WASHINGTON, DC— Congressman Jim Himes (CT-4) released the following statement regarding news that all 13 Head Start classrooms in Norwalk will reopen tomorrow. Himes organized a call with Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) officials to provide state and local leaders with an opportunity to voice their concerns after discovering that, in the wake of NEON’s closing, HHS was planning to wait until 2014 to reopen the Norwalk Head Start.

“I am extremely pleased that Head Start services in Norwalk will resume tomorrow, providing much needed relief to the hundreds of Norwalk families that rely on its services to educate young children and ensure parents have the reliable childcare necessary to hold a steady job.  Having joined local leaders in urging the federal government to do everything possible to end the weeks-long delay in services that withheld vital early education to at-risk children and disrupted the lives of working families, I commend the actions taken since to restore crucial Head Start programs in Norwalk.”