Op-Ed: Protect Our Keiki – Save Head Start

Op-Ed: Protect Our Keiki – Save Head Start
By Debbie Cabebe, CEO of Maui Economic Opportunity, and Edeluisa Beguio-Larena, CEO of Maui Family Support Services

Head Start isn’t just preschool — it’s a lifeline. For nearly 60 years, Head Start and Early Head Start have empowered local families living at or below the poverty line with no- cost preschool and child care, nutritious meals, developmental support and a safe, nurturing space for our keiki to grow and thrive.

In Maui County alone, more than 300 children and families rely on programs from Maui Economic Opportunity and Maui Family Support Services — programs that have been rooted in our community since 1965 and 1998, respectively. These programs are especially critical now as our island continues to recover and rebuild from the wildfires. But this lifeline is under threat.

“Project 2025,” the political initiative and product of The Heritage Foundation that the Trump Administration appears to be using as a blueprint, aims to eliminate Head Start entirely. This isn’t a vague threat — it’s real and dangerous. If enacted, more than 800,000 children and pregnant mothers across the country could lose access to early education. In Hawaii, nearly 3,000 keiki could be left with nowhere to go, 100 classrooms could close, and families already struggling to make ends meet would lose vital support.

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The ripple effects would be devastating: working parents forced out of jobs, public schools overwhelmed, and children with disabilities or trauma left without help. Ending Head Start would unravel support systems our communities rely on. We cannot allow this to happen.

Please visit nhsa.org/take-action to urge Congress to save Head Start. Tell the White House to protect our keiki: nhsa.org/advocacy.

Head Start works. It changes lives for the better. And it must be protected.

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Let’s stand together, Maui. Our keiki deserve nothing less.

*****Views expressed in Op-Ed pieces are those of the author’s alone and do not reflect or represent the opinions, policies or positions of Maui Now.*****