Portland Head Start nonprofit sues federal agency after being found ‘deficient’

Albina Head Start provides free daycare and preschool for nearly 900 low-income children who qualify for the Head Start program at 20 locations across Portland. But the nonprofit is now at risk of losing nearly $50 million in funding after it was found to be “deficient” by the federal agency which administers the program. It must now also recompete for grant funds despite decades of serving thousands of infants and children enrolled in Head Start. 

AHS has responded by filing a lawsuit against the Department of Health and Human Services. It claims the agency is incorrectly interpreting its own regulations and wrongfully labeled the organization as being “deficient” for the actions of one employee who no longer works there. The Oregonian first reported on the lawsuit and the circumstances leading to it. 

Ron Herndon is the director of Albina Head Start and a former president and board chair of the National Head Start Association. He joins us to talk about the lawsuit and what’s at stake for his organization and other local Head Start programs.