Recognizing the 57th Anniversary of Head Start

Floor Speech

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Mr. FITZPATRICK. Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize the 57th anniversary of the Head Start program and the invaluable services it makes available to children and families in need.

In 1965, President Lyndon Johnson commissioned Sargent Shriver with the establishment of a comprehensive child development program that would assist underserved communities meet the needs of preschool children. With the help of education, psychology, and child experts, the U.S. government initially launched ``Project Head Start'' as an eight-week summer program that reached 561,000 children. Finding early success, the program was expanded in the fall of 1965 to provide services throughout the entire school year. In the subsequent decades, Head Start has further grown to include bilingual and bicultural programs, as well as services for disadvantaged infants, toddlers, and pregnant women through Early Head Start grants.

The initiative has now reached over 39 million children in its history and serves nearly 1 million children and their families annually in urban and rural areas in all fifty states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. territories. Head Start's exceptional dedication to our children is admirable, and this year, as it celebrates its 57th anniversary, we express our appreciation for the impact that it has had on communities across the country and especially in Bucks and Montgomery counties.

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