Jefferson County Head Start jobs in limbo over grant

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) – With the funding of its early childhood education program uncertain, Jefferson County Public Schools is warning more than 500 Head Start staff members that their positions could be gone this fall.

News outlets report that the school district’s Director of Early Childhood James Francis last week sent a letter to 526 early childhood employees warning them that the district has to prepare for the possibility of it not receiving its annual $15 million federal grant for the Head Start program’s next school year.

Francis says principals and supervisors will notify employees by March 4 if they have been overstaffed.

The school district doesn’t expect to hear about whether it will get the Head Start grant until May. If the grant comes through, school district spokeswoman Allison Martin says the overstaffed employees would be brought back.

Copyright 2016 The Associated Press.