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FIRST LADY HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON
REMARKS FOR HEAD START BILL SIGNING
THE WHITE HOUSE
MAY 18, 1994
TALKING POINTS (NEW)
Acknowledgments
The nation owes enormous thanks to the v1s1onaries ~hose
energy and commitment led to the creation of the Head Start
program: President and Mrs. Johnson~ whose daughter Lynda Johnson
Robb is here with us today; Mr. and Mr~. Sargent Shriver; Dr.
Robert Cooke, who chaired the Head Start Planning Committee and
has done so much work on behalf of children; Dr. Julius Richmond,
the first director of Head Start; Ed Zigler and Urie
Brofenbrenner [Broff-en-brenner], members of the original Head
Start planning committee.
..
And we owe huge thanks to .many others who have contributed
so much to helping Head Start succeed over the years: Marian
Wright Edelman, Dr. Bettye Caldwell, the 47 members of the
Advisory Committee on Head Start Quality and Expansion.
Finally~ thanks to the teachers, direttors, children,
parents, and volun.teers from the first ·class of 1965, some of
whom are with us today.
HISTORY
*
The first Head Start ceremon~ -- back in 1965
was in the
Rose Garden. Four children who were to be enrolled came and stood
on the steps during that ceremony.
*
Since then, nearly 14 million children and their families
have participated;
*
When Head Start was created, it was·a time of great optimism
and hope about our capacity to fight poverty and other social
.ills. We had the Peace Corps, the Job Corps, the civil rights
movement. We were learning more about t~e development of children
and the importance of their environments during their early
years. And, partly because .of the space program, there was a
renewed commitment to education.
*
*
Yet· fewprograms focused on early childhood.
Head Start was an immediate success, with communities eager
to get involved. In the first summer in 1965, 560,000
1
�preschoolers attended 13., 400 Head Start Centers in 2, 500
communities.
*
The great success of.Head Start over nearly 30 years stems
from the vision and wisdom of its founders and backers -- from
President Johnson on down. They understood that the problems of
children should not be addressed piecemeal, but as a whole. They
understood that every child's development. depended on good
health, nutrition, education, and a stable home life. And Head
Start attempted to ensure that poor children had all of those.
LBJ QUOTE.
*
When President Johnson launched Head Start on this day in
1965; he said:.
"Five-and six-year-old ~hildren are inh~ritors of poverty's
·curse, and not its creators. Unless we act, these children will
pass it on to the next generation, like a family birthmark."
With Head Start, he said, "we set out make certain that
poverty's children would not be forevermore poverty's captives."
LADY BIRD ROLE
*
The First Lady at .the time, Lady Bird Johnson, was honorary
chair of the program and she launched a recruiting effort that
turned out to be .very successful ~n getting Head Start
volunteers. A similar effort will get underway now when the Head
Start Bureau and the Ad Council challenge our nation. to get .
involved in a new generation of Head Start.
BEAD START IS
~.
PAR'l'lJERSBIP BETWEEN'- GOVERNMENT: AND. COMMUNITIES
*
Head Start is proof that a single program can galvanize
parents, teachers, health professionals, and government to help
improve the lives of children.
·
*
More than one-.third of all Head Start staff are parents who
once were in the program.
A DEMOGRAPHIC AND SOCIAL REVOLUTION MAKES BEAD START MORE
IMPORTANT THAN EVER BEFORE
*
Head Start's longevity is based in part on the very basic,
human needs it meets. As violence, poverty, broken families, lack
of health care an(! poor nutrition continue to plague our children
--Head Start is an anchor of hope' for the future.
·
*
It literally saves lives. It saves futures. ·It
families.
2
~aves
�'
[Introduce Mrs.· Gore]
M##
3
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�U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Administration for Children and Families
Administration on Children, Youth and Families
Head Start Bureau
Head Start:
A Child Development Program
�. FIRST LADY HILLARY RODBAM CLINTON
REMARKS FOR BEAD START BILL SIGNING
THE.WBITE-HOUSE
MAY 18, 1994
TALKING POINTS
Acknowledgments
The riatiori owes enormous thanks to the v1s1onaries whose
en·ergy and commitment led to the creation of the Head Start
prograll\: President and Mrs. Johnson, whose daughter Lynda Johnson
Robb is here with us today; Mr. and Mrs. Sargent Shriver; Dr.
Robert Cooke, who chaired the Head Start Planning Committee and
has done so much work·on behalf of children; Dr. Julius Richmond
aa.d J'l:ile Sugarm&m, th8 first. director and assoaiate diLector -ef , ~~- _
Head. started ~lfle,.r-o._,._d line. 'Brofenbrrenner- ~ ~~~ ~ ·
And we owe huge thanks tb many others who have contributed
so.much to helping Head Start succeed over the years: Marian
Wright Edelman, Dr. Bettye Caldwell, the 47 members of the
Advisory Committee on Head Start Quality and Expansion.
Finally, thanks to the teachers~ directors, children,
parents, and voluntE:ers from the first class of 1965, . so:r.ne o'f
whom are with us today.
HISTORY
*
The first 'HeadStart ceremony ...;,_ pack in 1~65 -- was in the
·Rose Garden. Four children who were to be enrolled came and stood
·on tb,e steps. during that ceremony.
*
·since then, nearly 14 million children and their families
have participated.
*
When Head Start was created, 'it. was a time of great optimism
and hope about our capacity to fight poverty and other social
ills~ We had the Peace Corps, the J9b Corps, the civil rights
movement. We were learning more about the development of children
and the importance of their environments during their early
years. And, partly because of.the space program, there was a
renewed c.oinmitment to education.
·
*
Yet few programs focused on early childhood.
*
Head Sta-rt was an immediate success, with communities eager
to get involved.. In the first summer in 1965, 560,000
preschoolers attended t3,400 Head Start Centers in 2,50D
1
�communities.
*
The great success of Head Start over nearly 30 years stems
from the vision and wisdom of its founders and backers-- from.
President Johnson on down. They 11nderstood that the problems of
children should not be addressed piecemeal, but as a whole. They
understood that every·child's development depended on good
health, nutrition, education, and a stable home life. And Head
Start attempted to·ensure that poor children had all of those.
LBJ QUOTE
*
When Pres~dent Johnson launched Head Start on this.day .in
1965, he said:
.
.
.
.
I
"Five-and six-year-old children are inheritors of poverty's
curse, and not its cr·eators. Unless we act, these children will
pass it on to the next generation, like a family birthmark." With Head Start, he said, "we set out make certain that
poverty's children WO)Jld not be forevermore poverty's captives."
LADY BIRD ROLE
*
The First Lady at the time, Lady Bird Johnson, was honorary
.chair of the prog.ram and she launched a recruiting. effort that
turned out to be very successful in getting Head Start
volunteers. A similar effort will get underway now when the Head
Start Bureau and the Ad Council challenge our nation to get
involved in a new generation of Head Start~.
BEAD START IS A PARTNERSHIP .BETWEEN GOVERNMENT AND COMMUNITIES
*
Head Start is proo:e that a single program can galvanize
parents, · teachers, health professionals., and gove-rnment to help
improve the lives of children.
*
More than.one-third of all Head Start staff are parents who
once were in the program.
.
'
A DEMOGRAPHIC AND SOCIAL REVOLUTION MAKES HEAD START MORE
IMPORTANT THAN EVER .BEFORE . . . . . .
.
*
'
,
.
.
Head Start's longevity is ba~ed in part on the very basic,
.human needs it meets .• · As violence, poverty, broken families, lack
of health care and poor.nutrition continue to plague our children
-- Head Start is an anchor of hope for the future.
*
It literally saves lives. It saves
families.
· [Introduce Mrs. Gore]
2
futures~
It
sa~es
�Jtastory
' 72
be special classes; there Will be
hOme vtslts; there
will be field trips;
and other ways of sustaining tha head start that these children have
made.
And so toda.y, we ha-~e reached a landmark-not just in educa. tion, but in the maturity of our own democracy.'lbesucceu:rof tbia
year•s program-and our plans tor years to come-are symbols of this
Nation's commitment to .the goal that no American child shall be
, tmticipate in ibc oral . history
f
· member ·Of the orlginal· committ
lo!!ated. Edward Zigler was a meml
• Iince he baa coniributed his remtn
· tbouebt.a are not included in this fo(
r.nndemned to failure by the accident of his birth.
So, on behalf of a very grateful Nation, I welcome you here this
moming, under the leade:rshio of a man whom. I trust a great deal,
and of whorn I am very fond, and to whom all the Nation and, yes,
the world is indP.P.d indebted to his leadership-Sargent Shriver.
I congratulate each of you, too, and I offer to him and to Dr.
lUchmond, and t.t) P.Anh of you, my thanks and my very deep · .
Project Head
'
Start wu desig
appreciation for what you have done for human beings.
p~hool ~o.dinel8 program.
Thank you.
. Besides all you are doing for the Head Starters, you bring me
some good news from the Hilt While I was talkin". the Senate Labor
Committee unanimously reported the higher education bill. So 1 if
intervention into man:v aspects o
you'll.sta:tt them ri~Jbt, we'll finish them right. •
Section 2: The Early Planners
It
basic ubjectivea wctt the impro'
mental ·health, emotional and s
verbal likllls. aelt-eonfidcnce anc
attitudes towards aoeiety and
direCted prunm:il;r at the ehlld aF
well to influence the famil:v a1
belonged.
·•
Head Start. was not a unifi
Introdtaction
The original planning committee convened by Sargent Shriver in ·
January of 196C waz; <;.ompoacd of thirteen mAm hers. These indirepresen~d a .variety of disciplines that have an ongoing
concern for children ami famUies-physiciana, public h~~;Alth experts.
ps.ychologists. sociru workers. ancl early childhood edoeators. In the
spring of 1977, we asked ult the members of the corrunittAP. t.o report
viduals
on the roemories of their work as members of the original planning ·
committee for Head Start.. Twu members of the original planning
committe~, Mamie Clark and Edward l»erry Crump. chose not to
*The Preaident spoke at 10:34 a.m. hi the Rose. Garden at the Whlil Ho~J~e
Wo~ fl l!l'nUp of officials of the war on poverty prngram. Ir~ his opentng
words he referred to Sargmt Shriver, Director of the orn~:c of lkoa.om{O .
Opportunity, and Dr. Juliua B. Richmond, Propam tlidctor ot Pl:oJect Head
·
.Start. Du.rln1 hia rcrnuJuo the Preaict.nt not'I!ITW'!It to his da\1abter, Lu~ BalMS
Jobbllon, and lo Francia Keppel. Commimdoner of Edu~Uon. .
Following the Pre.idcnt'e ramrarlts., UP, Shriver held a meetlnt with report- ·
clistribu~d copies of a. repor& cn~i~hed "Projc10l' He~~~ Start" (1 7 DP.
em and
prcx:essed ).
.·
Tho Hl.._ Edttto.At.lon Act of 1966 wu *PPfOV'ed by the Presidet on
Nov.Plber 8, 1965. . • . ·
~·
.
uniform popula!Jon. ln tho van<:
Yarioua citcumstances it was dir<
· tlons diUSring in uge, etl\nl.o ori;
cultural . ilnpoverlshment, physi
'lbose who were 1nvu1ved in t
·. prosra,tn as a national effort d(
long.ranga changes in the popul
long.range concept of Head Star•
• . There were rnany
dit.t~:~tent l
·members of the Planning Con:
marlly as an effort to improw :
chlldreni some ernphssized .pr
ICidemic success in later schoo
ad inteDectual development:
11pre.ssion and social adjustnle
tha Committee agreed that em
aclusion of others would de!e
111d full development of all ch
ftlch the child lives for part o
lw child receives. the OP(IOrlut
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68
History
-1
Head StGI't. A Retrozpedi:;e View: 'l'he Fo11nclfJn
••
69
~-
But there is one compensation-open nearly BnY door here in ihe
West Wing and you are liable to run into Sargent Shriver. and
sometimes you will :find him in more than one room at the ·same
time.
This is a very proud ocCasion for him and 1or us today, because it
w~ less than three m:>nths ago that we opened a new war f:ont on
poverty. We set out to make certain that po·ferty•s children .would
not be forevermore poverty's captives. We calJed ?ut program ProjectHead Start.
The program wai conceived not BG much. as a Federal effort but
really as a neighborhood effort. and the response we bave receiwd
from the neighborhoods ar.d the cocmunities has been most stirring
and tJu~ most enthusiastic of any peacetime program that I -can
remember.
, Today we are able to announce that we llrill have open, and we
believe opemting this summer, coast-tCH:Oast, some 2,000 childdevelopment centers serving as many as possibly a ~alf million
cliildrer: .
This means that nearly hnlf the preschool children of pove:ty will
get a hEad start on their fut~. These cbi.dren will receiTe preschool
training to prepa~e tb~m for regular school in September. They will
get medical and dental attention that they badly need, and parents
will receive counseling on improliilg the home environment.
ThU is a most remarkable accomplishment and it ha; been done
in a very &hort time. It would not be po!Wble exce?t foi the wi!Hng
and the enthusiastic coopemtion of Americans thro·.1ghout the country.
I believe this res':>Onse ye:flects a realistic ai:d a wholesome
awakening in ·America~ It shows that we are recognizing that. poverty
perpetuates itself.
Five- and six-year-old children are inherit~rs of poverty,s curse
and not ita ereatora. Unless we act these chikl.len will pass it on to
the next generation. like a family- birthmark.
This program this year means that 30 million maD-years-the
combined. lifespan of these youngsters-will be spent productively
and :rewardingly. rather tha., wasted in tax-supported irutitutions or
in welfare--supported lethargy.
I believe that this is Qne of the mDst constnctive. and one of the
mmt sensible. and alao one of the most exciti:lg pzogram& that. this
Nation baa ever cndertaken. I don't say that just tecawe the most
·ardent. and most active and most enthwiasiiic suppoJter of this.
program hap;:aens to be the honorary national chainnan, Mrs. John·
son.
We have ~n up the age-old challenge of pove!ty and we don't
genemti·:>ns of our children to thiJ enemy of the
human race.
·
ThJs program, lik:e so many others, will succeed in.proportion as
supported by voluntary assistance and understanding from all of
people. So we are goillg to need a million ·good neipbors-will give their time for a few hoUJ'8 each week cuing
these children. helping in a huncred ways to draw o~t their
~tial.~
We need housewives and coeds. We need uiachm and doctors.
need :nen and women of all walks and all interestS to lend their
f8]eab, their warmth. their hinds, and ib.eir heart&.
·-"
.
- The bread that is cast upon these water& will swel)l' return many
~sandfold.
,
. ·
· What a .sense o! achievement, and what great- pride, and how
· that wll make all o1 us who love America :feel about tbis
Ptasldent apok.e al 12:20 p.m. in tbe Ro:se Garden at. the Wblk Houae. In
opening wmds bEt referred to Sarpnt Shriv~r. Dmetor of the Office or
Eecmomic Opportunity:
On the sBJr..e day the White Hbuse made the followi:.( mncnmcmumt:
.
··~aidenl Johmon annouoced today that. 2,500 Head Sun projeelli
~which will .eath abQU.t sao.ooc childreD o! the poor lhia Rimmer in n.ooo
- Child Deftlopment. Cen terl will he operated u part ol the Wu on PoveTtJ' in
•tate in the Union. The PMtnm will east. $112 mUiiOIL
Presidel1t. made public tb& find 1.676 projec:b apprond. They
bt.vol-.,. 9,~06 cen*en at. which S1S ,84 2 cbildnm wm be pve:1 ,~pedal f.nliDing
-:at a toW ~ost or $6S,68S,741. The nmaiuder wiU be mnouncad wilbW \wo
''weeks.
"'Th• centers will provide pr.tcbool training to prepare JOID~Jtin to
enblr regcl.u ahool ill t.he Fall.
.
"President Johruon Slid the program wiU 'reliCue tb.ell8 dlildno from :he
poverty wltieh otherwise t!ould pu~ne them .aJl theb Jlvea. Tbc p~ejeet ia
daipaed to pu_\ then on an evu footlnr l\ith tbeir diSIIIIU!.tu as they mt.er
IIICbool."
.
....l'be 'Project will use the llieTVi:ea of 41,000 profe!llionala, induding
-teachea, doce:ar.. datiats, ours., etc. More thaD 4.7,DOO poor lrlU 'be em·
ploy.d. All mmy as 500.000 part-time "olW1teea will be DedMled. Local.
COilcribu.tiou wDl be 516 million.
·
,
_ - ·
·
"'Prellident Johwon empbuized that tile pro~l.stered by SarSbri"?U", Dlnetor of 1he Oftiee of Economic OpportunitT-U aimed to
tlle r oUow:lnc:
-·~St.rite at the buie caW& or poverty.
·~Aasist tbe p~~renb aa well u the ehildzen.
''-ASst. ebildren to ta.c:e life. · · .
'"-TTI!!aL known defects IIIDOnlf the half milliom cbildna. iaclllding
'100,000 with eye difficulties; 60,000 with partial dwnaa; 80,000 wi~
nutlitional. derxieneies: 75,000 with no imnnnlzatlru.s.
.
"The Preaident noted that the -response of the comm'llDltiea to the
ln'ritation to SU3mit proposals Wla •o lfnlat the mze of the pmgraDl had OeeD
multiplied. Al Lhe o•tset, loeal projects ln'folvinf U 7 .milUon and 10 0.000
· ~bUdnn liZitidpated.
·
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11
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Remarks on Announcirt~ Plans To Extend Projeet
Head SUit't, August 31~ 1965
'1-1:
""'
Hellll Start, A Rlllrorpectirlf! Vieu·:
History
'"
Dirtctor Shrit~er. Dr. Richmond, 1'adie$ and gentiemen:
First of all. I we,nt to thank you. Mz. Shriver, for all the good
that you· are doing .. in this country and throoghout tJ:e world in
providing hunanity some of the most dynmnic and intelligent leadership that we have ever seen in thu country.
I want to thank Dr. Richmond for his great contribution to our
efforts in Head Start, and to e1ieJY ;?arson that haa come here this
morning to attend this ceremony.
.
This summer some hope entered the lives d more than 500,000
younpters, and those half million younpters needed ·that hope tt.e
m011t.
·
.Before this summer, they were on the Joad to de:..pair. They were
on ':be road to that 'W&Steland of ignorance in 'Nhich thechildren of
the poor grow up and become the parents of the poor.
But. today, after ~e first trial of Project. Head Start, theae
children are now :ready. to take their places beside .their. more forblnate classmates in regular school.
Nearly 560,000 preschoolers attended 13,41)0 Head Start centers
in 2.500 American cccmunities. In each of those comn:unities this
program generated a new and a neighborly spirit. Near:y a millicn
parents of Head Start children participated. Half a J:Cillion volunteers
(and] 100,000 teacbem and doctors and dentists ar.d neighborhood
workers joined hands in prEparing these children tor school-and fo,r
Ji!e.
Through Head Start, children who hod neYer spoken leamed .1o
talk. Parents who
suspiciollS of ac::hool authorities eame to ·.see
the centers-and they stayed on to help tbeteacheu. Vol11.nteera gare
m.itions of hours to chllcren and proved k: these clild.ten that
somebody. after an. really cared. Teachers tried new approaches ud
they learned new iechnique1..
All 1he workers lived-lived time and again-through an infmite:y
relVI.rding moment~ seeing & child open his eyta and his mind to tlle
wonders of t.'-ili world in which we live, seeing a child who )_lad never
were
..Forty·r..ine perceot of aB a~p]lcationa are from 1'111'41 area In West
Viralnia evwv UM.~oDiy will be rep18181!.t<ild in the prop-am. Of the 300 count:ea
i.r. the Nation ha:tiDg tbe l&qest. a•1mber of poor f:unilies,. 261 will op~n.t.&
project& under lbe propam.
••'I'be r~deo\ co~ted 'he many \b.ccsa.'ld-8 of ci'lri.c leaden, bud·
nessmen. edua.tom. hcu.ewlveJS, labor leaders, wtlfa.re worll'ira,. minority
!r.OUP leadeN a:od repn~~en&atl\'IIS of the poor who to,ether develaped ::he local
projects to meet ti:Je hip a&anauds imposed by natl~al pia.noill' groups."
a book, a child who had never held a pencil, a child who had
tuted a banana or one who :18d never even beard a.fahy lale.
ID New York City, wllere the Spanillwpealdng population is
~~D.'!.ed iD by the language battier, 95 percent of the Head Start
:~dren le11med. enough Bngliah to fit them for school.
ln San Saba. Texas,. Head Start readled beyond the children to
their homes. and ~a-thirds of the parenta of Head Starters
~BI.Ielll:1ed classei designed to make them better parents and better
In Staien Island, New Y ark. a sixteen-year--okl girl mad• a tiny
Starter her very special ?Toje-....'"L T.'lis little girl would not talkJ
not eat, would not react. But through the care and th:rough
patience of just ooe volunteer» the child. :nade such progress that
is able to take her place in IICbool~ Without Head Stut that
might. well have ;;,een duaified as mentelly defective-and
:eondem.ned to life in a dark and a vf:ry nurow world.
-·
PJoject Head Start wl.S concerned with. the physical health of the
as well
with hia mental growth. And through medical cbec:ks
1.055 Head Start children in Jacksonville, Florida, the volunteers
~sc~ered that 52 ~rcent of the children -.,·ere memic. 4a per:eent
~ed dental care, 31 pereen' had hearing detects. 25 pelCent had
trouble. and 5 percent were partially blind.
Volunteers for Vlsio::.. an auxiliary of tJ:e Aaerican Optometry
Association, uamined the eyes of neatly 50,000 children. I know
well the success of this group. because its chailman is a very
friend of mine-a youne lady whom I left. asleep on her bed
mccniDg when I got up, Luci Baines Johnson. ·
These~ only a very few of the many .victories, thoagb, that
baa 6na1Jy won.
•.
.
Project Head Start, which bepn u an exPeriment, ia now battte
and it has been p:roven worthy.
.
.
- · .n.dd I am very happy to mnounoe today that I ha-ve. iuf:rw:ted
Shriver and Fta."lk Keppel to can:y .out plan1 far eztending
Start. with the hope of :making it a. 4pntinuinlf pari of the
!Dericm educational system.
.
.. . .
.
., .
fall, a three-part extension of the prog.riub. wiD. be lauoched.
year·round centers f:>t th..~e:-year-old& and up. We ap~ to
350,000 needy ehildlt!ll in the first lesai.on; ar.d many
the next five years.
.,
Second, summer program5 for tho.se not included. hi the ·,earclasses.. These progmms could involve.
500.0()0 clrlldren
me
u
more
over
summer.
. Third. foUow-ttrough progran:.s foJ ehiJdlen limited to summer
These will begin wi1h this yeu•s Head starters: There ~
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HeOJl Star!, A Bdn,npe:dil.lff V.ieu:: The Founder~
.. ..,. ..:
Remarks on Announcmg Plans To Extend Project
Head Start~ August 31,1965
"
DlrtctorShritrer. Dr. Richmond, 1'adies and gentiemen:
Fir.st of all. I want to thank you. Mr. Shriver, for all the good
thai you· are doing .. in this country and throughout tt.e world in
providing hur.unity some of the most dynmnic and intelligent l~r
shiJ:· that we have ever seen in thu country.
I want to thank Dr. Ricbmonc;l. for his great eootribution to our
efforts in Head St:art. and to m;eJ:Y ?erson that has come here this
morning to attend this ceremony.
This summer some hope entered the lives cf more tba:n 500,000
youngsters. and those half million youngsters needed that hope tte
m011t.
Before this summer. they were on the road to de:~pai:r. They were
on :be road to that wasteland o:t ignoranca in which the children of
the poor grow up and become the parents of tht poor.
But today, after the first trial of Project. Head Start. these
children are now ready. to bt.ke their places beside their more fortunate classmates in regular school.
Nearly 560,000 preschoolers attended 13,41)0 Head Start centers
in 2,500 American ooomunities. In each of those comu:unities this
pro~ generated a new and a nei~borly spirit. Near:y a millicn
parents of Head Start children participated. HaJI a ~r.illion volunteers
[and] 100.000 teache:m and doctors and dE!lltists ar.d neighborhood
workers joinEd hands in pr~paring thes.e children for school-1ind f"r
life.
Through Head Start, children who had never spoken learned 1o
talk. Parents who were suspicions of achool authorities came to see
the centers-and they stayed on to help the teacheu. Volunt.ea.s gave
mitions of houn to chilcren and proved tc these children that
somebody. a!ter all. really cared. Tea:heu tried nell' approaches 81ld
they learned new techniques.
All the workem lived-lived time and again-1hrough an infmite:y
re-.rding moment: seeing a child open his eyu and his mind to the
wonders. of t.llla world in which we live, seeing a. child who had never
••Fort;y..r.ine p<m:eo.t; ot an arp)kations are from raral areas. In West
V!.rginia eoretY county will be rep:cetentecl in t.ba prop-am. Of tbt 30G count.ea
It:. the Natio:a lm:vmg the \aries\ o•.unber of poor f:~miliet.. 26! will op~nte
projects undu tbe program.
..'l'be l'resideai coacntu)ate.! the ·n-.any tb.ousa.'\d.s of eivie leaden, busi·
ttesamea. eda~tom,. hounrive.11,. labor leaders, w•lfare wodi!jl'8, mtnorit.y
t.OUP leaders and repnunlati.vn of the poor wb:o together deve1::.pcd ':he local
project& t.o meet tile blgh ata.uards impo..ced by natJ~al pluming groups."
'11
a book, a child who had never held a pend, a child who had
wted a b81'1ana or one who !lad never even heard a-falr,y tale .
ID New Yark City. where the Spani.ih.apeaking populaUon · is
[hmn::.ed iD by the tanguage battier. 95 percent of the Head Start
~~dren learned. enough Bnsfish to fit them for school.
In San Saba. Texas,. Head Start readled beyond the children to
their homes. and two-thirds of the parents o:t.Head Starters
classes designed to make them better parents &lld better
:Jaomemakers..
·
·:.In Staten Island. New York. a sixteen-year-o4i girl mad~ a t.i.ny
Starter he:r very special ~rojeet. T:1is liWe Jid would not talk,
not eat, would not react. But through the care and thm!J.Ib,
patience of just one volunteer, the child :nade such progress that
ahe is able to take her place in achool. Without Head Start that
might. well have been claaaified as mentally defective-and
tnned to life in a dark and a very n~w wo1ld.
Project Head Start was coDcemed with the physical health of the
as wen aa with hJa mental growth. And through medical checks
1.055 Head Start childien in Jacksonville; Florida. me volunteers
liscovered ·that 52 ~rcent of the children were memic, 4:i pen:ent
dental care, 31 percent had hearing defects, 25 pereent bad
trouble. and 5 percent were partially blind.
Volunteers for Visio:t. an auxiliary of tl:e Aoerican Optometry
[AssoclatioD. examined the e}'es of neady 50,000 children. I know
well the. succesa of this group. becau..~ its chairman is a very
friend of mine-a young lady whom I left asleep on he.r bed
mcmmg when I got up, Lucl Baines Johnson. ·
These~ only a very few of the man)! :vicmries. tho'J8b, that
Start hu ftnalJy won.
· ,
·: •
':Project. Head Sta:t, which began aa an experiment, is now battle
and ii ha been proven worthy.
.
And I am very happy to annomce today that I have in.stNcted
lj'iltgmt Sluiver and Fra."1k Keppel to cany out plana for eztending
StaJt,. with the hope of making it a 4pntinuing part of the
~can educational system.
.. ,
. •.,.
fall. a three-parl ea:tensiou of the pl'OIJ'iuh will be laum:b.ed.
yeaNound centers f::.r th..-ee:-year-old& and up. We ap~ to
350,000 needy childft!D in the first. iession. ar..d many more
the next five years.
.,
Second,. summer ·progr.uns for those not inchided. in the ·yeardasseL These programs could involve.
500.®0 cbildren
summer•
foUow·tt.rough prograrr.a fo:r children limited to su:mmer
These will begin with this yeu's Head starters: 'l'here will
·
over
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Bagkground Information
signing ~ent-gy 1B'tb
,provided to the Office of the First Lady
fQ!: the Hei\d. 8iJ.rt Bill
Early Lan4marks in Heag Start History
o
~ho
climate o£ tllf;;l country leading up to the establishment
of Head start:
- There was increasing recognition of poverty,
more than 30 million Americans were poor in
the early 1960's, half of them children. Publication
of The Other Merica, Michael Harrington, 1962.
- Pea.ssage ot the Civil Rights Act in 1964.
- we were in the ·post Sputnik era with an
emphasis on education.
- There was increasinq recognition of tho impact
of environment on child development and the critical
importance of tbe early years to latar development.
(The work of J. Mcvicker Hunt and Benjamin Bloom) •
. - There was increasing ·recognition that children must be
seen in the context nf thair f~ilics and famili~s
in the context ·of their communities. (The work of Urie
Bronfenbrennar).
- Before Ha~rl start, there were a few p:t·u9rams
which focused on.early childhood including
early efforts by Susan
o The
the war
on
E~onomdc
Gr~y,
Opportunity Act
Martin Deutsch and others.
W4~
passea in l964 launching
Poverty
The War on Poverty included Job Corp, to provide education
and trainin9 for employ.ent; community Action Programs, to aid
communities in planning and administering their own assistance
programs for the poor; and VISTA.
.
o May 18, 1965 -
President
Lyndon Johnson announced the first
Head Start: progrd.ms
rn l9G5 nearly 56o,ooo preschoolers attended 13,400 Head
start Centers in 2,500 American communities for an eiqht w~ek
summer program. congressional appropriation, 96.4 million.
�5-16-94
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Pegple to recognize
NOTF.- people listed below are on the invitation list but
attendance not confirmed as on 5/16/94
o Lynda Johnson Robb {representing the Johnsons).
Mrs. Lyndon Johnson was the honorary Chair of the Head
Start Proqram. She is quoted as saying that she wrote in her
diary, "Head Start has such hope and challengeR. In early 1965;
she hela 4 ceJ:.'emony in the East Room, followed by a tea in tbe
Red Room to announce the proqram and call for volunteers. (Since
Johnson•~ interests were in recruiting volunteers, an effort
that turned out to be very successful, Mrs. Clinton may want to
announce a new initiative that is being launched by The Head
start Bureau with the Ad Council to once aqain recn1it
volunteers, sendinq a challenge to the nation to get involved in
a new qeneration of Head start). SEE ATTACHEn MATERIAL.
Mrs.
Sargea~t Shriver was the original
Economic Oppnrtunity. He appointed D~.
Cooke to head the Planning Committee which desiqned the Head
Start program (SEH attachment for planning document).
o Mr. and Mrs. Shriver
Director of the Office of
o The planning
committe~~
Dr. Robert Cooke, Chair of the Be;:ui Stllrt Planning
Committee, at that time he was chairman of Pediatrics and
Pediatrician in Chi"'f of John Hopkins Jlospita.l.
Edward Zi9ler
Urie Bronfrenbrenner
Georqe B:rai.n
Edward oavens
Mitchell Ginsberg
James Hymes
Reginald s. ~ourie
John H. Niemeyer
Myron E. We911la.n
Edward Perry crump
Jacqueline Grennan Wexler
o 'l'he
Ea~·ly
Aaminls:trat:ors
Dr. vulius Richmona, Tbe first Director and Jule Sugarman,
the Associate Director. Mr. Sugarman also served a~ Ex~cutivo
secretary or the Head start Planning committee. Dr. Richmond
later served as surqeon General.
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o Joseph Calitano, served as Special Assistant for Domestic
Affairs to President Johnson, ov~rsoeeing domestic pr09rams
including Head start. Later served as secretary of HEW under.
President
C~rt~r.
o Marian
Wrigll~ Edelman,
Early Head Start euppo.-rter· in
Mississippi and tireless advocate for the program in her role as
President of the Children's Defense Fund.
o Dr. Bettye Caldwell- an early
pione~.c
in early childhood
education.
o Teachers, directors, children, parents and .volunteers from
~£ 1965. Several have been invited.
the £irst class
o The 47 members oi the Advisory Committee on Head Start
Quality and Expansion, Appointed by Secretary Shalala and Chaired
by or. Mary Jo Bane, ASsistant Secretary for Childrsn and
Families.
Points ot Inte:r.w
o We needed a bigger space to hold the event than in 1965,
look at how Head Start has grown (In 1965, ceremony w~~ in the
'Rose Garden, today on the lawn) During·that ceremony, 4 children
who were to be enrolled in.the first proqram, ~tood on tho steps
of the Rose Garden. Since then, more than 13 million children and
their families have participated in Head start.
o The early planners were tnJe visionaries They de6i9ned
a program that focused on the whole child in the context ·of
family, a proqram of compreh~nsive ~arvioes including education,
health, parent involvement and education. Head start lead the way
for current Qffnrt.s such as family support/ pa.rent education,
inteqrated services and school readiness, the first education
Th~y designed a program that recoqniz;ed diversity and the
importance of community, concepts w-e va,l.ue as critically
gr•al.
i1uportant to children and filltdlies
o Hoalth
service~ h~ve
todc:~.y.
been a key. component to ueaa Start
success. Head Start provides critical linkaqes to Health and
nutritional Gervic::efi, inclu.diuy .Lmmunization, medical and dental
screening and follow-up treatment.
.
-
o P4rents
-
wen~t c.;t;mLcal
trom the beginning
k~y to Head start success and a
defininq characteristic is parent involvement.
The
3
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Maximum feasible participation 1' was an important
concept which eneouraqed stron9 parent ana
community involvement.
- In the summer of 1965 about one million
parents participated.
y~ars'tailli.ons mare ha.ve parLlcipated as
volunteers, on policy councils 1 in parenting
-over the
claeaea end have z:-ec.ei ved importeutl. 5ocial services.
- More than one-third ·o£ all Head Start staff
are former parents. .
o Head Start Changes Lives. Head start has been successful
in improving the lives of low-income chiioren and families. Head
Start is more than an institution, for millions of American
children ~nd ramilies, Head start is a relationship that provides
support and a sense of community.
Attachments·
o Remarks by President Lyndon Johnson, May 18th, 1965
o Remarks by President Lyndon Johnson, August Jl1 1965
o The Cooke Memorandum, February, 1965 (The original planning
document).
o Creating a 21st Century Head start, The Final Report of ~he
Advisory Committee on Head Start Improvement and Ekpansion, 1993
(SEE
Page 7 ¥or
PA~Ant Quot~)
n The He-ad Start Pact Sheet
o Material from The Ad Council Cnmpo.ign to recruit
(about to be launched)
volunte~rs
HigtoricQl Referencea
Zigler and Valentine (1979) P:p.dect Head start: A Legacy ot
the War on Poverty, New York: The Free Press.
Zigler and ~uenchow {1992) Hegg Start: The Inside Story of
Most suqcee~ful Educational Experiment, Basic Books.
~erica•s
4
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The Report of the- Advisoz Cofl'!l"li~f:cc on Head Stan <E:Uity and Expansion
!!liiii
The voices of Head Start parents best tell the Head Start story. In
comments to the Advisory Committee, parents sald:
"Head Start luu
not only given
my child a Head
Sttlrt in life, buJ
one for me tu ·
well."
"/have ftve children a11d I am a single parent. 1 came· to '
live in my wwn after an 11 year ubusive marriage, witll no
clothing. no housing/ no 11WIIey. We just picked up and l~ft.
... It was my daughter's turn to go to school... I got invplved
in every aspect of the progmm. .• Head Stan htJs not only
given my child a Head Start in life, but one for me as well. "
Head Start Parent
MllSSachusetts
"! thoushl it wa.r a bunch nf bull iha! bureaucrats would let
us help maJce the decisions. Low income people-no waywe have always been herded !lvuugh the 5)1.rtem by tlaeir
rules. Rules made by people we didn't know. After all they
hud !lever lived as l had. Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa
Claw and Hctl.d Start really works."
•.
- Head Start Parent
Oregon
The real workings and success of Head Start can also be heard in the
stories told .by staff. For example, Hctu:l Start staff have said:
"So marcy families who enroll in Head Start feel that their
li vts happen to them-what's going to happen to !'1UJ today?
We try to help them see that you have a say in what
happens-you can.set a goal, a direCtion, then go after it."
Head Start Staff'
New Hampshire
Head Start har ctlllsed people to m.ove .from 'I can't to 1
can. just let me jiild the way', "
11
"Head Start has
caused people to
-
moPe from '1
can't to 1 Ctz!', ·
just let me f/:Jul
the way'· n
Head Stnrt Staff
Louisiana
"The expectation and belief of parents that their child can
succeed and is capable of learning and doing weU 08 a
mmsber of ¥he co1nliUUiity o.nd wort fOrce may be lhe mo.st
. ~aUP.nt and long·laiti'ng affect of the proi:ram. •
Head Start Staff
Iown
J.
C~eatiDB a 21st ee~ H~:ad Start
Page?
�t1J.>LU1.)'
;nany,
and marally. So IthinkHeadStartugoodfort:tlec:st
~uons. They come first. Evaluating the propm just in terms of
.;o imge, or bow much be~ter clill.dren do in the eighth gra:ie
~.ving beer. in Read Stmt at age !our. is a hopeless effort.
::i:jldnn in Bead Start do get chances to prepare themselves
~)nall:f for. scl:ooL That helps.· Fourth. a 11ense of communitjj
~spolUibility is developed among all Head Start patticip.uits.
0
a.:'l.a,t helps..
.
.
· ·
l believe that the effOit that is made· with Head Start ld&! for
~an. mould noto end when they go into the primarY grades. Regu.t~
:booing s.l)ould be like Head Start. Bead Start was a dem.onstrati~
LBt as Upwar4:fBoond and the Job Caps were demonstrations,; ·
1e failure of ·our -:Amer.can school syltem to prc)vide many
r illdren with the. kinds of edt:ca.tion they need.1be S!IpteDe
~as ruled. that. constitutionally, hmd.ica.ppe4 chtldien must.
~ 1 education from the public school &yEtem wl;icb is nlted to
~; has Nled that mentally letarded children must rece:ve. u
~:n:asitutiocal rig.bt, an education suitable for them. The &C~'lool
~~II! has not been giving the kind of education they need to
11
~andieapped or mentally retarded. or poor childreil. I am not tota v:
ondemning the .school system. which is grossly undetfi.nanced. I
ondernning all of as. bcluC.ing myself, fcrt ru:m.lni a &Jciety
vhicb we do not sufficiently husband our own resources. in
-~ve do not sufficiently C.evelop ou own children~ we do not
~:iently inspire or motivate or educate them.. while we .spend b1moW1;
~.nd billions of dollars doins a 'llfhole lot of th.ings that. in
.;o:ontribute to their bad education.
·
. _ Tlls bi why. allowing fot the hindaisht gained over ten yem.
""'.eel that with the know!edge available at that time, and the money.j
~R had at that time, Head Start wu a fabulous success. Thi• is not
~;ay t:1at it w~ perfect. Nor ia Lt to say that we couldn't have
toi.letter. I am sure we could have done better. But; none of
·-ulmissions denies the fact that it was a tremendous success.
All of the OEO progra:ns brought ·tundalnental changes
.mprov.ements in our soeiety. so fundamental tb.at even Nixon
not get rid of them in eight years of tJyiniJ. He set oat to demolish!
gthem, but even he, with all his s;:ower and all his heDc1ur.en.
-Jnot destroy therri. The Nixon and Ford admi.nistrations should bear
o:Jtremandous burden of gailt for what. they did to those pro~s.
tl.American people Eust have e.ppreciated their quality; otherwise
~Ulemselves woul~ t.ave risen up to discontinue them. But ibey
Odid.
~
Head Start was not and 1& not the final ansver to poverty.
;.:.sta.:rted many progauns that covered health, justicet education. jobs.
It is hard to say which effort contributed most to alleviating poverty.
. 'Jbe reality is that defidencies in all these areas handicap tlle poor. A
poor penon in tb.ia 4oclety il a person who is suffering from mwtiple
bruises atid lacerations.. And those bruises and lacent.ions are medical, psychological, and intellectual. From the time of conception
onward, the poor suffer from mrltiple wounds to their egos.. brains.
.and bodies. It ia impossible to tum such victims into indepe:1dent
perams capable of eamlng their own way. of becoming fu11y part(ci-
patbg members of a hlghJ:y industrialized aoeiety. solely by giving
them a job, a visit to a hosp!tal. or a house, or an opportu."lity for an
education. lD fact. we'w got to provide all those thinp. And nobod)"
in thiS society likes that. AmerieaDs resent such efforts because we all
lhare the obsolete notion that •II) got to where I am by myaelf. I
worked to ge1 there. Why dan~ those other guys just work as bud a
I do?" But the tmtb ia tbat no one does it. alone.
Of cou:rae every tnaividwd has to make an effort as well. 'lbe
llopn of the War on l'overty was; uwe glve you a hand up. not a
handout.'" No matter what. anybody does for an individua11 uliil·
mately be or she baa to do something foT himself or herself. Everything in the War 0:1 Foverty was designed 1o offer the poor a chance.
We were continually hying to maneuver things to induce people to
lift ;hemsel:ves out of poverty. We would o:fer a job, an education. a
little better place to live. The basic idea was to jjve an incentive. But
it's tme. however. that no matter how many incentives you offer
people. a certain proportion of them, pocr and rich alike. wilJ do
nothing.
·
In the final analysi& one could ask~ "Was Head Start enough?u
The answer is obvioulsy "No." Was. it, is it as good as it could be'i
Again, tba an.~wer is "No... But Head Start still was a miracle. It has
been and continues to be a t.enific thing for fam.i.ies a:::td cbildre:1.' ·
Speeches by Lyndc;n. B • .lohman
Remarks on Project Head Start, :May 18, 1965
Mr. Shriver. la~ies and gentlemen., distingui$hed suests:
On this beautiful spring day it is good to be outside in the Rose
Garden. Of course, the Whi~ House is a ~e where wben you go
outslde you are still inside.
"'
In that same vf!.in, I would note that the Rose Garden is a garden
without roses today, and the Fish Ro6m is now a room ~i:hout fish.
o:J
t-
fj
rn
c~•.
�
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
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Speechwriting
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First Lady’s Office
Speechwriting
Date
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1994
Is Part Of
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<a href="http://clinton.presidentiallibraries.us/items/show/36105">Collection Finding Aid</a>
Identifier
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2012-1004-S
Description
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Within the First Lady’s Office, Speechwriting assisted with the writing and editing of the speeches given by the First Lady at various events and on various trips. This collection highlights topics relating to the arts and humanities, women’s issues and organizations, medical issues and organizations, health care, the economy, the military, and the efforts of the First Lady on behalf of candidates running in the 1994 midterm elections. It contains speeches given by the First Lady, and speeches given by President Clinton and Ira Magaziner, to a wide variety of organizations and audiences during 1994. The records include memos, notes, speech drafts, talking points, pamphlets, articles, correspondence, and newsletters.
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Clinton Presidential Records: White House Staff and Office Files
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150 folders in 10 boxes
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HRC [Hillary Rodham Clinton]/Head Start 5/20/94
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First Lady’s Office
Speechwriting
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2012-1004-S
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Box 1
<a href="http://www.clintonlibrary.gov/assets/Documents/Finding-Aids/Systematic/2012-1004-S-Speechwriting.pdf">Collection Finding Aid</a>
<a href="https://catalog.archives.gov/id/1766805" target="_blank">National Archives Catalog Description</a>
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Clinton Presidential Records: White House Staff and Office Files
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