The changes will require all lower-performing Head Start programs to compete for funds instead of receiving the money automatically. The new benchmarks to determine eligibility will mean some programs that fail to show children are making academic program will lose funding. Grants will be reviewed every five years.In general, I support the President's move toward competitive bidding, especially in energy and transportation, usually havens of earmark lard, cough cough. Besides creating some motivation for lackluster centers to work better--and it's not at all clear to me that Head Start's mixed outcomes have to do with lack of staff motivation rather than inability to attract and support great staff--I'm not sure how this helps increase the supply of high-quality childcare for kids from tough backgrounds.
Some centers will get better, and maybe get more money, but short-run it implies shuttering more centers. And justifying one's own existence based on potentially hard-to-measure academic outcomes could certainly be a recipe for book-cooking. It looks like sanctions rather than support. I'd love to be proven wrong.
Finally, thank-you-thank-you Business Week for this graf:
Before making his remarks, Obama and Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius toured a classroom at the Yeadon Head Start Center. He played with 16 3-to-5-year-olds gathered around smaller circular tables. One group worked on putting together a puzzle, another played with blocks.Now if that isn't a metaphor for working with Congress, what is?
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