BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand is speaking out against a new federal budget proposal that would eliminate all funding for Head Start, a program that provides early childhood education and family support services to lower-income communities.
During a visit to the Ferry Academy Head Start Program in Buffalo on Friday morning, Gillibrand condemned President Donald Trump’s fiscal year 2026 budget request, calling it “a deliberate attack on parents, on children and on the communities that depend upon them.”
If passed, the proposed cuts would force Head Start centers across the country to shut down, including 20 sites in Buffalo and Niagara Counties that currently serve more than 1,200 children. Statewide, more than 50,000 children in New York would be affected.
Vanessa Hall, a Buffalo mother whose son attends the program, said the impact would be devastating.
“This is where our children are thriving,” Hall said. “This is where they’re learning, and we’re learning as well. So for them to take that away, knowing we are in impoverished communities where education is needed, that’s a problem.”
Head Start provides a range of services beyond classroom learning, including health screenings, nutrition, and emotional support for families. Local advocates said the program fills critical gaps for parents who can’t afford private care.
“It’s really short-sighted to take away established programs that work,” said Sheri Scavone, CEO of the WNY Women’s Foundation. “No one’s going to have anywhere else to go.”
Gillibrand said she is working with fellow lawmakers to block the proposal and protect Head Start.
“As a parent and a longtime advocate of early childhood education, protecting Head Start is personal to me,” she said. “It’s a top priority in our fight for young children and working families.”
I reached out to Republican Congressman Nick Langworthy, but he was unable to meet my deadline for a response to these proposed budget cuts.
