This Bay Area county relies on Head Start to prepare kids for school — but can only fund a fraction of the demand
RICHMOND — Maria Chavez first heard about George Miller III Children’s Center almost two decades ago when a neighbor recommended that she send her now-18-year-old daughter there for preschool. After sending all three of her children to the same program, she said her initial nervousness turned into pride that she could provide them a quality early education. “I’m so happy it’s accessible, because as a mother who works, I can’t always give them much time, but here they prepare them so well,” Chavez said, waiting for her youngest daughter, 4-year-old Emily, to finish snack time. “Seeing how they treat my child is beautiful. The help and support we receive here is like another family.” Emily Chavez, right, and her classmates eat yogurt before their parents pick them up from a Head Start childcare program at George Miller III Center in Richmond, Calif., on Friday, March 9, 2024. (Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group) Contra Costa County Supervisor John Gioia, right, talks to 3 and 4 year old kids during a visit to the Head Start childcare program at George Miller III Center in Richmond, Calif., on