Comments on: Options Weighed for Washtenaw Head Start

By: Peter

Peter — Mon, 08 Aug 2011 17:59:21 +0000

“As to literacy, the Family Book Club and Imagination Library provide books to Head Start children and their parents, and they are encouraged to read to them.” This is not for the Head Start children only. This is for the children o-5 years and should be living in 48197 + 48198 area code.

Also, county had prepared itself in well advanced bu building new jail and courts in the county because by not spending $1 for the Head Start program, you are tend to spend $10 in the long run for the courts and jails…

Another solution is since County Administrator and All County Commissioners love the Nationally Recognized Head Start program. But liking or loving the program does not do anything….If they can sacrifice their 30% paycheck then it is very easy to save the Nationally recognized program. Also, by sacrificing 30% pay cut by administrator and commissioner won’t make their children starving but not supporting Head Start program may make some of the Washtenaw County children starv.

By: StillScratchingmyHead

StillScratchingmyHead — Sun, 31 Jul 2011 21:10:35 +0000

Vivienne: Just because I raise concerns about the program doesn’t mean that I am at all interested in ending it, quiet the contrary. I do have concerns however. For example; both you and Leah make the point the Head start program which grew of the Perry Project is a deterrant to incarceration and other variables leading to poverty. I would prevail upon you or anyone else to visit the county jail on any given day and talk with some of the incarcerated and document how many of them attended Head Start, how many times they have been in contact with the juvenile or criminal justice system, their current level of educational attainment, etc. The point I’m trying to make if that after 46 years of sponsoring this program, it is time to re-examine it to see if there is an entity better suited to run it. It is also time to examine the “metrics” you refer to. Is the program really making a difference in the lives of the people it is design to serve. I’m sure that you will find users of the services and administrators who benefit financially who can make a case for it. If that’s the case, why do we continue to have throughout Washtenaw County an “achievement gap” issue? It’s time to stop the “feel good” liberal language and deal with some concrete realities.

By: Vivienne Armentrout

Vivienne Armentrout — Sun, 31 Jul 2011 20:23:23 +0000

I’ve always thought it tragic that Head Start was not fully funded and available to all children who needed it.

Again, ScratchingMyHead, you seem principally interested in ending the program. I wonder what motivates you to take this position and what else you want to see happen? Is it the county budget? Specific individuals within the program? Competing programs which you think should be better supported? There is a lot of passion and also cogency in your statements but little policy direction other than cessation of the program.

Education is not really my “portfolio”. I wish others who know more about all this would respond.

By: ScratchingmyHead

ScratchingmyHead — Sun, 31 Jul 2011 17:08:03 +0000

Leah?Vivienne: Show me one shred of evidence locally that the programs you mentioned have made a significant difference in the population you are referencing. I studied the Perry Project which laid the foundation for the current Head Start program and it was right on target regarding its original intent. I read extensively other research on Head Start and I’m not convinced the program as it is currently configurated or any other social programs funded or administered by the county is effective. While I can appreciate your “feeling good” about the programs you have supported, I look at the state of affairs as they currently exist and I see children who are not doing well in school, who are ending up in the juvenile and criminal justice system by the boatload, who cannot get jobs or become gainfully employed because of criminal records and who once released from the criminal justice system, are apt to return within one year of their release. The only ones I see who are benefiting from the current setup are the ones administering these programs. Show me some concrete results and we can them begin to talk about what needs to take place.

By: Vivienne Armentrout

Vivienne Armentrout — Sat, 30 Jul 2011 18:08:34 +0000

Re #19, not sure what you (Leah) are referring to, but maybe sequence of comment posting has confused the longitudinal Perry study and the study cited in the first comment post of this series. My comment referred to the study cited in the first comment of the series, that was being used to indicate that Head Start has no lasting value. The more recent study had a design flaw in that Head Start participants were found to have little benefit beyond the first grade compared to a “control” group who had unknown and varied types of enrichment programs, including different preschool experiences. It was not a valid comparison to draw the conclusions that it did.

By: Leah Gunn

Leah Gunn — Sat, 30 Jul 2011 17:35:51 +0000

I disagree, but I think that is academic. The conversation has turned to the delivery of human services in our community, and my point is that we, locally, do not fund the majority of these programs. We work in partnership with the state and federal governments.

By: Vivienne Armentrout

Vivienne Armentrout — Sat, 30 Jul 2011 16:18:18 +0000

By the way, a design flaw in the study cited was that the control group included children who attended other preschools.

“a control group that did not have access to Head Start, but could enroll in other early childhood programs or non-Head Start services selected by their parents.”

This dilutes the results quite a bit, I think.

By: Leah Gunn

Leah Gunn — Sat, 30 Jul 2011 16:16:10 +0000

There is nothing cutesy about either Head Start or the Literacy Coalition. If you think that it is the job of local government to take care of people, are you willing to vote in favor of a human services millage to do it? Both the City of Ann Arbor and Washtenaw County allocate about $1 million annually from our General Funds for Human Services – to HELP people. These monies go to services such as Food Gatherers, the shelters, health agencies, and so forth. For you to say that I should not expect the federal government to pay for such programs – well, who do you think pays for Head Start? Medicaid? Medicare? TANF? Housing? What we can do on the local level is simply not enough – we don’t have the resources and they are dwindling as we speak.

I am a long time public servant struggling to make sense out of these needs and the resources to fulfill them. The agencies that we give money to are accountable and have produced measurable results in our community. This year, for the first time, the local governments partnered with the Urban County (federal, yes federal, CDBG funding), the United Way and the Ann Arbor Area Commuity Foundation to create a Coordinated Funding Plan to fund these needs. The critria for erceiving funding are very comprehensive and demand mesaurable results. The plan saves money on administration thus having more for direct services.

As to longitudinal studies of children who have been through Head Start, when compared to their socioeconomic cohort they are more likely to go to college and less likely end up in jail or prison. Look up the High Scope Foundation for more information – it is right here in Ypsialanti, and did the original study back in the 60′s.

By: Vivienne Armentrout

Vivienne Armentrout — Sat, 30 Jul 2011 15:45:43 +0000

Scratching, what do you want to see happen? You sound sincere and well-informed, but you seem mostly to be advocating cessation of the program.

What metrics would you demand to make the program accountable? Test scores? I personally believe that the current emphasis on test scores alone is leading to a lot of bad practices and policy choices. Bright lines are hard to find in human development and achievement.

I doubt this study can or will be done, but I’d like to know what happens to these kids over their entire childhood development. The study seemed to say that it helped in socialization. Do they become more successful adults? Of course, the rest of their life and school experience will have a strong influence on that result.

By: StillScratchingmyHead

StillScratchingmyHead — Sat, 30 Jul 2011 14:13:21 +0000

Leah> I appreciate your sensitivity to the issue and commitment to doing what you can to address it. However, my concern is that you have been a commissioner for unpteen years and should know that the war on poverty is not going to addressed at the federal level because every administration have their on agenda which may or may not be effective in addressing poverty. If we are going to have any type of sustained strategy in addressing this issue, it has to start at the local level and it clearly begins with education and a desire on behalf of the community to look after its own. Cutesey programs and nice sounding initiatives will not do it.