20 CLOSED PRESCHOOLS SCHEDULED TO REOPEN TODAY.

Byline: Rachel Uranga Staff Writer

Pressured by angry local politicians, federal Head Start officials planned today to reopen all but six of the 26 preschools temporarily closed earlier this week in the San Fernando and Santa Clarita valleys.

The six other locations providing day care and preschool for more than 300 low-income children will open ``soon,'' according to a statement released by the Administration for Children, Youth and Families.

The administration was forced Tuesday to close all the schools, which serve about 1,400 students, after it bungled the hand-over of the schools from the Latin American Civic Association to a temporary service provider.

The administration denied the civic association's funding request to run the centers, saying it could not show that it could adequately provide services.

At Head Start sites across the San Fernando Valley, teachers spent most of the afternoon calling worried parents to let them know some classes would be resuming.

``The parents were very scared. They thought the centers were going to close (permanently),'' said one teacher at a San Fernando Center who asked not to be identified. ``The parents understand there is a transfer. They are all just very happy to get their children back in school.''

For a month, federal officials assured parents there would be no interruption of services while the federally appointed Community Development Institute, based in Denver, took over operations from the San Fernando-based Latin American Civic Association.

The institute has repeatedly refused to comment.

Federal officials blamed the disruption in service on LACA, saying it waited until the 11th hour to sign over key lease agreements and a child care licensing agreement. But LACA officials said they were not given enough notice.

On Wednesday, City Council President Alex Padilla and Councilman Tony Cardenas blasted the Administration for Children, Youth and Families in a letter.

``The failure of your office to plan and avoid a cessation of service is of far greater negative impact to the families and communities we represent than any of the concerns that your office identified and used as a basis to terminate the contract with LACA,'' they wrote.

Federal officials could not be reached to comment on the letter.

LACA officials did not return calls Wednesday.

The following sites will remain closed until further notice: Lokrantz, 19451 Wyandotte St., Reseda; Lowman, 12829 Saticoy St., North Hollywood; Martin Luther King, 10896 Lehigh Ave., Pacoima; Napa, 19010 Napa St., Northridge; Valley Plaza, 1121 Vanowen St., North Hollywood; and West Valley, 6649 Balboa St., Van Nuys.

Rachel Uranga, [phone]

rachel.uranga(at)dailynews.com