WAEYC

WAEYC NPRM Head Start Statement

For 50 years, the Washington Association for the Education of Young Children (WAEYC) continues to commit to the dedication of serving and acting on behalf of the needs, rights, and well-being of all children. We work towards inclusion and equity in every aspect of our service to children and their families. In this notion, we stand against the current administration’s proposed NPRM to the Head Start program and standards.

Many children and families rely on the support and resources that Head Start provides from parent workshops to disability care. Children are our future and the next generations in leading and changing the world. It is our responsibility to invest in their future, care, and well-being. We cannot take away their rights to education and developmental support. We also cannot support regulations that bring forward erasure of culture and language. Families already struggle to find childcare that is affordable and helps build families to be stronger in education, health, cultural representation, and general well-being. 

The NPRM proposals for Head Start would take away the following and/or create gaps in children’s education and supports such as:

1. Disability care and resources for every child. 

• The current NPRM would remove certain regulations under Head Start that all children with disabilities receive the necessary support and leave the standards up to state and local levels. Not every state has standards that provide the necessary support for children with disabilities, creating gaps in their care and education. The current regulation requires Head Start programs to have school buses or alternative modes of transportation that are accessible and adaptive to children with disabilities. The proposed NPRM removes this regulation which would create hardships for working families and creates a barrier for children with disabilities to have access to quality education.

2. Certification for educators and other professionals.

• Early learning educators within Head Start programs must hold certain degrees or certifications. This includes family childcare providers, home visitors, staff for family services, healthcare professionals, and coaches. This is to ensure that quality support and care are provided according to professional standards. The proposed NPRM would remove regulations that would require family childcare providers, home visitors, staff for family services, healthcare professionals, and coaches to be certified or hold a degree. This can create gaps in care for children and families in specific situations such as homelessness, children with disabilities, and even families with food scarcity.

3. Enrollment and eligibility for homeless families.

• Homeless families are currently allowed to self-attest their housing and income status to be approved for Head Start eligibility for their children. This allows the children to have access to high-quality education and necessary resources such as hygiene and food needs. The proposed NPRM would create a new regulation that self-attestation would no longer satisfy eligibility requirements. This is difficult for homeless families who do not have a utility or lease bill that would be otherwise used to confirm eligibility. 

4. Staff well-being and benefits.

• The Head Start program currently holds requirements for staff breaks, health exams, and mental health support. Early learning educators need to be taken care of to be able to meet the physical, emotional, and mental requirements of working in childcare. If educators are not in their best condition, they cannot provide essential care to the children and families they’re in community with. The NPRM removes any identification for staff breaks, mental health supports, and health exams, leaving educators on their own to try and take care of themselves while also lacking proper access to affordable healthcare.

5. Language erasure for indigenous communities and communities of color. 

• Head Start programs are built to support dual language learners as well as preserve indigenous languages for children who are Native American and Alaska Native. There is countless research that supports home language use while helping children to learn another language such as English. This practice preserves their cultural identity and roots while gaining new language skills. The proposed NPRM removes specific vocabulary on preserving and revitalizing indigenous languages. It only speaks on allowing indigenous languages to be spoken but no accountability to be held for the preservation of them. It also specifically proposes that education must be conducted in English and prioritizes the English language to be taught with no requirements to uphold teachings of a child’s native language. Indigenous communities and communities of color have been targeted for countless years and continue to be targeted under racism and discrimination. This will further impact on children’s well-being and safety as they may be targeted even further for speaking their native languages.

6. Child-Teacher ratios and class sizes.

• Head Start programs are viable in their care for children due to the small class sizes that can provide high-quality support and education for each child. The proposed NPRM will increase classroom sizes by requiring programs to follow their state’s Child-Teacher ratio guidelines. Each state has their own guidelines, but they do not acknowledge or represent the reality of childcare on the ground, every day. We would be putting a strain on educators to teach more children with a 32% increase in classroom sizes. This would create barriers for children with specific needs and programs who will not have enough educators due to proposed cuts in credentials and stagnant wages. Smaller classroom sizes are what creates better supervision for the safety of children, building relationships with families, and being able to provide better 1-on-1 support for individualized children and especially children with disabilities. Educators would be better supported with smaller class sizes and wage increases would secure their positions.

And there is so much more to the proposed NPRM changes.

Early learning is often left behind in the move to build better education due to funding and regulation cuts. We cannot let this continue as young children are continuously blocked from access to their right to education. We cannot let children continue to lose access to developmental supports including food, disability, and hygiene care. We cannot let families lose opportunities to build stronger relationships and skills for success in their lives and future education for their children by increasing class sizes and decreasing family resources. We will not condone regulations that encourage racism, discrimination, and erasure because of a family and child’s native languages and cultural identities. We highly urge Congress to step up, and support Head Start by keeping its current regulations and provide better Head Start funding. 

Head Start is not just an education program. It is a foundation for what has been and will continue to be for the next generations to come.

Signed,

The Washington Association for the Education of Young Children 

Head Start NPRM

How To Make Public Comments

Please consider making a public comment to support Head Start before the deadline, Oct. 6^th, 2026. Below is a link to a video from WAEYC’s Public Policy Chair, Carmen Moore, providing some information on the Head Start NPRM and guidelines on writing public comments.

WAEYC Head Start NPRM Public Comments Video

Links

Below is a list of links that were mentioned in the video for your reference.

First Five Years Fund FAQ Sheet

First Five Years Fund Searchable Guide

Together For Head Start

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We thank you for your support for Head Start, their families, their educators, their staff,

their children, and their communities! We are in this together!