The administration of President Donald Trump will restrict undocumented immigrants from enrolling in Head Start, a federally funded preschool program, the Department of Health and Human Services announced Thursday. This measure is part of a broader initiative to limit access to federal benefits for immigrants without legal status.
The educational program Head Start is designed for children ages 3 to 5. Launched six decades ago as part of Democratic President Lyndon B. Johnson’s War on Poverty, it operates in all 50 states, assisting families experiencing homelessness or poverty.
The announcement comes as the administration also announced it will tighten controls to prevent undocumented immigrants from receiving SNAP food assistance benefits.
Individuals in the country without authorization are largely ineligible for federal public benefits, such as food assistance, student loans, and financial aid for higher education. However, for decades, they have been able to access some community-level programs like Head Start and community health centers.
The HHS (the department’s acronym in English) stated it will reclassify these programs and now consider them federal public benefits, which will bar unauthorized immigrants from accessing them. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said the changes are part of a larger effort to protect the interests of U.S. citizens.
“For too long, the government has diverted tax dollars from hardworking Americans to incentivize illegal immigration,” Kennedy said in a statement. “Today’s action changes that. It restores integrity to federal social programs, enforces the rule of law, and protects vital resources for the American people.”
How will applicant eligibility be verified?
A spokesperson for the Department of Children and Families, which administers Head Start, said eligibility will be determined based on the child’s immigration status.
Requiring proof of immigration status will likely create fear and confusion among families trying to enroll their children, said Yasmina Vinci, executive director of the National Head Start Association.
“This decision undermines the fundamental commitment the country has made to children and disregards decades of evidence that Head Start is essential to our collective future,” Vinci said.
What other programs will be restricted for undocumented immigrants?
The changes are part of a multi-agency announcement that reverses a federal law interpretation made during former President Bill Clinton’s administration, which had allowed unauthorized immigrants access to some programs. The Department of Education, the Department of Agriculture, and the Department of Labor announced similar changes affecting various workforce and adult education programs.
The changes will impact community health centers, which immigrants rely on for a wide range of services, said Shelby Gonzales, vice president of immigration policy at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a research organization.
“People depend on these services for cancer treatment and ongoing care for various health needs,” she said.
Who is considered a SNAP beneficiary?
Students in the country without authorization will no longer be eligible to participate in postsecondary vocational and technical education programs or adult education programs, the Department of Education announced. The department also issued a notice to grant recipients to ensure federally funded programs do not provide services to immigrants lacking legal status.
Education advocates warned the decision will harm young people who have grown up in the country. Augustus Mays, vice president of EdTrust—a nonprofit advocating for increased education spending—said the intent appears to be to instill fear in immigrant communities.
“Policies like this do not exist in a vacuum,” Mays said. “They are rooted in a political project that blames immigrants and uses fear to strip rights and resources from the most vulnerable among us.”
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