Head Start programs can continue diversity, equity and inclusion efforts, a federal judge rules, upending Trump executive orders

A federal judge temporarily halted the Trump administration’s efforts to expunge so-called diversity, equity and inclusion from Head Start programs around the country.

In a Tuesday court ruling, the judge determined the administration’s slew of directives to remove DEI from federal programs makes it “impossible” for the 60-year-old agency to function as intended to serve “diverse groups of children.”

The ruling also prevents the administration from laying off any Head Start administrative staff, its ranks already reduced by 60% in a wave of regional office closures in April. These employees have been on paid administrative leave since then, said Joel Ryan, executive director of the Washington State Association of Head Start and Early Childhood Education Assistance Program. The judge ruled these employees cannot be fired from their positions.

The ruling is “good news” to Bobbi Woodral, district director of Head Start and Early Childhood Education Assistance Program at Spokane Colleges. Spokane Colleges provide most of Spokane County’s Head Start programs.

“Today’s ruling reaffirms what Head Start has always stood for – equitable access, inclusion, and strong federal support for children and families,” she wrote. “We’re grateful for the court’s clear decision, which safeguards critical services and strengthens Head Start programs nationwide.”

Joined by other state groups and the American Civil Liberties Union, the Washington State Head Start and Early Childhood Education Assistance Program sued the Trump Administration in April after a collection of grant freezes and unclear directives surrounding DEI.

In September, a federal judge ruled Head Start could continue to enroll children regardless of their citizenship status or that of their families, reversing another executive order outlined in the lawsuit.

Head Start is a congressionally-established program that subsidizes child care for families below the poverty line, serving 800,000 infants to 4-year-olds around the nation, including 15,000 in child care centers in Washington.

In 2023, 37% of children in Head Start were Latino, 29% were Black, 23% were white, 5% were multiracial, 3% were indigenous, 2% were Asian and 1% were Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander. More than 7% of the kids served experienced homelessness, and more than a quarter of them were in foster care.

“Head Start ‘Performance Standards’ require that agencies ‘ensure equitable, inclusive, and accessible services’ reflecting the ‘needs and diversity of the community,’ ” the court ruling reads.

In the months following the executive orders and shuttering of administrative offices, Head Start providers have encountered delays in applications for federal grants essential to run operations, like meeting payroll for employees or repairing facilities, Ryan said.

The delays, Ryan said, have been the result of returned grant applications and fewer staff in administrative offices to address them. With the closure of the Seattle headquarters serving three states in the West, all of Washington’s grants go through an office in Denver, also serving surrounding states.

“A lot fewer staff are handling the same number of grantees, so it’s not surprising that people go weeks without hearing from anyone,” Ryan said.

Ryan said many Head Start providers have had to amend funding applications to remove disagreeable language in accordance with directives. In one example from a Head Start director in Wisconsin, the director’s grant application was refused until she removed words like, “race,” “marginalized,” “inclusion” and “gender.” She was also told to omit words like “Black,” “socioeconomic” and “women,” according to the court ruling. A Washington provider located on a reservation was asked to remove the word “tribal,” he said.

“The agency director does not know how to submit a grant application without violating the Government’s prohibitions and limiting her ability to comply with reporting requirements, putting her and other agencies ‘in an impossible situation,’ ” the ruling reads.

The anti-DEI push also resulted in employees modifying their training customized specifically for certain groups, like kids with special needs or those learning another language, Ryan said. It’s required that at least 10% of Head Start agencies’ enrollment are kids with disabilities.

Ryan called the ruling a “huge victory for kids,” and is relieved Head Start agencies can proceed with training and enrollment as they have for decades.

“If you can’t do that work, it’s hard to make sure you’re doing right by those communities,” he said.