Stimulus money pumped into Head Start Program

Congressman Baron Hill, D-9th District, announced that a yearly grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services will be given to the South Central Community Action Program in Indiana.

Doug Wilson, SCCAP director of communications, said the grant will be used to expand SCCAP’s Head Start Program, a six-hour-per-day, year-round program that prepares children for elementary education.

Wilson said the grant is from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, commonly referred to as the federal stimulus package. The grant will be dispersed in January 2010.

Todd Lare, SCCAP executive director, said he was glad to see the organization’s voucher numbers go up with the funding.

“The grant is competitive,” Lare said. “When we applied, we were competing on a state and national level for funding.”

He said the program will now be accommodating an extra 32 students and that search for a new location is not over.

“We will use our data and regulations to find out which place in Monroe County will be appropriate to accommodate our new location,” Lare said.

Shirely Stumpner, director of SCCAP, said she was glad the program can take more eligible students because it had so many potential students wait-listed.

Lare also explained that the extra money will mainly be used to fund new educators and assistants, better transportation and an extra location for classroom activities.

Congressman Hill said in a Sept. 21 press release that “this is further evidence that stimulus money is flowing back into Southern Indiana.”

Both Wilson and Lare said they are extremely excited about the prospect of getting the grant for at least two years.

Stumpner also explained she applied for the grant because she felt families that were working or studying needed to find a safe activity for their children.

“The Head Start Program helps students, according to research, and it will also help those families with young children who work or study,” Stumpner said.