Published 1:42 pm Saturday, August 8, 2026 The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services plans to roll back regulations on a key early education program for low-income families, the agency announced Thursday. The program, known as Head Start, provides early childhood education, nutritious meals, health screenings and other services to more than 23,000 children and their families across Georgia, according to the Georgia Head Start Association. Over 1,400 rules could be rescinded under the new proposal, ending some of the policies that have made the program unique. The impact could be felt across Georgia’s 350 Head Start centers. The existing Head Start program, which is funded largely through federal tax dollars, maintains strict standards on metrics like student-to-teacher ratios, facility safety standards and disability access. The program was launched in 1965 as part of President Lyndon B. Johnson’s War on Poverty. In a press release, Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy argued that streamlining or eliminating some of those regulations would save roughly $2.2 billion in funding that could be used to expand access to the program. “We are removing unnecessary bureaucracy, strengthening nutrition and physical health, trusting parents and local communities, and opening Head Start to hundreds of thousands more children,” Kennedy said. “That’s how we renew the promise of Head Start for the next generation.” Among the potential changes are a proposal to relax student-to-teacher…
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