Federal officials have closed the New England regional office of the Administration for Children & Families and terminated most of the staff. The office administers funding for Head Start and other programs.
As The Boston Globe reports, “The federal government, through ACF, provides hundreds of millions of dollars a year for some of the state’s poorest people. In one program, the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), which helps families with energy bills, Massachusetts was slated to receive more than $144 million.
“Another grant program for children and families, Social Services Block Grants, provided the state Department of Children and Families with close to $47 million in 2024 and 2025, and almost $1 million to the Massachusetts Commission for the Blind. In total, state officials work with the ACF to distribute more than $700 million in child care funding annually… The status of those funds and how they would continue to be administered was unclear after the terminations.”
Michelle Haimowitz, executive director of the Massachusetts Head Start Association (MHSA), told the Globe that “her organization hadn’t ‘received any official word’ on the staff changes, ‘or what the plan is to deal with this and ensure that programs receive services.’ ”
In a statement posted on MHSA’s website, Haimowitz explains that the terminated staff members “are an essential part of ensuring that children and families are able to access reliable, high-quality, and fiscally sound support. Without these terminated staff, programs are worried about impacts to approving their grants, fiscal applications, applications to make their programs more responsive to their local communities, and more.”
“Head Start is an essential resource for over 10,000 vulnerable children and families in Massachusetts.”
The National Head Start Association (NHSA) has also shared its concerns about the closing of regional offices in Boston and other cities.
“In order to avoid disrupting services for children and families, we urge the administration to reconsider these actions until a plan has been created and shared widely. Closing these regional Head Start offices could create delays in essential program support and weaken the system that has successfully served millions of children for decades. NHSA will continue working with the Administration and Congress to minimize the impact of any bureautic decisions on the well-being of the children and families who rely on Head Start programs every day.”
“An investment in Head Start is an important investment in our youngest learners, their families, our communities, and our nation.”