CAPK Head Start & Early Head Start Closures

Providing for the safety and health of our young students is part of everyday life at CAPK Head Start. That is why, after serious consideration, we will be following the direction of the Director of the Office of Head Start in the Administration for Children & Families, the State of California, the Kern County Public Health Department and the Kern County Superintendent of Schools and closed our Kern County Head Start and Early Head Start Centers effective at the end of the day on Tuesday, March 17. Our San Joaquin County Head Start Centers closed on March 9. It is our sincere belief that this measure is imperative in order to minimize the risk presented to our children and their families by the COVID-19 virus. Kern County Head Start Center closures have been extended until May 5. San Joaquin Head Start, in compliance with the San Joaquin County Public Health Services and the San Joaquin County Office of Education, will remain closed through April 17. Closure of CAPK Head Start Centers beyond these dates will be determined and announced as needed.

CAPK Head Start operates 32 Head Start Centers in Kern County and 7 Head Start Centers in San Joaquin counties. All facilities in both counties will be impacted by this decision.

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CAPK is proud to be Kern County’s federally contracted Head Start & Early Head Start official service provider. The Head Start/State Child Development Division is responsible for our agency’s Head Start & Early Head Start Programs, which engage parents, teachers, caregivers, and administrators in forging a path towards a bright and healthy future for every child in our care. California State Preschool funding is used to complement and expand hours for Head Start and Early Head Start families requiring full-day services. CAPK offers Head Start and Early Head Start services throughout Kern and San Joaquin Counties.

We celebrate the linguistic, ethnic, and cultural diversity that exists among our Head Start/Early Head Start families and cater to their individual needs through center-based and home-based options. This is done in the spirit of ensuring the best early care, education, and school readiness experience possible for children ages 0 to 5.

Home visits, the participation of parents on the Head Start Policy Council and the CAPK Board of Directors, and a mandate to include physically and mentally disabled children in Head Start/Early Head Start are all practical ways of ensuring that we meet the needs of all client families.