Head Start program directors across southeast Iowa. 

Head Start offers support and care for families at or below 100 percent of the federal poverty level, or $32,150 for a family of four, with no fees, meaning for care. 

To qualify for the program, children need to be between the ages of 3 and 5, and for the Early Head Start program, between 6 weeks and 3 years old. 

Christi Regan, early childhood division director for Hawkeye Area Community Action Program, or HACAP, said federal funding allows the organization to provide consistent, high-quality services supporting the “whole child.”

Regan said the program’s goal at Head Start is to prepare the child to be ready for school through identifying if  any issues that may prevent them from being proficient in a skill. Hearing, vision, or developmental concerns are all areas the program can assess and provide assistance for getting in contact with a doctor who can address the concern. 

Matt LeClere, Head Start director at Community Action of Southeast Iowa, said Head Start serves the most vulnerable children in the community. 

“The idea here is to help their kids be successful in school and in life,” LeClere said. 

LeClere said research shows low-income children often enter kindergarten at a disadvantage because they lack the same early learning experiences as their peers.

According to the National Library of Medicine, students who come from low-income families are more likely to start school behind their peers. The depth, duration, and timing of poverty all influence a child’s readiness for school — socially and academically. Head Start programs aim to close that gap. 

“We look at kindergarten readiness as a guidepost for the work we’re doing in the classroom,” LeClere said. 

LeClere said a large amount of the program’s expenses goes to feeding children.

“The kids that come to us are receiving two thirds of their nutrition at school,” he said. “We give them a nutritious breakfast, lunch, and snack every day.” 

According to the School Nutrition Association, eating well throughout the day helps students thrive both inside and outside the classroom. Studies show many children eat their most nutritious meals at school. School meal programs play a key role in preventing obesity, promoting overall health, and boosting academic performance by improving kids’ diets and reducing hunger.

In Johnson County, HACAP has 174 Head Start and Early Head Start slots, most of which are filled year-round, with the availability of those slots differing from day-to-day.

Maintaining the amount of slots HACAP can offer has become more difficult after the loss of state funding through the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services Wraparound Child Care Block Grant. 

Head Start programs routinely apply for new grants, and with a recent loss in funding, classrooms open 12 months out of the year have been reduced to 10 months. 

“That certainly has a huge impact on families that were dependent [on] and always had that full-day and full-year services,” Regan said. “On those days that we’re not open, they have to find alternate care for their children.” 

To continue serving families, HACAP combines federal, state, and local funding, including grants from Johnson County, the City of Iowa City, and United Way. 

Still, Regan said rising costs and stagnant federal funding have made it difficult to keep up, but they do its  due diligence to apply for funding when it becomes available, so the quality and support of their services are never questioned.

“It is just a balance of braiding funding together and budgeting appropriately, [because] all of our funds pay for 100 percent of our services,” Regan said. 

The cuts also affected staff members, who lost working hours as a result.

“That means fewer days they’re able to work,” Regan said. “Those are tough decisions. We’re always looking at how we can provide what families need, but we also have to make sure we have the financial strength to continue those services.” 

At the classroom level, teachers and support staff alike remain focused on their goal of caring for the children and families       they serve. 

Randi Waterman, disabilities coordinator at Community Action of Southeast Iowa, said every child receives hearing, vision, and developmental screenings within the first 45 days of enrollment. 

If any concerns are noticed on the screenings, Waterman said she talks to the teachers and observes classrooms. 

If concerns persist, Waterman said staff hold a support meeting with the family to discuss next steps. Together, they determine how to best assist the child in the classroom and, if needed, connect them with outside resources, such as the Area Education Agency, a doctor, or mental health services. 

She said funding limitations affect every part of the program, including the ability to hire more staff providing services for children with disabilities.

“Funding always has an impact, no matter what program you’re in,” Waterman said. “We would absolutely love to have more staff in our classrooms and transportation for our students. I hope over time, our federal funding increases so we can have more support for our children with disabilities.” 

Despite the financial challenges, Waterman said the heart of the program goes far beyond budgets and resources — it’s about the relationships built between families, staff, and the community.

“I wish more people understood Head Start isn’t just about income,” Waterman said. “Families don’t identify themselves by how much they make — they identify themselves by their relationships and their community. We bring families together, and we make sure they have what they need             to thrive.” 

LeClere said the federal government typically provides a cost-of-living adjustment, or COLA, each year, but programs didn’t receive one last year or this year.

“We’re hoping there’s a COLA, but we’ve been fortunate enough to be able to offer some increase in our salaries; we want to be as competitive as best we can with other preschools and the school district as well,” he said.

Regan said the impact of Head Start remains clear in every community it serves. 

“We can’t do it by ourselves,” she said. “We work with partners — doctors, dentists, schools, and community organizations — all focused on helping children and families succeed. When we support the child, we support the family, and that builds stronger communities.”