House approves funding for Head Start

[deadparrot]

Source: Associated Press

WASHINGTON - The House approved more money for the popular Head Start program Wednesday after rejecting a GOP-led attempt to allow religious groups participating in the program to hire and fire staffers based on religious grounds.

The bill, passed 365-48, approves $7.4 billion in spending in fiscal 2008 for the 42-year-old program that helps low-income children prepare for school, up from $6.9 billion in the current year.

It increases enrollment, now about 900,000 children aged 3 to 5, boosts teacher and staff salaries and expands services for homeless, migrant and non-English-speaking children.

"Head Start has served our most vulnerable children and families well for 42 years, and more recently, Early Head Start has done the same for infants and toddlers," said Rep. Dale Kildee (news, bio, voting record), D-Mich., a chief sponsor. "Head Start works, and this bill will make it work even better."

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/head_start

[pinto]

1. Good moves. I hope the Senate does as well and gets a final bill done.

:thumbsup: