"Head Start is designed to ensure that all children - regardless of their family's income, race, or ethnic background - are able to enter kindergarten ready to learn"

Lucille Roybal-Allard emphasizes the fundamental aims of the Head Start program: to promote educational equity from the very beginning of a child’s formal learning journey. Head Start recognizes that children's early opportunities often depend upon the social and economic circumstances of their families. Traditional disparities in income, race, and ethnicity can manifest as unequal access to quality preschool education, leaving many children behind before their first day of kindergarten.

By stating that Head Start is “designed to ensure that all children... are able to enter kindergarten ready to learn,” Roybal-Allard underscores the program’s commitment to leveling the playing field. The focus is not just on increasing enrollment but on providing comprehensive support, academic, nutritional, social, and emotional, to address the multifaceted needs of children from underserved or marginalized communities. The words “regardless of their family’s income, race, or ethnic background” reinforce a vision of inclusivity, aiming to dismantle barriers that can limit a child’s potential based on the circumstances of their birth.

Moreover, the phrase “ready to learn” acknowledges that school readiness is not simply a matter of chronological age but is achieved through access to enriching environments, proper nutrition, healthcare, and supportive relationships. The program assumes a holistic approach, preparing children not only cognitively but also socially and physically for the challenges of formal schooling. This ensures that socioeconomic status or cultural background does not predetermine a child’s future.

Roybal-Allard’s message advocates for public investment in early education as a means of fostering equal opportunity and social mobility. It asserts that educational readiness should be a universal standard, not a privilege conferred by economic advantage. By aspiring to this goal, Head Start becomes a tool for broader societal change, working to break cycles of poverty and discrimination, while nurturing each child’s capacity to succeed and thrive within the educational system and beyond.