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Share with Legislators ACNJ president’s Op-ed supporting legislative bills to invest in child care.

Posted on April 21, 2022

It's time to address the long-time child care crisis in New Jersey. The pandemic didn’t create it – it exposed it.

Let's urge legislators to support Senate Majority Leader Teresa Ruiz's comprehensive package of bills that would help parents, strengthen programs and support staff. One bill, S-2476 (pending introduction), incentivizes the development of child care for infants and toddlers, the most difficult for families to find.

Share the op-ed authored by ACNJ President Cecilia Zalkind describing this historic proposal.

The package comes with a $360 million price tag. But we need to tell state leaders that this is an investment we cannot afford not to make.

Read the Op-Ed

New Jersey's commitment to children has led to extraordinary advances, putting the state ahead of the rest of the country and most importantly, improving the lives and well-being of newborns and preschool-age children.

But we are still missing the babies.

Let's make some noise for child care and take a moment to send a message to your state leaders that this is a critical investment for children, families and for our economy.

During this legislative session, ACNJ is calling on the state to:

Improve access to infant/toddler care by increasing the number of available child care programs;
Expand child care assistance for parents of very young children; and
Support the child care workforce, who have historically been underfunded and underappreciated

Head Start Toolkit 2026

Post author By Eloisa Hernandez-Ramos
Post date September 23, 2026

Posted on September 23, 2026

YOUR VOICE is needed to stop proposed changes that will be devastating to the Head Start program.

DEADLINE FOR COMMENTS: OCTOBER 6TH

On August 7th, the federal government proposed changes to the rules governing Head Start programs, titled Renewing the Promise of Head Start for the Next Generation. This Notice of Proposed Rule Making (NPRM) would roll back changes that were proposed by the previous administration and took effect in 2024. One of the first acts of this administration at the start of their term was an attempt to defund Head Start programs. Because of a backlash across the country from Head Start staff, families, and advocates, that proposal was revoked.

Once more, YOUR VOICE is needed to ensure that these harmful changes DO NOT happen! We are asking you to comment on the proposed changes. The deadline is Oct. 6.

Here is a link to a short summary of the key changes, removals, and additions in the NPRM. These proposed changes attack basic health and safety standards, as well as remove timelines for routine health screenings, allow expulsion of children with special needs, mandate English-only instruction, and more. This will only serve to weaken Head Start, not serve more children with greater flexibility for states.

This toolkit will give you facts about Head Start, information about the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM), suggested comments, and instructions on how to leave comments on the NPRM.

BACKGROUND

HEAD START BASICS

Head Start is much more than child care. It serves the whole family with resources and supports beyond high-quality early childhood education: health screenings, referrals for food/housing, lower ratios for children that need extra support in class, just to name a few. Nationwide, Head Start serves nearly 700,000 children, roughly 250,000 staff, and more than 1,600 Head Start grant recipients. In New Jersey, there are 12,388 children and 4,312 staff in 191 centers.

The “Head Start promise” is the promise that a child will be safe, healthy, and ready for school - and that families can count on high-quality support wherever they live. Local programs should have room to respond to their communities, but the basic promise should not change from one community to another.

Head Start works, and it works because of its high standards. Six decades of evidence show that Head Start improves school readiness, increases high school graduation and college enrollment, connects children to health and dental care, and produces lasting gains in adult earnings and family stability. Head Start’s results are possible because of the program standards that all programs offer high-quality and comprehensive services.
- Children who attend Head Start have better outcomes in the long run, including being more likely to graduate high school and attend college and be gainfully employed. Children who attend Head Start are less likely to need public benefit programs as adults.
For many families, Head Start is the only option. In communities across the country, and in most rural areas, Head Start is the only early learning program available. It is often the only place a family can get a developmental screening, a hearing and vision check, or a dental exam.
- In New Jersey, Head Start is often the only option for families not residing in a district receiving Preschool Expansion Aid; Many Head Start programs offer fully-funded year-round schooling, not offered by districts or other providers
The Administration proposed significant cuts to the standards that will weaken Head Start. The Administration proposed changes that, if finalized, would significantly weaken the program in three ways 1) lowering the quality standards and services that children receive 2) undermining the role of parents and 3) limiting access for children most in need of Head Start services. The proposal eliminates over 90% of the standards, including many of the services that make the program uniquely successful for children with the highest needs.

Stand for Head Start Video

READ THE OFFICIAL NOTICE (NPRM)

Head Start Notice of Proposed Rulemaking: Reducing Federal Burden for Head Start Programs

Federal Register Notice:Department of Health and Human Services
Administration for Children and Families
45 CFR Part 1301, 1302, 1303, 1304, and 1305

RIN 0970-AD30

“This NPRM proposes to rescind and replace the Head Start Program Performance Standards (Performance Standards), last revised in 2024. The proposed Performance Standards would significantly reduce Federal bureaucratic burden on programs; defer to State policies wherever possible; return substantial local control to Head Start agencies delivering the services and to parents as the primary caregivers and decision-makers for their children; reduce unnecessary duplication of Head Start regulations with Federal statute and other regulations; and emphasize the critical role of health, nutrition, and physical exercise for young children. Please submit comments on this NPRM by October 6, 2026.

WHAT YOU CAN DO

Everyone can comment, both as an individual and as an organization, anonymously or by name. There is no limit on the length of comments, but it is critical that comments be sent between now and October 6.

To comment on the current Head Start Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) titled "Reducing Federal Burden for Head Start Programs," submit your feedback online through the Federal eRulemaking Portal before the 60-day public comment period closes at 11:59 PM EDT on October 6, 2026. Ensure your submission references docket number ACF-2026-0595 or RIN 0970-AD30.

HOW TO COMMENT

Here is a helpful, Simple Guide to Submitting a Public Comment

Submission Options

Online: Visit the Head Start proposed rule on Regulations.gov and click the "Comment" button on the top left of the page (or top center depending on device). Follow the prompts to type or upload your text.
By Mail: Send written comments to the Office of Head Start, Attention: Director of Policy and Planning, 330 C Street SW, 4th Floor, Washington, DC 20201.

SAMPLE COMMENT STARTERS

Please personalize your comments and use the comment starters as suggestions only.

For child care providers (not just Head Start!)

As a provider of Head Start services/early childhood education, I am concerned that the proposed changes would weaken the clear federal standards that help programs deliver consistent, high-quality services. In my program, these standards help us [share an example].
The proposed reduction in federal requirements could create uncertainty for programs and uneven experiences for children and families. Strong standards are especially important because [describe the needs of the families or community you serve].
I am particularly concerned about changes affecting children with disabilities, dual-language learners, family engagement, and comprehensive services. These supports matter in our program because [share an example or outcome].
Head Start providers need meaningful relief from unnecessary administrative burdens, but reducing the Program Performance Standards from 122 pages to approximately 12 pages goes far beyond streamlining. I urge HHS and ACF to withdraw the proposed rule and work directly with providers, families, and experts on responsible improvements.

*Remember to personalize your comments!

For parents and family members

Head Start has supported my child and family by [describe the education, health, nutrition, disability, language, or family support your family received]. I am concerned that the proposed changes could weaken these services for future families.
My child deserves a program with strong, consistent standards, qualified staff, and appropriate support for their individual needs. Please preserve the protections that help children, including children with disabilities and dual-language learners, participate and succeed.
Head Start serves the whole family. Our program helped us with [share a personal example], and that support made a difference because [describe the impact]. These comprehensive services should remain a central part of Head Start.
Families should have a meaningful voice in decisions that affect their children. I urge HHS and ACF to listen to Head Start parents and withdraw the proposed rule.

*Remember to personalize your comments!

For concerned citizens and community members

Head Start is an essential part of our community’s early childhood system. It helps children prepare for school while connecting families with health care, nutrition, developmental services, and other critical supports.
I am concerned that weakening national Head Start standards could lead to inconsistent program quality and fewer protections for children and families, depending on where they live.
Strong Head Start programs benefit entire communities by supporting children’s development, helping parents work or continue their education, employing local residents, and partnering with other community organizations.
I urge HHS and ACF to withdraw the proposed rule and engage families, providers, early childhood professionals, and community leaders in developing changes that protect Head Start’s quality and comprehensive approach.

*Remember to personalize your comments!

RESOURCES

NHSA Resources

Statements and Research

The 74: Head Start Was Built to Include Children With Disabilities. Don’t Weaken It
NIEER: The race to the bottom: What replacing Head Start ratios standards with state child care minimums will mean for children in poverty: “Three key takeaways from the data: Currently, only 12 states (24%) have child care licensing standards that meet the 1:4 staff-to-child ratio requirement set by Head Start for children ages 1-2. The vast majority allow more children per staffer; Just 4 states, or 8%, have child licensing ratios requirements equivalent to those of Head Start for two year olds, and only 3 states (6%) meeting ratio standards for two-and a half year olds; and If the Head Start ratio standards are eliminated defaulted to state child care minimums, the number of toddlers per staffer will more than double in 9 states, including Mississippi, Louisiana, Georgia, Arkansas, Kentucky, Texas, Florida, North Carolina and Nevada.”
Schoolhouse Connection: Proposed Head Start Rule Eliminates Critical Protections for Children Experiencing Homelessness
- o Proposed Head Start Rule Eliminates Critical Protections for Children Experiencing Homelessness an In-Depth SHC Analysis
CSCCE: Head Start’s False Choice: Expanding Access by Weakening the Workforce

Quick links

Background Information

What You Can Do

How to Submit Comments

Sample Comment Starters

Resources

Head Start in New Jersey: What It Is and Why It Matters

Post author By Aisha Khan
Post date September 22, 2026

Posted on September 22, 2026

Cindy Shields
Senior Policy Analyst for Early Childhood Education

More Than 60 Years of Opportunity

For more than 60 years, Head Start has made a powerful promise: children from low-income families will receive not only high-quality early education, but also the health, developmental, nutritional, and family supports they need to thrive.

The federal government is proposing sweeping changes that could fundamentally weaken that promise. The proposal would rescind most of the current Head Start Program Performance Standards and give programs and states greater flexibility. Reducing unnecessary administrative burdens is a worthwhile goal, but flexibility cannot come at the expense of children’s safety, program quality, or essential services.

The effects would reach far beyond Head Start classrooms. Head Start not only enables parents to work, attend school, and volunteer, but also builds children’s lifelong skills, employs thousands of New Jersey residents, purchases goods and services from local businesses, and connects families with critical resources.

Head Start is too important, and too deeply connected to New Jersey’s well-being, to fail.

From a Summer Program to a National System

Created in 1965 as part of President Lyndon B. Johnson’s War on Poverty, Head Start began as an eight-week summer program and grew into a comprehensive, year-round system serving children and families in urban, suburban, rural, and Tribal communities. Head Start primarily serves children ages 3 to 5, while Early Head Start supports pregnant women, infants, and toddlers. Eligibility is generally based on household income, although children experiencing homelessness, children in foster care, and families receiving certain forms of public assistance may also qualify. Programs may enroll a limited number of children whose family incomes exceed the federal guidelines, particularly when community needs or a child’s circumstances warrant additional support. Learn more about Head Start eligibility.

Head Start Reflects and Responds to New Jersey’s Diverse Communities

Head Start and Early Head Start provide comprehensive early education, health and developmental screenings, dental care, nutrition, family support, and connections to essential community resources. In New Jersey, the programs offer 12,388 funded seats across 191 centers, serving families from a wide range of racial, cultural, linguistic, and economic backgrounds. Approximately 7,790 children—63% of the state’s Head Start enrollment—are dual-language learners.

Head Start also prioritizes children and families who frequently encounter the greatest barriers to high-quality early learning, including children with disabilities, children experiencing homelessness, and children in foster care. Its community-based approach allows programs to respond to families’ languages, cultures, strengths, and individual circumstances. In areas without state-funded public preschool, Head Start may be one of the only affordable, comprehensive early childhood options available.

Head Start Helps Parents Work and Strengthens the Economy

Reliable early care and education is essential to parents’ ability to enter and remain in the workforce. More than 8,100 New Jersey parents whose children participate in Head Start work, attend school, or complete job training.

When parents know their children are safe and supported, they can report to work consistently, pursue education, and develop skills that help them advance in their careers. Employers benefit from a more reliable workforce, while families gain greater financial stability.

If Head Start services become less comprehensive, accessible, or responsive to families’ needs, parents may be forced to reduce their hours, leave school or training, turn down employment, or leave the workforce completely. Lost wages affect family budgets and reduce spending in local communities.

Head Start programs are also economic engines themselves. They purchase food, diapers, books, classroom materials, technology, furniture, cleaning supplies, insurance, and professional services. They contract with transportation companies, trainers, consultants, health professionals, mental health consultants, building-maintenance providers, and other local businesses.

When programs reduce services or staff, those decisions ripple through the economy. Purchasing fewer meals affects food vendors. Cutting professional development affects trainers and consultants. Reducing transportation affects drivers and transportation companies. Postponing facility improvements affects contractors and suppliers.

Money invested in Head Start circulates through employee wages, household spending, vendor contracts, and purchases from businesses across New Jersey.

For more than six decades, Head Start has grown into a vital part of the communities it serves, supporting children and families while contributing to the state’s workforce and economy. Currently, the program faces proposed changes, and examining the potential implications of those changes is essential to understanding what's at stake for New Jersey and its families.

Head Start Is Too Important to Weaken: What the Proposed Changes Could Cost New Jersey

Read here.

Read our latest updates on early care and education.

Head Start Is Too Important to Weaken: What the Proposed Changes Could Cost New Jersey

Post author By Aisha Khan
Post date September 22, 2026

Posted on September 22, 2026

Cindy Shields
Senior Policy Analyst for Early Childhood Education

The Proposed Changes Could Destabilize New Jersey’s Child Care Ecosystem

Head Start is part of New Jersey’s broader early childhood system, working alongside child care centers, family child care providers, school districts, health care providers, social-service organizations, and state-funded preschool programs. Weakening Head Start would place additional pressure on every part of this interconnected system.

The proposal would eliminate several qualification requirements for program directors, fiscal officers, family-service professionals, home visitors, and health and disability managers. It would remove certain training and coaching requirements for education staff.

New Jersey already faces a serious early childhood workforce shortage. Lowering qualifications or reducing staff will not solve that crisis. It risks increasing workloads, accelerating burnout and turnover, and weakening the career pathways needed to recruit and retain skilled educators.

Head Start in New Jersey:
What It Is and Why It Matters

Read here.

Head Start employs more than 4,300 early childhood professionals in New Jersey. If programs are expected to save money by reducing staffing, those job losses could place additional pressure on the rest of the child care sector. Programs already struggling to find qualified teachers could face even greater competition, disruption, and instability.

The proposal would also reduce the allowable cap for administrative costs from 15% to 5%. Administration is not simply paperwork. It includes fiscal management, human resources, technology, data systems, insurance, compliance, and the human infrastructure needed to run a comprehensive program.

Programs cannot absorb a reduction of this size without difficult choices. Cuts could affect staff positions, employee benefits, family services, vendor contracts, professional development, program hours, or classroom quality. Each reduction would affect another part of the early childhood ecosystem.

Families Could Lose Essential Health and Developmental Supports

The proposal would remove detailed requirements governing health, dental, vision, and developmental screenings; follow-up care; referrals; family partnerships; and coordination with medical providers.

Delayed screenings can allow manageable concerns to become more serious and costly. Early identification gives children the best opportunity to benefit from intervention while reducing future pressure on families, schools, and health systems.

Reducing these screenings and services could delay identifying children’s needs, leaving families without timely support and requiring schools to provide more intensive—and potentially more costly—interventions later.

Head Start Is Too Big to Fail

Saying that Head Start is “too big to fail” is not simply about the size of the program. It is about the breadth of its impact and the number of systems that are connected to it.

Head Start helps young children learn to communicate, regulate their emotions, cooperate with others, solve problems, make choices, and become more independent. These are the foundational skills children carry into kindergarten, later education, employment, and adulthood.

If Head Start is weakened:

Children could receive less individual attention and fewer comprehensive services.
Dual-language learners could lose culturally and linguistically responsive instruction.
Parents could face new barriers to employment, education, and job training.
Early childhood educators and family-support professionals could lose jobs.
Local vendors and service providers could lose business.
Child care programs could face additional demand they lack the capacity or funding to meet.
Schools and health systems could inherit greater unmet developmental, behavioral, and medical needs.
Families could lose trusted partners who help them navigate complex systems.

No single program could easily replace everything Head Start provides. Child care alone would not replace its health, nutrition, disability, and family services. Schools could not fully replace its support for infants, toddlers, pregnant women, and working families. Community organizations could not absorb its statewide reach without significant new resources.

Weakening Head Start would not reduce costs. It would shift those costs and responsibilities to families, employers, child care providers, school districts, health systems, community organizations, small businesses, and other parts of our state.

PROTECT HEAD START

Submit your comments by October 6.

ACT NOW!

Head Start can evolve, and unnecessary administrative burdens should be addressed. But modernization should strengthen its comprehensive model—not dismantle the standards that make it effective.

Head Start is part of New Jersey’s educational foundation, child care ecosystem, workforce infrastructure, health and human-services network, and local economy. It is too important to weaken, too interconnected to dismantle, and too valuable to fail.

Read our latest updates on early care and education.

Blog: September 14th – 20th is National Diaper Need Awareness Week!

Post author By Eloisa Hernandez-Ramos
Post date September 9, 2026

Posted on September 9, 2026

By Diane Dellanno
ACNJ Senior Policy Analyst

Diapers are a basic need for all babies, essential to their health and well-being. Keeping infants and toddlers clean, dry, and healthy helps build the strong foundation all children require to reach their full potential. However, findings from the Diaper Need Check 2026 study conducted by the National Diaper Bank Network, revealed nearly half (40%) of all U.S. households with young children under age 4 in diapers report diaper insecurity.

On average, infants need their diapers changed 10 to 12 times a day, adding up to approximately $100 a month per child, for an average of three years. To afford diapers, 45% of households experiencing diaper insecurity have skipped credit cards or bill payments, 29% have delayed rent or mortgage payments, and 34% have skipped meals.

The National Diaper Bank Network works to address diaper need across the country and helps coordinate a network of diaper banks in each state. New Jersey has a total of seven diaper banks associated with the national network that distribute 12.5 million diapers annually serving 20,800 infants and toddlers monthly.

To learn how one NJ Diaper Bank is making a difference, meet Callie Crowder, UP Collaborating Partner and executive director of The Maker’s Place.

Callie Crowder, executive director at The Maker's Place, was born and raised in Trenton, NJ. Callie, a businesswoman, entrepreneur, and community leader, is passionate about building relationships with people, especially those impacted by the political economy of racism and oppression. “We build relationships, foster community, and earn trust from residents. It’s not something that happens overnight, but making those connections, especially with moms, is incredibly rewarding,” she said. In 2019, while studying for her MDiv/MACEF from Princeton Theological Seminary, Callie left her long-time career as a CPA and joined Maker’s Place as assistant director. In 2022, she was named executive director.

Diapers are an everyday necessity for families with young children, but they can also represent a significant household expense and are not always covered by traditional assistance programs. A donated package of diapers or wipes can make a meaningful difference for a family that needs a little help. The Maker’s Place Diaper Depot, sponsored by United Methodists of Greater New Jersey, grew out of a community birthday party planned for one-year-olds in the City of Trenton. While the project originally intended to collect 10,000 diapers, they ended up collecting 100,000 diapers! With so many diapers left over, in 2018 Maker’s Place launched what is now their flagship initiative known as the “Diaper Depot.” Today, the “Diaper Depot,” distributes thousands of free diapers each month to families who struggle to provide enough diapers for their children. Last year, The Maker’s Place distributed close to 300,000 diapers - over 23,000 per month - to over 1,800 Trenton moms and caregivers serving 1 in 3 children in Trenton!!!

As a single mother, Callie deeply understands the struggles of many families. “We all have the same challenges,” she stated. Ensuring no one is ever turned away for diapers is a top priority for Crowder and her team. “It takes a lot of prayer to meet the growing demands of the community,” she shared. “But somehow, the diapers always show up. We’re still here, and we’re able to help.”

Maker’s Place is a member of the National Diaper Bank Network. Visit Maker’s Place online to learn how to access or donate diapers!

Screenshot 2026-09-17 084649 — View our Diaper Need infographic.

Did You Know New Jersey Law Supports Lactation in the Workplace!

Post author By Eloisa Hernandez-Ramos
Post date August 12, 2026

Posted on August 12, 2026

By Ellen Maughan, JD, IBCLC
New Jersey State Breastfeeding Coordinator

Around the world, the first week of August is World Breastfeeding Week (WBW) and the month of August is also recognized as National Breastfeeding Month both in the United States and New Jersey. This year’s international WBW theme, “Breastfeeding for a Sustainable Start in Life: Strengthen What Works”, reminds us to bolster proven practices, policies, and support to create environments in which all families can meet their lactation and infant feeding goals. One of those proven practices is supporting breastfeeding in the workplace.

Having to return to full-time work after a baby’s birth makes continued breastfeeding more difficult. Separation from their baby means parent workers need to express milk at intervals throughout the day to provide milk to caregivers and to maintain robust milk supplies.

Research has shown that employer support can result in an almost two-fold increase in the likelihood of the employee exclusively breastfeeding. Fortunately, New Jersey state law provides strong protections to employees who wish to continue feeding their babies their milk after they return to work.

The New Jersey Law Against Discrimination (LAD) requires employers to provide reasonable lactation accommodations to breastfeeding and lactating employees.

The New Jersey Law Against Discrimination (LAD) requires employers to provide reasonable lactation accommodations to breastfeeding and lactating employees including, at a minimum:

Reasonable break time to express milk; and
A private place to express milk (pump) other than a bathroom stall, that is close to the employee’s work area.

Under the LAD, employers must also grant other reasonable breastfeeding-related accommodations. For example, an employee may need changes to their work responsibilities, uniform or schedule to support their pumping needs.

The LAD does not restrict these rights by the infant’s age. These rights must be provided unless the employer can show that doing so would cause undue hardship. In addition, workers cannot be punished or be treated unfairly or unequally for seeking these accommodations.

Importantly, the LAD applies to all New Jersey employers of any size. The LAD also protects full-time, part-time, and seasonal workers. Employees who work remotely or are required to travel for work are also entitled to these rights. Only independent contractors and federal government employers are not covered by the LAD. Federal employees are entitled to similar workplace lactation rights under the federal PUMP Act.

Additional resources on New Jersey’s workplace lactation rights:

Read our latest updates on maternal and infant health.