Head Start
View all reports on this topicTopic Overview
Research sponsored through Head Start funding over the past decade has provided valuable information not only to guide program improvement in Head Start itself, but also to guide the field of early childhood programming and early childhood development. Dozens of Head Start programs have collaborated with researchers in making significant contributions in terms of program innovation and evaluation, as well as the use of systematic data collection, analysis and interpretation in program operations.
Projects on this Topic
Advisory Committee on Head Start Research and Evaluation
The Secretary of Health and Human Services is required by section 649(g)(1) of Public Law 92-463 to convene an expert advisory committee to review and make recommendations on the design of the study or studies that provide national analysis of the...
An Exploratory Study: Implications of Immigration Enforcement Activities for the Well-Being of Children in Immigrant Families, 2012-2014
The Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation (OPRE), in collaboration with the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE) within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), has initiated this project to explore...
Center for Early Care and Education Research: Dual Language Learners, 2009-2013
The Center for Early Care and Education Research: Dual Language Learners (CECER-DLL) is a cooperative agreement awarded by the Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation to the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill. The primary goal of the Center...
Child Care and Early Education RESEARCH CONNECTIONS, 1998-2013
Research Connections is a web-based, interactive database of research documents and public use data sets for conducting secondary analyses on topics related to early care and education...
Development of a Measure of Family-Provider Relationship Quality (FPRQ), 2010-2014
The goal of the FPRQ project is to develop a new measure to assess the quality of the relationship between families and providers of early care and education for children birth to 5 years of age...
Early Childhood Teachers' Use of Progress Monitoring to Individualize Teaching Practices, 2012-2013
This contract will support the development of a literature review, a conceptual model, and a plan for measuring teachers’ use of progress monitoring to support children’s development in an early childhood setting. The literature review will...
Early Learning Mentor Coach Study (ELMC), 2011–2013
The Early Learning Mentor Coach Study (ELMC) was a descriptive study of professional development grants awarded competitively to Head Start programs. The Head Start Early Learning Mentor and Coach grants were funded in September of 2010 to 131...
Evaluation of the Head Start Designation Renewal System (DRS), 2012-2015
In the fall of 2011, the Office of Head Start (OHS) significantly expanded its accountability provisions with the establishment of the Head Start Designation Renewal System (DRS). In response to requirements in the Improving Head Start for School...
Head Start CARES (Head Start Classroom-based Approaches and Resources for Emotion and Social skill promotion), 2007-2015
The Head Start CARES (Classroom-based Approaches and Resources for Emotion and Social skill promotion) is a large-scale group-randomized trial of three social-emotional program enhancements within Head Start classrooms. The project includes an impact...
Head Start Coaching Study: Design Phase, 2012-2013
The project will develop design options for a research study providing evidence for the most efficient practices in coaching within the context of Head Start professional development systems. Coaching is one mechanism through which professional...
Head Start Family and Child Experiences Survey (FACES), 1997-2013
The Head Start Family and Child Experiences Survey (FACES) provides descriptive information on the characteristics, experiences and outcomes of Head Start children and families, as well as the characteristics of the Head Start programs that serve...
Head Start Family Voices Pilot Study, 2012-2014
The purpose of this study is to help the Administration for Children and Families better understand the experiences and perspectives of families and staff participating in Head Start and Early Head Start, particularly around the topic of family...
Head Start Graduate Student Research Program, 1998-2013
The Head Start Graduate Student Research grant program is designed to build research capacity in and knowledge of effective early childhood interventions with low-income children and families. The grant program does this by providing support for...
Head Start Health Managers Descriptive Study, 2011-2013
The goals of the Head Start Health Manager Descriptive Survey include 1) to describe the characteristics of Health Managers and related staff in Head Start (HS) and Early Head Start (EHS) programs; 2) to identify the current landscape of health...
Head Start Impact Study and Follow-up, 2000-2012
Head Start provides comprehensive early child development services to low-income children, their families, and communities. In 1998, Congress determined, as part of Head Start's reauthorization, that the Department of Health and Human Services...
Head Start Leadership, Excellence, and Data Systems (HS LEADS), 2012-2014
The purpose of this project is to develop a literature review and conceptual model describing the key factors in organizational and management systems that promote effective early childhood practice with an emphasis on the use of data for continuous...
Head Start University Partnership Research Grants: Strategies for Developing Head Start Teacher Effectiveness, 2008-2011
The Administration for Children and Families (ACF), Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation (OPRE) awarded seven cooperative agreements in April 2008 under the Head Start University Partnership Research Grants: Strategies for Developing Head Start...
Migrant and Seasonal Head Start Supplement to the National Agricultural Workers' Survey
The Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation worked in conjunction with the Office of Head Start and the Employment and Training Administration to develop, pilot and implement a Migrant and Seasonal Head Start (MSHS) Supplement to the National...
National Survey of Early Care and Education (NSECE), 2010-2014
The National Survey of Early Care and Education (NSECE) will document the nation's current utilization and availability of early care and education (including school-age care), in order to deepen the understanding of the extent to which...
Research Center to Support Secondary Analyses of Head Start Impact Study Data, 2011-2013
The Administration for Children and Families (ACF), Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation (OPRE) awarded one cooperative agreement in August 2011 as part of the funding announcement “Research Center to Support Secondary Analyses of Head...
School Readiness Goals and Head Start Program Functioning, 2012-2014
The purpose of this task order is to generate knowledge about how Head Start grantees develop and utilize school readiness goals. The contract will support a study of the process used by Head Start grantees to define, measure, and prioritize their...
Study on the Status of Dual Language Learners in Head Start and Early Head Start Programs, 2008-2012
In response to a requirement in the Improving Head Start for School Readiness Act of 2007 (P.L. 110-134), ACF initiated this project in 2008 to develop a report on limited English proficient (LEP) children and their families participating in Head Start...
Tribal Research Center on Early Childhood under the Affordable Care Act's (ACA) Maternal, Infant and Early Childhood Home Visiting (MIECHV) Program and the Head Start Act's Head Start and Early Head Start Programs, 2011-2016
The Tribal Early Childhood Research Center (TRC) provides leadership and support to promote excellence in community-based participatory research and evaluation of Maternal, Infant and Early Childhood Home Visiting (MIECHV), Head Start, and Early Head...
Understanding and Choosing Assessments and Developmental Screeners for Young Children Ages 3-5: Profiles of Selected Measures, 2009-2011
This compendium was created in response to the 2007 Head Start reauthorization requirement that programs use reliable and valid early childhood assessments and developmental screeners that are appropriate for the populations they serve. The compendium...
American Indian - Alaska Native Head Start Research and Outcomes Assessment (AIAN), 2002-2004
In 2001, the Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, began a two-year initiative to review existing information, collect new data, and explore research needs for American Indian-Alaska Native Head Start...
American Indian - Alaska Native Head Start Research Center, 2005-2011
This grant cooperative agreement supported a Head Start American Indian - Alaska Native Research Center at the University of Colorado at Denver – Health Sciences Center. The purpose of the Center was to provide leadership and offer support in the...
Celebrating Cultural and Linguistic Diversity in Head Start, 1993-1996
In 1993, the Administration on Children, Youth and Families (ACYF) commissioned this investigation to study the diversity in language and culture of the Head Start population and to identify the range of services provided to this population...
Comprehensive Child Development Program (CCDP), 1990-1996
In 1988, Congress, concerned about extremely at-risk low-income young children and families, created the Comprehensive Child Development Program (CCDP). The CCDP tested whether a newly designed community service delivery program could identify family...
Descriptive Study of Head Start Health Services, 1993-1996
The purpose of the Descriptive Study of Head Start Health Services was to describe the Head Start Health Component across the four health domains: medical, dental, nutrition, and mental health. The Head Start Bureau required this information for the...
Design for Migrant and Seasonal Head Start Survey, 2007-2011
To further the expansion of Head Start research efforts, the Head Start Act of 1998 called for continued evaluation and research activities that explore program quality and effectiveness, identify ways in which services may be improved, and contribute...
Design Options for the Assessment of Head Start Quality Enhancements, 2003-2004
In September of 2003, the Office of Planning Research and Evaluation (OPRE) contracted with Mathematica to prepare design options for potential evaluations of Head Start quality enhancements. In light of Head Start's significant focus on quality...
Evaluation of Head Start Family Child Care Demonstration
In 1992 the Administration on Children, Youth, and Families (ACYF) funded a 3-year project designed to evaluate the delivery of Head Start services in family child care home settings and to compare those services with the services provided in...
Evaluation of the Head Start Family Service Center Demonstration Projects (FSC), 1991-1996
The Family Service Center (FSC) demonstration projects were initiated in 1990 to enable Head Start programs to provide a more comprehensive set of services to address problems of low literacy, employability, and substance abuse among Head Start...
Evaluation of the Head Start Oral Health Initiative, 2006-2008
The Head Start Oral Health Initiative was created by the Office of Head Start to improve oral health services to young children, from birth to five years, and pregnant women. Supplemental grant funding was awarded to 52 Head Start programs to develop...
Head Start Child Outcomes Research Support Consortium (CORS), 2002-2006
The Head Start Bureau and the ACF Child Outcomes Research and Evaluation unit in the Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation awarded five cooperative agreements in September 2002 under the Head Start Child Outcomes Research Support (CORS)...
Head Start Mental Health Research Consortium, 1997-2001
The Administration on Children, Youth and Families (ACYF) and the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) awarded five research grants in 1997 as the core component of a new young children's mental health research initiative designed to develop...
Head Start Quality Research Centers Consortium I (QRC), 1995-2000
In 1995, the Head Start Bureau established four Quality Research Centers (QRCs) at (1) the Frank Porter Graham Child Development Center, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill; (2) High/Scope Educational Research Foundation; (3) Education...
Head Start Quality Research Centers Consortium II (QRC), 2001-2006
The Head Start Bureau and the ACYF Commissioner's Office of Research and Evaluation awarded eight cooperative agreements under the Head Start Quality Research Center (QRC) Consortium to promote the school readiness of preschool children in Head...
Head Start University Partnerships for Curriculum Development, 2005-2008
In September 2005, the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation (OPRE) selected six universities to develop curriculum for Head Start and Early Head Start. The grantees received three years of support...
Head Start University Partnerships for Measurement Development, 2004-2008
The Administration for Children and Families (ACF), Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation (OPRE) awarded eight grants in September 2004 under the Head Start-University Partnerships: Measurement Development for Head Start Children and Families...
Head Start University Partnerships, 2001-2004
The Head Start University Partnerships Program supported research conducted by university faculty members who form partnerships with Head Start or Early Head Start programs in their communities. The purpose of these partnerships was twofold...
Head Start University Partnerships-English Language Learners, 2007-2010
This grant program funds research projects planned in close collaboration with Head Start or Early Head Start programs. Grantees receive $150,000 in funding for the first year and $250,000 dollars in funding for each of two additional years...
I am Moving, I am Learning - Head Start Implementation Evaluation Project, 2006-2008
In FY 2005 the Region III Office of the Administration for Children and Families initiated a pilot project, I Am Moving, I Am Learning (IM/IL), to prevent and reverse the negative consequences of obesity in Head Start children in 17 Head Start programs...
Interagency School Readiness Consortium, 2003-2008
The National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), the Administration for Children and Families (ACF), and the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE) within the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), and the...
Migrant and Seasonal Head Start Research Design Development Project (MSHS), 2002-2004
The unique characteristics of migrant and seasonal families are important concerns for the Office of Head Start. This study was designed to ascertain the state of research knowledge about Migrant and Seasonal Head Start (MSHS) programs, assess the..
National Academy of Sciences: Study of Early Childhood Assessment, 2006-2008
In its 2006 appropriations for the Department of Health and Human Services, Congress directed the Office of Head Start to sponsor a study by the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) to review and provide guidance on appropriate outcomes and assessment...
National Head Start/Public School Early Childhood Transition Demonstration Study, 1991-1999
In 1990, the U. S. Congress authorized The National Head Start/Public School Early Childhood Transition Demonstration Study project designed to enhance the early public school transitions of former Head Start children and their families...
Report to Congress: Plan for an Indian Head Start Study
This report responds to The Improving Head Start for School Readiness Act of 2007, Public Law 110–134, Sec. 635. [42 U.S.C. 9801] Sub-Section 649 (k) (1) (A-D), Indian Head Start Study, which requires a report to Congress detailing how the...
Research to Practice: Assessing Evidence-Based Head Start Program Activities, 2005-2008
This project surveyed, assessed, and cataloged literature relevant to Head Start practice, including materials that address the likelihood of implementation fidelity in transporting practices across Head Start settings, and any research-based products...
Secondary Analysis of Head Start Data, 2007-2009
This grant program provided funds to support secondary analysis of Head Start data from a number of Federal data sources, including the Early Head Start Research and Evaluation project, the Family and Child Experiences Survey (1997 and 2000 cohorts),...
