DES MOINES, Iowa (Gray Media Iowa State Capitol Bureau) — Iowa Head Start programs serving thousands of low-income children are waiting to learn the full impact of a sweeping federal overhaul proposed by the Trump administration.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services last week announced major changes to the program’s performance standards. If finalized, the proposal would shift regulation of Head Start from the federal government to individual states, affecting areas including nutrition standards, class sizes, teacher-to-student ratios, staff background checks, and parent input requirements.

Iowa’s Head Start and Early Head Start programs currently serve over 5,000 children statewide.

Under the proposal, children would be required to follow HHS’s Make America Healthy Again guidelines for meal times, which include serving fresh whole foods and 30 minutes of physical activity for every three and a half hours. The plan would also change teacher-to-student ratios, resulting in larger class sizes, and would require English to be the only language used in the classroom, with an exception for tribal communities.

Drake University’s Head Start program, which serves more than 900 children and maintains a waitlist, could expand its 4-year-old classrooms to 24 students for two teachers under Iowa licensing rules. The program’s current ratio is one teacher for every eight students.

Lisa Proctor, director of Drake University’s Head Start program, said student safety is a central concern.

“When we really look at our ratios, student safety is a huge concern and supervision of students at this age, which is why those lower ratios are really important for individualization. We are often the first experience for a lot of students in these new environments,” Proctor said.

Proctor also noted potential financial implications of the changes.

“The proposed rule making does not obviously — it doesn’t directly reduce our current award or funding level. But yes, there could be some fiscal implication,” Proctor said.

HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said the changes will save $2 billion and open nearly 300,000 new slots for children in the program nationwide.

“We’re cutting that back to 5%. And the savings, which should be about $2.2 billion, we’re reinvesting in Head Start so that facilities like this can start servicing their waiting lists and bringing all these kids that want to get into this program into it,” Kennedy said.

Executive Director of the Iowa Head Start Association Chris Juett said the group is not yet commenting on the specifics of the proposal but said the program must still be able to serve children.

“What we’re saying is that we want to ensure that the proposed standards ensure that we are continuing to be able to provide services for children and their families moving forward,” Juett said.

Proctor is urging the public to engage with the process.

“Our goal is to really engage with the community with supporters and ask that others raise their voice if they’re willing and speak to how Head Start matters in their community, how it may have impacted them personally or their communities,” Proctor said.

HHS is accepting public comment for the next two months before the department finalizes the overhaul. Gov. Kim Reynolds said in a statement that the state is currently reviewing the proposed rule changes.

Programs will have the choice to continue operating for some regulations as they currently do if it works for their community’s needs. Advocates say parents should know the program is still running and that there are no reductions to federal funding at this time.

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Isabella Warren covers state government and politics for Gray Media-owned stations in Iowa. Email her at isabella.warren@kcrg.com; and follow her on Facebook at Isabella Warren TV on X/Twitter@isabellaw_gray, and on Instagram@IsabellaWarrenTV.

Investing in Medicaid Fraud Control Unit staff is one of the best bargains in government.

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• Kevin Techau is a former United States attorney for the Northern District of Iowa. He previously served as director of the Iowa Department of Inspections and Appeals.
• ean Lerner is a former Iowa assistant attorney general and former chief deputy secretary of state. He, too, served as director of the Iowa Department of Inspections and Appeals.

With the 2026 election approaching, Gov. Kim Reynolds and Attorney General Brenna Bird have unveiled a new priority: cracking down on Medicaid fraud. That comes as a big surprise to those of us who know the system and have actually fought Medicaid fraud. 

Why such a surprise? Because our governor and attorney general have long disregarded the most effective tools already at their disposal to fulfill their pronounced objective. The real purpose of their newly created “Medicaid Fraud Elimination Task Force,” unveiled with considerable fanfare, appears to be generating political headlines rather than meaningful results. And, with each new task force meeting streamed to the public, they have concocted a pretext for sustained Medicaid fraud political theater.

For decades, like every other state, Iowa has maintained a Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, or MFCU. Ours is housed within the Department of Inspections, Appeals, and Licensing (DIAL), formerly the Department of Inspections and Appeals. By law, this specialized unit investigates Medicaid provider fraud, patient abuse, neglect, and the financial exploitation of vulnerable Iowans. It works closely with county attorneys and the U.S. attorneys’ offices, which prosecute many of the state’s largest Medicaid fraud and health care fraud cases.

One would have expected that during the task force’s first meeting, the director of DIAL and the director of the MFCU, both members of the task force, would have reminded the chair, Bird, of one simple fact:  Iowa already has the legal framework, an established Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, with strong federal, state and local partnerships needed to combat Medicaid fraud.  

DUBUQUE COUNTY, Iowa (KCRG/Gray News) – Iowa authorities said two people were killed and five others were seriously injured in a crash involving a car and a utility terrain vehicle on Saturday night.

The Dubuque County Sheriff’s Office identified one of the deceased as 33-year-old Joshua Tack, of Union. The second person killed was a 10-year-old child.

At 9:21 p.m. Saturday, first responders were called to the intersection of East Worthington Road and Comer Road for a report of an accident involving a car and UTV.

The 10-year-old child was declared dead at the scene, according to the sheriff’s office.

Six others, including Tack, were initially taken to the hospital with serious injuries. Tack later died from his injuries.

Tack was a principal with the Beaman-Conrad-Liscomb-Union-Whitten Community School District. He has served as a school principal since 2023.

The school district shared a post Monday morning asking for the community to keep his family in their “thoughts and prayers during this difficult time.”

The crash remains under investigation.