What Is Head Start?
Head Start (CFDA 93.600) is the largest federal program dedicated to early childhood development, authorized under the Improving Head Start for School Readiness Act of 2007 (42 U.S.C. 9801 et seq.). With an annual appropriation of approximately $12.3 billion for FY2024, Head Start provides comprehensive early childhood education, health, nutrition, and parent engagement services to low-income children ages birth to five and their families. The program is administered by the Office of Head Start (OHS) within the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
Head Start is not a single program model. It encompasses several program options: center-based Head Start for preschool-age children (ages 3–5), Early Head Start for infants, toddlers, and pregnant women (ages 0–3), home-based services, family child care, and Early Head Start-Child Care (EHS-CC) partnership programs that blend Head Start funding with childcare subsidies. Approximately 1,600 grantees operate Head Start programs across all 50 states, the District of Columbia, U.S. territories, and tribal communities, collectively serving roughly 900,000 children annually.
History: From the War on Poverty to Today
Head Start was launched in 1965 as part of President Lyndon Johnson's War on Poverty, originally conceived as an eight-week summer program to help disadvantaged children enter school on more equal footing with their peers. The program was grounded in emerging research showing that early childhood intervention could break cycles of intergenerational poverty. Within its first summer, Head Start served approximately 560,000 children.
Over the subsequent six decades, Head Start evolved from a summer enrichment initiative into a year-round comprehensive services program. The 1994 reauthorization created Early Head Start to serve pregnant women and children under age three. The most recent reauthorization — the Improving Head Start for School Readiness Act of 2007 — introduced the Designation Renewal System (DRS), which ended the practice of automatic grant renewals and created an accountability mechanism through which underperforming programs must recompete for their funding.
The Dual-Generation Approach
Head Start's defining characteristic is its dual-generation approach — serving children and their parents simultaneously. Unlike childcare subsidy programs or state pre-K systems that focus primarily on classroom instruction, Head Start mandates comprehensive services across four interrelated domains:
- Education: Developmentally appropriate curriculum, individualized learning plans, school readiness goals aligned to the Head Start Early Learning Outcomes Framework (ELOF), and transition planning for kindergarten entry
- Health: Physical health screenings within 45 days of enrollment, dental exams, mental health consultations, vision and hearing screening, immunization tracking, and ongoing health follow-up with a 90-day treatment completion requirement
- Nutrition: Meals and snacks meeting USDA Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) standards, nutrition education for families, and individualized meal planning for children with dietary needs
- Family engagement: Family partnership agreements, parent education, family literacy, employment and housing support, community resource referrals, and structured parent participation in program governance through the policy council
This comprehensive approach means that Head Start compliance is far more complex than managing a single education grant. Grantees must maintain compliance across all four service domains simultaneously, each with its own performance standards, data requirements, and monitoring protocols.
The 5-Year Grant Cycle
Head Start grants are awarded on a 5-year project period. Unlike formula block grants such as CSBG, Head Start is a competitive grant program — organizations must submit applications through Grants.gov and be evaluated against other applicants. However, once awarded, grantees receive continuation funding each year of the 5-year period without recompeting, provided they remain in good standing.
At the end of the 5-year period, grantees that have not triggered any of the 7 Designation Renewal System conditions receive a new 5-year grant without open competition. Grantees that have triggered one or more DRS conditions must recompete through an open competition process where other organizations may apply to serve the same geographic area. This structure creates both stability (predictable multi-year funding) and accountability (performance-based renewal).
The Designation Renewal System (DRS)
The DRS was established by the 2007 reauthorization to ensure that Head Start funding flows to programs that demonstrate effective service delivery. Under the DRS, OHS evaluates each grantee against 7 conditions. If a grantee meets any one of these conditions, it must recompete for its grant through an open competition:
- Condition 1: An unresolved deficiency identified during a federal monitoring review
- Condition 2: A denial of refunding due to a determination that the grantee is not providing high-quality comprehensive services
- Condition 3: Suspension or debarment from receiving federal grants
- Condition 4: Revocation of a license to operate a Head Start center by a state or local licensing agency
- Condition 5: Meeting the fiscal criteria — audit findings indicating deficient fiscal management, including material weakness, questioned costs, or a going concern opinion
- Condition 6: CLASS observation scores falling below the quality thresholds — Emotional Support below 6.0, Classroom Organization below 5.0, or Instructional Support below the national mean
- Condition 7: Failure to establish and maintain program governance in compliance with applicable laws, including governing body and policy council requirements
Understanding the DRS is not optional — it is the single most consequential accountability mechanism in Head Start. Every operational decision a grantee makes should be evaluated through the lens of whether it mitigates or increases DRS risk. The Compliance & Monitoring guide covers each condition in detail.
OHS Regional Office Structure
Unlike most federal grants that flow through a single national office, Head Start is administered through 12 regional offices (Regions I–X plus Region XI for American Indian and Alaska Native programs and Region XII for Migrant and Seasonal Head Start). Each regional office has a team of program specialists who serve as the primary federal contact for grantees in their region. Your regional program specialist is your first point of contact for questions about compliance, grant modifications, budget changes, and technical assistance.
The regional structure means that Head Start administration can vary somewhat by region in terms of emphasis and interpretation. While the Head Start Program Performance Standards (HSPPS) are uniform nationwide, regional offices may differ in how they prioritize monitoring focus areas, communicate expectations, and provide technical assistance. Building a strong working relationship with your regional program specialist is a practical necessity for effective program management.
Who This Guide Is For
This Head Start Program Guide is written for the people who manage Head Start and Early Head Start programs on a daily basis:
- Head Start Directors responsible for overall program performance, DRS readiness, and federal monitoring outcomes
- Grants Managers and Fiscal Officers who handle budget management, non-federal match documentation, SF-425 reporting, and audit coordination
- Education and Program Coordinators responsible for CLASS preparation, school readiness goals, curriculum implementation, and PIR data collection
- Health and Family Services Managers who coordinate screening timelines, family engagement activities, and community partnerships
- Governing Body and Policy Council Members who need to understand their oversight responsibilities and the compliance framework they govern
What This Guide Covers
Each section of this guide addresses a specific aspect of Head Start program management. Whether you are a new director navigating your first federal review or an experienced administrator preparing for recompetition, these pages provide the detailed reference information you need to manage your program effectively and maintain compliance with federal requirements.