Even Start Program Drawing More State Attention

A local program benefiting the neediest parents and children in our area is on the verge of being shut down and it’s drawing state attention. The Even Start Literacy Program is being phased out of the federal budget because the government says it doesnt work. Senator Mary Landrieu was in town Tuesday visiting the Lincoln Parish facility to see if the program is worth salvaging. Samantha Joyner is a mother of three and a graduate of the Lincoln Parish Even Start Literacy Program. She became a teen mother nine years ago, but says Even Start restored her hope for the future. “When I came into this program, and received my GED and encouragement,” Joyner says, “I’m now going to Tech to become a teacher, which has been my dream for year. So it has given me my future back." Even Start helps low-income parents and children in six parishes of Northeast Louisiana. It brings adult and early childhood education together in one setting. It’s a federally funded program expected to be completely phased out after the 2009 school year. Sen. Mary Landrieu says, “I think its a very smart investment of federal dollars and I think it’s a shame that the federal government hasnt maintained this level of development." Landrieu is the second state official to visit the center in the past month. Last month State Superintendent Paul Pastorek was here. Both are looking for ways to either gain state funding or restore federal funding to help keep this program alive. Dr. Delene Rawls is the Even Start Curriculum Coordinator. She says if the state finds a way to invest in programs like even start now, it wont have to waste money in the future. Rawls says whether its money spent, “fixing a poor education, taking care of someone who is incarcerated because they were not self-sustaining, or handling generations and generations of poverty in families who can not take care of themselves." She says, hopefully ending a cycle of illiteracy and poverty in Northeast Louisiana. Senator Landrieu tells us the program has been effective in the state, but federal funding continues to be cut because its not a priority for the current administration. (Copyright 2008, NBC 10/Fox 14 News)