LOUISVILLE, Ky. — A survey from the National Head Start Association reports 65% of respondents say teacher vacancies in Head Start programs are higher than usual. 

What You Need To Know

  • A new Burnette Head Start location in Louisville plans to open in October 

  • The program is hiring around 15 instructors 

  • Head Start programs across the country have been facing a staffing shortage 

Erika Nygard is stocking the bookshelf as she preps for kids to enter the classroom later this year at Burnette Head Start in Louisville.

She oversees about 30 Kentucky Head Start locations in 10 counties, including Jefferson County. 

 “Head Start’s a really unique program in that it’s not just about ABCs and one, two, three. It’s a whole child approach. And so we care just as much that kids can, learn to identify and regulate their behavior as we do them, learning to identify and write their own names. It’s so much more of a holistic approach,” Nygard, the Ohio Valley Educational Cooperative Head Start director, says. 

The early childhood education program gives vulnerable families a chance to send their children to school before kindergarten. But the program has been facing a staffing shortage. The Ohio Valley Education Cooperative is working with Head Start programs to address the issue. 

 “When we are facing teacher shortages, it’s hard to serve the children and families we want to serve. Sometimes there have been classrooms we haven’t been able to open just because we don’t have the staff to be able to support them,” Jason Adkins, the CEO of OVEC, says. 

OVEC employees receive benefits, including tuition assistance and paid parental leave. 

The cooperative is opening a new location, Burnette Head Start, which will give instructors a chance to earn their required Child Development Associate certificate in the same building where they instruct. 

“We know that kids thrive when their families thrive. And so when we’re investing in the family we’re in, we’re simultaneously investing in the kids in our program. So that’s one of the really unique aspects of Head Start,” Nygard says. 

The mom of three and former kindergarten teacher says early childhood education is an investment that will pay off long after students graduate. 

“They’re going to learn how to read, but those first five years, they’re so crucial for social development, where they’re learning how to make eye contact and share and be kind to be a friend,” Nygard says. 

Burnette Head Start/Early Head Start plans to open in October and serve over 30 kids. 

The Ohio Valley Education Cooperative says they are actively hiring 15 staff members for the Burnette Head Start/Early Head Start location. 

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