The Department of Health and Human Services issued a directive in November 2025 that places Head Start programs in direct conflict with federal law. A Wisconsin program director submitted a routine funding renewal request on September 30. On November 19, she received two emails from HHS containing a six-page list of nearly 200 prohibited words and phrases. The forbidden terminology includes "disability," "women," "tribal," "accessible," "belong," "Black," "female," "minority,