SCHUMER ANNOUNCES, FOLLOWING HIS PUSH, SULLIVAN COUNTY HEAD START TO REOPEN NEXT WEEK
Earlier This Year, Sullivan County Head Start Suddenly Closed, Sparking Confusion And Leaving Local Parents Without Child Care & Dozens Of Employees Without Jobs
Schumer’s Office Immediately Reached Out And Worked To Expedite Federal Process, In Lockstep With Local Leaders, To Cut Through Red Tape & Restore Childcare; Now Sullivan County’s Head Start Will Reopen Next Week – Resuming Full Operations To Get Families The Care They Need Starting April 9th
Following Schumer’s relentless advocacy and push calling on the feds to take action after the sudden closure of the Sullivan County Head Start , U.S. Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer today announced that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary has said that Sullivan County Head Start services are set to reopen next week starting on April 9th. Schumer’s office worked hand in hand with locals to help navigate the federal bureaucracy amid the sudden and unexpected closure and he personally sent a letter to Secretary Becerra calling on the feds to get all-hands-on deck and expeditiously with local officials to reopen the facility ASAP so Sullivan County families could receive childcare and essential services they need, and now, thanks to these efforts along with the help of dedicated local leaders, the facility is set to reopen on April 9th.
“Sullivan County families can finally breathe a sigh of relief with Head Start reopening next week to restore the critically needed childcare services our families in need. This is a major step forward to helping parents who were forced to scramble for childcare – and faced an impossible situation of choosing between working their job that puts food on the table or having to watch their toddler. I launched an all-out-push, facilitated connections between local stakeholders and the feds, and personally wrote to the head of HHS to ensure this facility would resume operations ASAP, and demanded the feds fast track any and all efforts to address this gaping hole in services,” said Senator Schumer. “I thank the dedicated local partners my office worked alongside in Sullivan County to help return childcare services to these hundreds of families in need. I remain committed to delivering the resources and support needed to help ensure a long term solution for ensuring stable, consistent childcare services for Sullivan County.”
“Sullivan County is severely underserved when it comes to childcare. Temporarily losing Head Start was a huge blow to parents that did not have any other daycare options. I am elated that these families once again have access to the indispensable resources that Head Start provides, " said Assemblymember AiIeen Gunther. “I want to thank Senator Schumer his tireless effort in ensuring these services remain accessible to the community.”
“We’re very happy to hear the news that the Federal government’s interim operator, CDI, is resuming Head Start services to children and families on Tuesday. Our team has worked closely with theirs to ensure CDI and staff have all the support they need to successfully welcome back our residents,” said Sullivan County Legislature Chair Nadia Rajsz. “I’m personally glad to see these children once again receiving the services they need from teachers and staff they’ve known all their young lives, and I deeply thank Senator Schumer and his team for their tenacious and tireless efforts to restore this critical educational service to our citizens. We have always been able to rely on Senator Schumer to fight for us.”
“I am pleased to see that Sullivan County Head Start will be resuming services for students and families. I am proud of the work that has been done by our County employees to help bridge the gap in services in the meantime and the work by our state and federal partners to get the program back up and running as quickly as possible. It is no secret that Sullivan County families rely on the services provided by Head Start and it is a major relief that they will be available once again,” said Sullivan County Majority Leader Matthew McPhilips. “I want to thank Senator Schumer for his advocacy and his leadership in restoring these essential services.”
“The resurrection of Head Start in Sullivan County releases many families from the disruptive burdens they’ve been carrying the past two months, returns talented and caring teachers and staff to doing what they do best, and puts young students back where they belong – in a safe, nurturing educational environment,” said Sullivan County Manager Joshua Potosek. “None of this would have been possible without the determination and focus of Senator Schumer and our other Federal representatives, along with our State and local partners. I’m particularly proud of County staff, who steadfastly collaborated with the Senator’s team to ensure services were provided throughout this challenging period.”
According to HHS, restored services will be provided at the facilities in Monticello and Woodbourne. They expect this to restore Head Start and Early Head Start services for over 200 children beginning next Tuesday, April 9th.
A copy of Schumer’s original letter to the head of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services can be found below:
Dear Secretary Becerra:
I write with an urgent request to ensure that families in Sullivan County, New York are receiving services following the abrupt and disruptive closure of Sullivan County Head Start. Sullivan County Head Start unexpectedly closed on February 2, 2024, leaving hundreds of children and families without critical services that they depend on. I understand that the Office of Head Start is taking steps to mitigate the harm caused by this crisis, and that this closure was not a decision that was made by the Office of Head Start. Nonetheless, the impacted families are struggling, and they are desperately in need of the services provided by the Sullivan County Head Start. According to the latest available data, Sullivan County’s poverty rate is higher than the national and state average. The County is also a recognized childcare desert where affordable and accessible childcare is inaccessible for many who call the area home. I urge you to take all available measures at your disposal to expediate the reopening of Head Start Program’s in Sullivan County and ensure the full range of childcare services previously offered can be back up and running as soon as possible. It is critical that all steps be taken to expeditiously secure a consistent stable interim service provider for all impacted families and that a long term solution be found to ensure this problem does not happen again.
The Sullivan County Head Start served more than 350 children and families and employs 85 full-time and 11 part-time workers. The impact of its closure is a profound burden for my constituents – children without essential services and the daily routines that they need, parents unable to go into work to make a living, and workers left without a job and unable to serve the community that they so deeply care about. The harm is more substantial for children with special needs or in foster care who have to jump through additional hurdles to find the care that they need. Head Start prides itself on providing comprehensive child development services for the community it serves, supporting everyone from children from prenatal to age three, pregnant women and partners, and their families. The services that the Head Start program provide reach far and wide: education, free dental and medical screenings, nutrition, mental health, and family engagement programs. The Head Start programs in Sullivan County are an indispensable foundation of that community’s health and well-being, and HHS must do everything in its power to reopen the Sullivan County Head Start as soon as possible.
I understand that Director Garvin of the Office of Head Start has committed to resuming Head Start services as soon as possible. I also understand that, with Sullivan County Head Start’s relinquishing of its Head Start grant, the Office of Head Start now stands ready to transition Sullivan County Head Start program to an interim service provider. This transition needs to happen as soon as possible, and I urge you to do everything in your power to expedite this process. In the meantime, we must continue to provide all of our 350 children and families with the care and services they require. I urge you to work to ensure that the interim service provider can refer as many children and families to alternative programs during this transitionary period, so that our children can get the services that they need and their parents can go back to work.
Again, I urge you to be sure that HHS and the Office of Head Start does everything in its powers to ensure that Sullivan County Head Start programs resumes operation as soon as possible, and facilitates the transition to an interim service provider. Thank you for your attention to this important matter.
Sincerely,
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