West side Madison nonprofit child care center The Playing Field reported a “chaotic” situation resulting from a federal funding freeze, according to the Wisconsin State Journal. Officials who manage the center’s federal funding last week were unable to access the money to cover expenses like payroll, supplies, and meals for children.
The center is one of several that receives grant funding for Head Start, an early education program that provides care for some of the highest-need families and children in the U.S. Some Head Start programs continue to wait for payments despite the White House’s decision to rescind the memo freezing federal spending. Similar issues were reported by Medicaid administrators.
Roughly 15,000 children are served by the Head Start programs in Wisconsin, which employ around 4,500 staff statewide. At least six of the state’s 39 Head Start programs were still unable to access their funding as of Thursday.
Madison’s Reach Dane, a child care agency that administers Head Start funds in Dane and Green counties to centers employing about 250 staff members and serving around 800 children — including about one-third of The Playing Field’s 70 students — was among those six.
