CHAPTER 283
FORMERLY
SENATE BILL NO. 265
AS AMENDED BY SENATE AMENDMENT NOS. 1 AND 2
AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 29 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE ESTABLISHMENT AND OBSERVANCE OF DELAWARE HEAD START WEEK.
WHEREAS, Head Start Programs began in Delaware, as throughout the United States, as early as 1965 to serve the early and pre-educational needs of children and families with limited resources; and
WHEREAS, Early Childhood Assistance Programs began in Delaware in 1994 to supplement the pre-educational needs of children and families with limited resources; and
WHEREAS, the provision of Head Start and Early Childhood Assistance Programs and others has demonstrated Delaware’s commitment to serving the early and pre-educational needs of children and families with limited resources; and
WHEREAS, Head Start and Early Childhood Assistance Programs, through efficient and effective use of funds appropriated to them, and through the establishment of partnerships with state and private entities including, among others, school districts, private child care providers, local colleges and universities, the State Department of Health and Social Services, and community groups, have established comprehensive programs for the education, health, nutrition, and familial support of their clients; and
WHEREAS, the beneficiaries of Head Start and Early Childhood Assistance Programs include not only the over 2,500 children who participate in them, but also the families of those children, who receive classes on parenting, personal finance and others, and through whose volunteer efforts the programs themselves are advanced and are able to remain efficient and effective; and
WHEREAS, the cumulative benefits of Head Start and Early Childhood Assistance Programs can be seen throughout the State through the many families who, having once participated in them, now volunteer for them and have provided for themselves a higher quality of life;
NOW THEREFORE:
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE:
Section 1. Amend Chapter 21, Title 29 of the Delaware Code, by redesignating § 2111, § 2112, § 2113 and § 2114 therein as § 2112, § 2113, § 2114 and § 2115 respectively and by inserting therein a new section designated as § 2111 as follows:
Ҥ 2111. Observance of Delaware Head Start Week
(a) The Governor shall proclaim the last week of the month of March each year as Delaware Head Start Week.
(b) The Governor shall issue annually a proclamation calling upon all administrators, staff and volunteers at all Head Start Programs and Early Childhood Assistance Programs in the State to arrange special programs during and in observance of Delaware Head Start Week and calling upon the people of the entire State to observe it in some fitting manner.”