Head Start

Defining Head Start

Often mistaken as a Department of Education preschool program, Head Start is actually a comprehensive child development program administered by the Department of Health and Human Services through the Head Start Bureau, Administration on Children, Youth and Families, and the Administration for Children and Families. Public and private agencies (e.g., city government, community action agency, school system, Native American tribe, private preschool provider) submit grants to operate Head Start in a community. In addition to preschool education, programs must provide a range of individualized health care services, family social services, and parent involvement components. Head Start programs also work with local school systems to ensure a smooth transition into elementary school. Programs are monitored through an extensive system of performance standards that define the nature and quality of the many services provided to children and families. These standards can be enhanced and modified through Head Start's required periodic reauthorization by the U.S. Congress.

Eligibility Requirements

Head Start and Early Head Start programs serve children from birth to five years of age whose families meet poverty income guidelines based on family size. For example, in 2003, a family of three with an annual income less than $15,260 or a family of four with annual income less than $18,400 qualified. (Alaska and Hawaii had slightly higher values.) In addition, children with disabilities, children from families receiving public assistance such as Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI), and children living in foster care are eligible for Head Start and Early Head Start, regardless of their family's income.

Demographics of Families Served

In the 2002–2003 school year, 1,670 Head Start grantees operated 19,200 Head Start Centers containing 47,000 classrooms serving 909,608 children. The [Page 238]majority of children were four (53%) and three (34%) years old. Children five years of age and older upon entry represented 5% of those served, whereas 8% of children were younger than three years of age. African Americans (31.5%), whites (27.6%), and Hispanics (30.6%) were the three major ethnic groups receiving services as well as smaller percentages of Native Americans (3.2%), Asians (1.80%), and Hawaiians/ Pacific Islanders (1.1%).

Program Goals

The Head Start Planning Committee, a multidisciplinary group representing medicine, health, nursing, social work, education, and psychology, designed the Head Start program to be a multidimensional program focusing on both adult family members and children. The program fosters healthy development in low-income children and their families through the delivery of individualized, comprehensive services in the areas of child development and school readiness, parent involvement, social services, nutrition, and medical, dental, and mental health.

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