Waters accuses LA County of discriminating against minority-run Head Start centers
Deepa Fernandes
Congresswoman Maxine Waters surrounded by irate parents and their toddlers at the Los Angeles County Office of Education's Office in Downey
Surrounded by dozens of irate parents and their preschoolers, Congresswoman Maxine Waters held a press conference Tuesday accusing the Los Angeles County Office of Education of discriminating against Head Start programs run by Latinos and African Americans. She’s asking the federal Department of Health and Human Services to investigate.
“Why are they doing this to minorities?” she asked at a press conference outside the agency’s office in Downey.
Waters accused county officials strong-arming the CEO of Kedren Community Health Centers to relinquish its head start contract in January after violations were found. She claims this violates federal Head Start rules, which require notice to parents and a vote by the agency’s board. She said it wasn’t the only instance.
“The other Head Start centers serving the Los Angeles area, Urban League, Delta Sigma Theta, and Federation of Preschool and Early Education Center, were accused of violations, some of which were not substantiated, and given no opportunity by LACOE to appeal," she said in a letter to Daniel Levinson, Inspector General for HHS.
Kendren serves about 2,200 children at 31 sites – about a third of them in South Los Angeles communities like Watts and Cypress Park.
Officials with the L.A. County Office of Education said they will cooperate with any