But the proposal has sparked alarm across the Head Start community, where advocates say it threatens the backbone of the antipoverty initiative. But the changes would undermine many of the things that make Head Start distinct from other early education programs, according to current and former Head Start leaders. “This version of Head Start is a shell of the program,” said Khari Garvin, who oversaw Head Start under Democratic President Joe Biden. Not long after Trump, a Republican, took office again in early 2025, some Head Start programs had to briefly shutter because they had problems accessing their federal money. He added that he tried to shield Head Start from many of the cuts that hit the rest of his agency.