The long-time executive director at the Kansas Head Start Association plans to retire Sept. 30.
Mary Baskett has been with the association since 1999, two years after it was founded. The association represents all 28 state Head Start programs by lobbying policymakers and providing support for local Head Start staff.
Baskett said the timing of her retirement has nothing to do with the financial pressures that Head Start faces in Congress or the Kansas Legislature this year.
“I’ve been thinking about this for several years. Our board brought in a succession-planning consultant starting last summer,” Baskett said. “It’s been a long career and I loved the work I did, but it’s just kind of time to do some other things in life. I really am retiring, though I’m not a big fan of that word.”
Baskett said she expected to stay involved in advocating for children from her Lawrence home.
“I hope to stay involved in some capacity on behalf of kids. I’ve done that most of my professional life so it’s not something I think I’ll walk away from, just doing it in a different way,” she said.
She said she is pleased with what Head Start has accomplished in Kansas.
“We have a very strong collaboration in Kansas with the early learning community and we are recognized nationally for that and our innovation. I’m really proud to be part of that,” she said.
Baskett said that when Gov. Sam Brownback proposed dropping Early Head Start from the state budget this year, it was just a “sign of the times.”
“Whether it’s federal or state budgets, they are all challenged. A lot of hard decisions have to be made. That’s why my advocacy is so important — we need to make sure policymakers have the information they need to set good priorities with limited resources. We, of course, believe one of those priorities should be investing in our children and in education,” Baskett said.
Budget bills approved in both the House and Senate would restore funding for the state’s Early Head Start programs.
The House bill would put Head Start funding at $11.3 million, and the Senate bill at $10.2 million. The two chambers are expected to resolve their differences on Early Head Start and other legislation during the veto session, which is scheduled to begin April 27.
The Kansas Head Start Association this week posted a job notice on its website seeking a replacement for Baskett.