Washington, D.C.– U.S. Representative Charles W. Boustany, Jr., M.D. (R-Southwest Louisiana), today helped pass the Improving Head Start Act. Boustany, a member of the House-Senate conference, negotiated differences between the two chambers on the bill building broad bi-partisan support.

 

“Few programs are as important as those that help our children during the earliest stages of their education,” Boustany said. “Head Start is vital for our children in Southwest Louisiana, and I hope this bill will make a good program even better by focusing even more of the funds to help disadvantaged kids.”

 

The Improving Head Start Act, H.R. 1429, strengthens Head Starts academic components through expanded teacher training, increases fiscal accountability to ensure funds are being used for children, and promotes decision making at the local level by experienced and qualified professionals. Approved overwhelmingly by the House in May, the bill contained differences from the Senate-passed version, which had to be reconciled before the final bill could be sent to the President. Boustany worked with leaders in both chambers to settle the discrepancies. The final version passed the House with a vote of 381-36.

 

“This important bill will help prepare Louisiana’s neediest children for Kindergarten by improving their access to medical, nutritional, and educational services – it’s a good bill that will help children in Southwest Louisiana and around the country. It’s a bill that I’m proud of,” Boustany concluded.

 

For more information on the Improving Head Start Act, please visit: http://republicans.edlabor.house.gov/PRArticle.aspx?NewsID=327&IID=6