Washington, D.C.—Following news that the Trump Administration Fiscal Year 2026 budget proposal may eliminate funding for Head Start, Susan Gale Perry, Chief Executive Officer at Child Care Aware of America, issued the following statement:
“Families need more quality child care, not less. Eliminating Head Start would mean nearly 800,000 fewer quality child care spaces across the country, many in rural communities without enough child care to begin with. Congress must reject any proposal from the Administration to defund Head Start.
Head Start impacts all of us through 1,700 local Head Start and Early Head Start programs nationwide—helping more than one million parents earning low-wages go to work and giving children who need it most a strong and healthy start that lays the foundation for future success in school and life.
CCAoA urges Congress to protect and prioritize Head Start funding. Without strong federal investment, children will fall behind, families won’t have access to child care so they can support their families, businesses will lose workers, and our economy will be weaker.”
Child Care Aware® of America (CCAoA) is the only national organization that supports every part of the child care system. Together with an on-the-ground network of people doing the work in states and communities, we help America become child care strong by providing research that drives effective practice and policy, building strong child care programs and professionals, helping families find and afford quality child care, delivering thought leadership to the military and direct service to its families, and providing a real-world understanding of what works and what doesn’t to spur policymakers into action and help them build solutions. Everyone is stronger when we make America child care strong.
