News and Opinion

Hoosiers,

I had the opportunity to sit down and read with Martinsville Head Start kids last month. Today's students are tomorrow's leaders, and I'm fighting every day in Congress for a better future for all Hoosiers. 

In case you missed it, be sure to read more about Martinsville Head Start here or below:

Head Start for Hollingsworth
February 24, 2018

Congressman Trey Hollingsworth (IN-9) made a stop at the Martinsville Head Start on Thursday where he read to a group of students participating in the program.

Diane Poteet, the Director of Child Services for the Head Start program in Morgan, Clay, Hendricks, Putnam and Owen counties, found out Hollingsworth planned to stop in for a visit on Feb. 16.

The National Head Start Association sent a form letter to the local Head Start programs and asked to send the letters to the local congressmen to request a visit.

“And (Hollingsworth’s) office called and said, ‘We are already going to be in Martinsville that day so we will stop by,’” Poteet said.

Once Hollingsworth arrived, he asked Poteet and site manager Patti Wiggins questions about the services the program offers to preschool-aged children.

Poteet told Hollingsworth that, at the Martinsville location, there are two classrooms for students.

One of the classrooms has students who attend class for three and a half hours per day while the other class an all-day program.

There are 37 students total between the two classrooms.

“What is the biggest challenge you face in terms of being able to meet the needs of so many kids?” Hollingsworth asked Poteet.

Poteet told Hollingsworth one of the biggest challenges is finding staff members and having enough services to support the children who attend the program.

Since she started working for the program 34 years ago, Poteet said there are a lot more working parents now compared to her first years.

The book that Hollingsworth was asked to read to the full-day students was “My Many Colored Days,” by Dr. Seuss.

The book describes days as a different color and how that can be associated with emotions.

After a few minutes of reading the book and answering some of the children’s questions, Poteet showed Hollingsworth the program’s cafeteria.

Hollingsworth said he always enjoys being able to get back to his district when he can.

“I love stopping and seeing people who are passionate about helping their communities and interacting with them and better understanding how I can support them as their representative,” Hollingsworth said.

In his opinion, that means helping children in Head Start or assisting with the opioid crisis sweeping the area.

As he was in his district, Hollingsworth said he wanted to meet Hoosiers and understand what the citizens of his district worry about.

“Every community is unique, every community has a story, and every community is focused on making sure they advance their citizens,” Hollingsworth said.

The first-term congressman said the best part about being in the U.S. Congress is the ability to help someone individually.

“Two weeks ago, we helped somebody to get their medals that they earned in their service from World War II,” Hollingsworth said. “That is the second person we have been able to do that in the district.”

In Poteet’s opinion, the visit went well and the children were excited to be able to meet a congressman.

She said the teachers told the students that “a really important man” was going to pay the school a visit.

“It is important for the kids to see different people in different walks of life and different people who do different things,” Poteet said.

Often, the Head Start tries to have different members of the community stop in for a visit including doctors and dentists, “because the kids need to know that they can be anything,” Poteet said.