Md.'s Head Start Programs In Jeopardy Of Losing Funding

BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- Maryland's Head Start program is in jeopardy as the federal budget battle hits close to home.

Andrea Fujii explains how Maryland's senators are fighting to save it.

Head Start is more than just childcare for 4-year-old Navea.

"Been able to socialize with other children, getting her ready to go into elementary school," said Gregory Casey, father.

Head Start provides free education to thousands of Maryland children from low-income families. House Republicans are proposing to drop more than $12 million of program funding, such that 2,300 Maryland kids would be cut.

House Republicans say it's all meant to slash $61 billion from this year's budget, saying the cuts are painful and unavoidable.

"We in this new majority were elected by the nation to begin to deal with the terrible burden of the debt," said Rep. John Culberson, (R) Texas.

Maryland Senators Barbara Mikulski and Ben Cardin are vowing to fight the plan for places like Saint Jerome's Head Start in Baltimore.

"Their desire to cut the budget is really cutting these children's future," said Mikulski.

"We can't allow Congress to tell children that they can't have this program," said Cardin.

Without Head Start, Navea's family worries they can't afford childcare and hope the budget can be balanced somewhere else.

"They're going to make things extremely hard financially for other parents who can't afford to send their child nowhere else," said Casey.

The budget proposals will be up for a vote again next Friday.