Press Releases

LOWELL, MA. -- Today, Congresswoman Lori Trahan (MA-03) announced $1,215,478 in federal Head Start program funding for the Community Day Care Center of Lawrence, Inc., a private, nonprofit organization that provides a number of services, including Early Head Start, to children and families in need in the Greater Lawrence region. The investment will be used to support the organization’s Early Head Start Child Care Partnership.

“This public health crisis has plunged our education system into uncertainty. But vulnerable families in our communities remain in need of reliable access to educational and developmental services for their children. I’m proud to announce this funding for The Community Group, a tremendous organization serving thousands of people in the Greater Lawrence area. Working alongside them and child care partners across the region, we will keep our children safe and learning,” said Congresswoman Trahan.

“We are thrilled that The Community Group received an Early Head Start grant. Early Head Start helps to provide critical services to children and families enrolled in our center-based and family child care programs. The Early Head Start Child Care Partnership grant helps us to provide comprehensive services to families in our community that need it the most, and also provides high-quality training and support for our teachers and educators. We are grateful for this continued investment in our children, families, educators, and our community, especially at a time when these services have become even more critical,” said Maria Gonzalez Moeller, Executive Director of The Community Group.

The Community Day Care Early Head Start Child Care Partnership provides early, continuous, intensive, and comprehensive child development and family services to eligible families and their infants and toddlers ages birth to four years old. Services include educational, health, nutritional, and behavioral programs that are designed to strengthen the relationships between parents and their children.

Community Day Care also provides a number of other services and programs, including subsidized child care for low income families, a community partners initiative to support local educators, and school management services one district public school and three public charter schools. In 2019 alone, the organization served more than 1,600 children and parents in the Greater Lawrence area.

Trahan has used her position as a member of the House Education and Labor Committee to advocate for increased funding for Head Start. In negotiations over Fiscal Year (FY) 2020 appropriations, she was successful in securing a $1.5 billion increase in funding for Head Start, bringing the total appropriation to $11.6 billion for the year. Trahan continues to advocate for additional funding for this important program, having supported a similar request for increased Head Start funding in FY2021 appropriations.

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