Families in Powell and Lewis Center who rely on Head Start to prepare young children for kindergarten could lose access to mental health screenings, developmental assessments and qualified teachers under a federal rule change proposed Aug. 7.
The Trump administration's Notice of Proposed Rulemaking would rescind and replace the Head Start Program Performance Standards, affecting more than 33,000 Ohio children enrolled across 58 programs statewide. Head Start serves low-income families and includes dedicated supports for children in foster care, experiencing homelessness or with disabilities. In Delaware County, LEADS Community Action Agency operates both center-based preschool classrooms for children ages 3 to 5 and home-based services that send educators to families weekly.
Nathan Keirns, president and CEO of LEADS, told NBC4 the changes would gut the program's comprehensive approach.
"I think we'd be eroding those services, and so we might be able to serve more kids, but they're going to receive less," Keirns said.
The proposed rule would require all programs to operate in English only, remove federal class-size and staff-ratio requirements, eliminate teacher qualification standards including the Child Development Specialist role, slash allowable administrative costs from 15% to 5%, remove the requirement for bus monitors and reduce or eliminate mental health and developmental screening mandates.
It would also dissolve Policy Councils, the parent-led governing boards that currently shape program priorities and help build budgets at agencies like LEADS. Keirns said the change would actually reduce parental control, not increase it as the administration claims.
HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said the overhaul would remove bureaucracy, strengthen nutrition and physical health, and open Head Start to hundreds of thousands more children.
Why it matters locally
The timing compounds pressure on Delaware County families. Under Ohio's new HB114, all kindergartners entering Olentangy schools must turn five by the first day of school. Olentangy's 2026-27 year begins Aug. 20, a stricter cutoff than prior practice. Head Start has served as the bridge for children who need structured preparation before that threshold.
Keirns said superintendents have told him they can identify Head Start graduates because those children often arrive ahead of peers who did not attend the program. Studies estimate every $1 invested in Head Start produces $11 to $13 in economic gains, he said.
How to comment
The rule is not yet final. The Federal Register sets the public comment deadline as Oct. 6. Comments can be submitted at regulations.gov under docket ACF-2026-0595 or emailed to [email protected].
Delaware County families interested in enrolling in LEADS Head Start can contact the agency at 740-349-8606. LEADS is currently accepting applications for its Delaware County programs.
