Rep. Bresnahan visits kids at Head Start amid government shutdown and no state budget

WILKES - BARRE, LUZERNE CO. (WOLF) — October is Head Start Awareness month and in honoring the federally funded program for kids and families in poverty, Congressman Rob Bresnahan and his wife, Chelsea, came to a classroom to read to children.

Head Start serves low-income families in communities and across Luzerne and Wyoming counties sees more than 200 kids. Families drop their kids off for Pre-K to learn and build crucial social skills while parents can work.

Federal funding for the program remains a top issue and grants will run out by the end of the year, potentially putting an even bigger strain on the program as the shutdown lingers on. The main issue the organization is worried about, however, is the lack of a budget increase.

“We have been flat funded federally this prior year which means that we have not received an increase," explained Beth White, executive director of Luzerne County Head Start. "Our bills still keep going up our food bills, our health insurance, our rents, all of that does go up. So, if we are going into another year of funding, we are going to have to make some different decisions because our budget dollars only go so far.”

After leaving the classroom, Representative Bresnahan committed his support to the program.

“We’re going to continue to be extremely supportive of the Head Start program. So that is exactly why we need to reopen the government to make sure that programs like this continue to be as just impactful as that they clearly are.”

He also said that he’d support a year extension of the Affordable Care Act tax credits central to the debate around the shutdown.

“The reality is, we need to get back to work, and we need to get back together and figure out a path forward with the expiration at the end of the month. It’s a problem. We’re looking at Pennie increases, you know, somewhere between 78 and 82 percent across northeastern Pennsylvania. So, I think you need to have real dialogs and real conversations about health care.”

White says having lawmakers see and play with the kids will hopefully show the program’s importance, but with no end to the government shutdown or state budget impasse in sight, the teachers and staff can only hope that Head Start doesn’t end up late to the finish line.