A major early childhood education program serving low-income families in San Diego may be eliminated under a budget proposal from the Trump administration.
Head Start, run locally by Episcopal Community Services (ECS), provides preschool education, healthcare, and family support for young children. The proposed federal budget would cut the program entirely.
If approved, the cuts would result in a $24 million loss for ECS, according to Rosa Cabrera-Jaime, the agency’s director of early education and family services. More than 300 employees could lose their jobs. The number of children served would drop from 1,300 to only 200.
“There’s a high demand for childcare in San Diego, especially for children ages zero to three,” Cabrera-Jaime said.
Head Start was launched in 1965 as part of President Lyndon B. Johnson’s War on Poverty. The program has had broad support from both political parties over the years. However, some Republicans have pushed back against efforts to expand its funding.
Project 2025, a policy plan developed by the conservative Heritage Foundation, includes a proposal to eliminate Head Start entirely.
Cabrera-Jaime says the program has changed lives. “We have about 30 to 40 teachers who were once Head Start children themselves,” she said. “They say it helped them overcome poverty. Now, their own children are going to college and building better futures.”
She added, “Head Start breaks cycles. We help families reach their full potential. If this program disappears, I don’t know what happens to these families next.”
