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Ruiz Announces $1 Million in Local Head Start Funding through American Rescue Plan

July 17, 2021

Ruiz secured Head Start Grants to help CA-36 students get back in the classroom and access key education resources.

Washington, D.C. – Today, Congressman Raul Ruiz, M.D. (CA-36) announced that the American Rescue Plan has delivered over $1 million in Head Start funding to Riverside County Office of Education. Ruiz helped secure the grant funding to help get students back in the classroom and make up for lost learning time. The funding will benefit 11 school districts across Riverside County and assist schools in modernizing their classrooms and students in accessing academic resources.

"The American Rescue Plan's bold investments in Head Start programs will help our local students unlock the door to success," said Dr. Ruiz. "I voted to bring this much-needed grant funding home to boost Riverside County schools' recovery and help our local students safely get back in the classroom. The American Rescue Plan is helping us build back better than ever before, and I look forward to continue working with Dr. Gomez to build on this success for our students."

"ROE is grateful to have been awarded over $1 million from the American Rescue Plan to benefit our Head Start programs," said Dr. Edwin Gomez, Riverside County Superintendent of Schools. "The funds will be distributed amongst 17 direct operated RCOE sites and 11 school districts across Riverside County that will allow us to upgrade and modernize classrooms, playgrounds, and tackle any learning loss impacted by the COVID19 health pandemic. RCOE Head Start is hosting a summer head start camp that will focus on language, language development and literacy throughout four weeks this summer. Additionally, the grant has allowed us to purchase materials and equipment that create safer and healthier environments for our students, their families, and our staff, including the improvement of playgrounds and facility upgrades like touchless thermometers, touchless hand soap dispensers, and any type of equipment to sanitize."

The following Riverside County school districts will benefit from the American Rescue Plan's Head Start funding: Coachella Valley Unified School District, Desert Sands Unified School District, Hemet Unified School District, Jurupa Unified School District, Lake Elsinore Unified School District, Palm Springs Unified School District, Palo Verde Unified School District, Riverside Unified School District, Romoland Unified School District, and San Jacinto Unified School District.

Not a single Republican Member of Congress voted for this funding that will help students get back in the classroom.

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