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News Release

STATEMENT BY TOMMY G. THOMPSON
Secretary of Health and Human Services
Regarding Passage of the School Readiness Act of 2003 (H.R. 2210)

I commend the House of Representatives for passage today of the School Readiness Act of 2003. For nearly two generations, the Head Start program has helped disadvantaged children and their families, providing them with comprehensive pre-school services. Today, in reauthorizing this program, the House of Representatives has been careful to protect these comprehensive benefits.

At the same time, the House has also expressed its agreement with the President that we should take the next steps toward making Head Start even better, and help ensure that Head Start children are school-ready when they enter kindergarten. Data show that children served by this program indeed become more school-ready than they would otherwise be -- but they still lag far behind their more economically advantaged peers. We can protect the Head Start program that has served us well, and yet still aim higher, to serve Head Start children even better.

President Bush wants all of America's children to have the opportunity to enter school ready to learn. The legislation passed by the House today will help us achieve that goal. It incorporates into Head Start the best of what is known to work in helping children develop cognitive skills, and it establishes new goals and standards for quality and teacher experience. It provides for ongoing evaluation of each Head Start center and provides for assistance to centers that need more help. It also establishes a pilot program for up to eight states to coordinate Head Start programs with their statewide pre-school systems. At the same time, it maintains high standards for all Head Start centers.

I especially congratulate Education Committee Chairman John Boehner and Subcommittee Chairman Mike Castle and thank them for their hard work to make Head Start an even better program. I look forward to working with the Senate toward similar legislation to build on our Head Start base and aim toward equal opportunity for Head Start children.

The HHS report, "Strengthening Head Start: What the Evidence Shows," is on the Web at: http://aspe.hhs.gov/hsp/StrengthenHeadStart03/index.htm

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Note: All HHS press releases, fact sheets and other press materials are available at http://www.hhs.gov/news.

Last Revised: July 25, 2003