From WisPolitics.com/WisBusiness.com …
— The Wisconsin Early Childhood Association says a new federal proposal would slash “nearly all standards” for the Head Start program, which provides education and health activities for young children from low-income families.
The group yesterday issued a release sounding the alarm on a proposal it says would end most performance standards for Head Start, noting it’s “deeply concerned” the change would gut the federal program.
WECA also argues ending evidence-based standards would weaken the framework that justifies ongoing federal investment in the program, which has existed for more than 60 years.
“In Milwaukee, we work alongside incredible child care providers who deliver high-quality care, early learning, and family support every day,” WECA Executive Director Ruth Schmidt said in a statement. “Weakening Head Start standards would undermine that work and put children and families at risk.”
The group is urging supporters, parents and others to participate in a comment period for the federal proposal and highlight the impact of proposed cuts to standards. WECA aims to have the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to “withdraw or substantially revise” the rule before it’s finalized.
Under the proposal, the program would lose classroom ratio and group size requirements, as well as “key” requirements for serving children with disabilities and multilingual children, parent governance and engagement requirements, educational quality standards, family service standards and more, according to the group’s warning.
WECA also says the proposal would make it more difficult for Head Start programs to access federal funding for operational costs, arguing it will lead to staff cuts and reduced services.
See the release below.
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— Wisconsin has now had 216 reported cases of cyclosporiasis and five hospitalizations amid the multi-state outbreak of intestinal illness.
The illness, caused by the microscopic cyclospora parasite, has been linked to iceberg lettuce.
California-based Taylor Farms last month issued a recall of all iceberg lettuce sourced from central Mexico, and the CDC says it’s currently investigating multiple unrelated outbreaks and illnesses around the country linked to cyclospora.
In Wisconsin, 94 of the confirmed cases didn’t report traveling internationally during the 14-day period before getting symptoms. These cases represent domestically acquired infections, according to the state Department of Health Services.
At the national level, the CDC reports 6,358 total cases in 15 states including 278 hospitalizations as of Wednesday, the latest date for which figures are available. The federal agency has reported two deaths linked to the outbreak.
See more at the DHS outbreaks site.
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