Head Start Seeking Children to Fill Some of Its Classrooms

Despite the shortage of child-care centers and preschools in Ventura County, Head Start employees must recruit children to fill classrooms in several of their 16 schools.

Beginning next week, bilingual outreach workers will canvass neighborhoods, set up tables at public health clinics and visit local markets. They will post fliers and drop off pamphlets. And they will go door-to-door, trying to persuade low-income parents to register their children for a Head Start preschool.

“You’d think that more parents would come to us,” said Ricardo Melendez, a family services specialist at the Ventura Head Start Center. “But there is a lack of knowledge about us in the community.”

The four Head Start preschools that have to conduct the most recruiting are those in Piru, Ventura, Fillmore and another near Hueneme High School in Oxnard, officials said.

Several other Head Start preschools, including the Camarillo-Somis and Mesa centers, have only a few children on their waiting lists. All the centers try to keep their waiting lists full, because families move often, pulling their children out of school and leaving spots open.

Outreach workers are also preparing for next fall, after about 500 children graduate from county Head Start programs and enroll in kindergarten classes. The workers hope to avoid the last-minute scramble for children by recruiting now.

“Some centers have waiting lists and some don’t,” said Creda Nowlin, Head Start family services coordinator. “That’s part of our challenge.”

*

Head Start, which is run by Child Development Resources in Ventura County, has space for 1,006 preschool children countywide. Head Start is part of a nationwide program that has provided educational, social and medical services for children for more than 30 years.

Officials say enrollment is low for various reasons, including short days, strict income guidelines and language and cultural barriers.

Most of the Head Start centers are half-day programs, and parents making the transition from welfare to work often need child care for more than 3 1/2 hours. So they either leave their children with relatives or apply for full-day subsidized child care, officials said.

But that isn’t always easy. Officials say Ventura County ranks 35th among California’s 58 counties in child-care supply, with licensed spots for only one of every five children of working parents.

Officials said the county needs to expand its Head Start programs to full-day classes. Last year, about 60% of the families in Head Start were CalWORKS recipients. This year, those parents make up 40% of the families.

“We have got to start meeting the needs of the community, which is offering the full-day programs,” Nowlin said. “But for us to provide longer days, we need new facilities. And to get new facilities, we need more money.”

*

Also, Head Start must recruit families because the income guidelines are strict, forcing officials to turn away dozens of poor, working parents, officials said.

To qualify for the preschool, a family of three must have an annual income of $13,880 or less, and a family of four must make no more than $16,700. As a result, Head Start turns away dozens of poor, working parents each year and searches for parents who fall within the income limits.

Nowlin said the national office should allow Ventura County centers to accept more families that do not fit into the income limits. The centers now enroll 90% of families within the income guidelines and 10% of “over-income” families.

“In Ventura County there aren’t a lot of families that can survive on that income,” Nowlin said. “So they move on.”

Language and cultural barriers, as well as fears of being reported to authorities, also prevent many immigrant parents from taking advantage of the preschool services.

“Some parents who don’t speak English don’t know how to go about getting resources,” said Gloria Kirk, head teacher at the Squires Center in south Oxnard. “And the paperwork is intimidating.”

Other immigrant parents may be undocumented and fear they would be caught if they enroll in Head Start.

When Sandra Estrada sets out next week to recruit for the Fillmore and Piru centers, she will wear a Head Start badge and carry applications. If she gets lucky, she will sign up a few families on the spot. She will leave brochures and a phone number with other families.

*

“Recruiting is necessary and exhausting,” she said. “It’s hard to find people in this area. I’m worried about how I am going to find kids for next year.”

Head Start teachers and parents said there needs to be more publicity about the program. Many learn about Head Start by word-of-mouth.

Olga Sandoval said she heard about the preschool when she tried to enroll her 4-year-old son, Ivan, in kindergarten. But she said bilingual fliers and public service announcements on Spanish-language radio stations would reach more parents such as her.

Only 13 children showed up at Ivan’s Wednesday afternoon class at the Ventura Head Start Center. Three students were out sick. Although there are 20 spots available, only 16 children are now enrolled.

Until the problem of low enrollment is solved, officials said Head Start workers will continue to spend time in the community looking for eligible families.

“Our No. 1 priority is recruitment,” said Sonia Rodriguez, family services specialist at the Squires Center. “We have to go door-to-door, because it’s the homes behind the homes that aren’t aware of the services.”