|
 Head
Start is a national program which provides comprehensive developmental services
for America's low-income, pre-school children ages three to five and social services
for their families. Specific services for children focus on education, socio-emotional
development, physical and mental health, and nutrition.
Head Start began in 1965 in the Office of Economic Opportunity as an innovative way in which to serve children of low-income families and is now administered by the Administration for Children and Families. About 13 percent of the enrollees are children with disabilities.
In 1969, the Head Start program was transferred from the Office of Economic Opportunity to the Office of Child Development in the U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare. It has now become a program within the Administration for Children and Families in the Department of Health and Human Services.
The
cornerstone of the program is parent and community involvement -- which has made
it one of the most successful pre-school programs in the country. Approximately
1,400 community-based non-profit organizations and school systems develop unique
and innovative programs to meet specific needs.
Head
Start provides diverse services to meet the goals of the following four components:
- Education
- Head Start's educational program is designed to meet the needs of each child,
the community served, and its ethnic and cultural characteristics. Every child
receives a variety of learning experiences to foster intellectual, social, and
emotional growth.
- Health
- Head Start emphasizes the importance of early identification of health problems.
Every child is involved in a comprehensive health program, which includes immunizations,
medical, dental, and mental health, and nutritional services.
- Parent
Involvement - An essential part of Head Start is the involvement of parents in
parent education, program planning, and operating activities. Many parents serve
as members of policy councils and committees and have a voice in administrative
and managerial decisions. Participation in classes and workshops on child development
and staff visits to the home allow parents to learn about the needs of their children
and about educational activities that can take place at home.
- Social
Services - Specific services are geared to each family after its needs are determined.
They include: community outreach; referrals; family need assessments; recruitment
and enrollment of children; and emergency assistance and/or crisis intervention.
Index
Early
Head Start
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Early
Head Start (EHS) was established under the 1994 Head Start Reauthorization Act,
and is administered at the federal level. The program prepares low-income children
for school, provides
services to pregnant women and children age 0 to 3 years, encourages
prenatal care in pregnant women and, improves
the quality of childcare provided to low-income families and children with disabilities.
Early Head Start also offers
families of young children with disabilities or developmental delays an inclusive
environment. Index
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Migrant
and Seasonal Head Start
| In
October 1998, the Head Start Act was reauthorized. One of the major changes that
year was the addition of services to Seasonal Farmworkers, their families and
children.The program is designed to serve families who are engaged in seasonal
agricultural labor, and may or may not change their residence to other geographic
locations. The Migrant Program serves farmworkers who move with the seasons.
Services provided
by the Migrant Head Start program are identical to those of regular Head Start,
but Migrant grantees modify delivery to meet the specific needs of migrant farmworker
families. However, the Migrant Head Start program has a unique emphasis on serving
infants and toddlers as well as pre-school age children, so that they will not
have to be cared for in the fields or left in the care of very young siblings
while parents are working. A
total of 25 grantees and 41 delegate agencies provide services in 33 States and
serve over 30,000 migrant children. Index |  |
Disabilities
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Early Head Start (EHS) requires inclusion of children with disabilities. The Head
Start Program Performance Standards require that at least 10 percent of the total
number of enrollment opportunities be made available to children with disabilities.
Children with disabilities are defined as those children who are eligible for
services under State regulations governing Part C of the Individuals with Disabilities
Education Act (IDEA). IDEA is a Federal law that is implemented at the State and
local levels to provide screening, assessment, and, for eligible children, early
intervention services based on Individualized Family Service Plans (IFSP). Index
| American
Indian Head Start Program
American
Indian Head Start supports a rich, diverse and
unique Indian language, heritage and legacy. Programs are encouraged to integrate
language and culture into their curriculum and program goals. There are more than
84 different Indian languages spoken in Head Start. As
of May 1997, the American Indian Head Start Programs network has 131 funded grantees.
These grantees are located in 25 states and represent the following tribes, villages
and towns: 112 federally recognized Tribes who directly operate programs; 3 Inter-Tribal
consortia representing 26 reservations, 12 colonies and 14 rancherias; 8 Native
Alaskan Regional Corporations serving 35 villages and cities. Some
83 percent of Indian Head Start programs are center-based services, and 17 percent
feature both center-based and home-based options. The Indian network has 487 centers
and 919 classrooms. Index
Head
Start Funding
Grants
for Head Start programs are awarded to local public or private non-profit agencies
by the 10 ACF Regional Offices and the Head Start Bureau's American Indian and
Migrant Programs Branches. Twenty percent of the cost of a Head Start program
must be contributed by the community. Head Start programs operate in all 50 states,
the District of Columbia, and the U.S. territories. Most
of the Head Start program's appropriation funds local Head Start projects. The
remainder is used for training and technical assistance to assist local projects
in meeting Head Start Program Performance Standards, maintaining and improving
the quality of local programs; research, demonstration, and evaluation activities
to test innovative program models and to assess program effectiveness; and required
monitoring activities. Index Staff
Development and Training
Head
Start
provides training to staff at all levels and in all program areas. The Child Development
Associate (CDA) program gives professional and non-professional employees the
opportunity to pursue academic degrees or certification in early childhood education.
Currently, there are over 55,000 CDA's in the U.S. who have earned a CDA credential,
including a number with a bilingual specialization. Index
The
Role of Volunteers and
Community Organizations
Volunteers
are an important part of all Head Start programs. High school and college students,
homemakers, parents of Head Start children, retired senior citizens -- all kinds
of people -- have offered critical help to local Head Start programs. Volunteers
assist with: indoor creative play; transportation; parent education; renovation
of centers; and recruiting and instructing other volunteers. Approximately 1,157,000
individuals volunteer, and community organizations provide a wide array of services
to Head Start, including the donation of classroom space, educational materials,
and equipment for children with disabilities. Index
Impact
of Head Start
Since
1965, Head Start has served over 13.8 million children and their families. Head
Start plays a major role in focusing attention on the importance of early childhood
development. The program also has an impact on: child development and day care
services; the expansion of state and local activities for children; the range
and quality of services offered to young children and their families; and the
design of training programs for those who staff such programs. Outreach and training
activities also assist parents in increasing their parenting skills and knowledge
of child development. Index |
