Head Start centers told to avoid 'disability,' 'women' and more in funding requests
Source: NPR
December 11, 2025 4:15 PM ET
Some Head Start early childhood programs are being told by the federal government to remove a list of nearly 200 words and phrases from their funding applications or they could be denied. That's according to recently submitted court documents. The list of words includes "accessible," "belong," "Black," "disability," "female," "minority," "trauma," "tribal" and "women."
The list was submitted on Dec. 5, as part of an ongoing lawsuit filed by Head Start programs in a handful of states – including Pennsylvania, Washington, Wisconsin and Illinois – against the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and its secretary, Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
The lawsuit argues that the Trump administration's ban on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) in federal programs conflicts with Head Start's statutory mandate. That mandate includes, among other things, providing "linguistically and culturally appropriate" services as well as early intervention services for children with disabilities.
HHS did not respond to multiple requests for comment or clarity on the list.
Read more: https://www.npr.org/2025/12/11/nx-s1-5640757/head-start-hhs-funding-dei
Link to FILING (PDF) - https://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/26372014/head-start-word-list.pdf
REFERENCES
https://www.democraticunderground.com/10143442986
https://www.democraticunderground.com/10143450340
https://www.democraticunderground.com/10143452640
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