Head Start & Early Head Start

Developing measures of implementation and cost of center-based early care and education.

The purpose of this project is to assist the Administration for Children and Families (ACF), states, and localities in understanding what drives workforce turnover in the early care and education (ECE) field and to evaluate promising strategies to support recruitment and retention of a qualified ECE workforce. The dynamics contributing to high rates of staff departures in some center-based ECE programs and decreasing supply of family child care providers, including individuals paid to provide noncustodial care, are not well understood.

State and tribal CCDF grantees' research projects on the implementation of CCDBG Act of 2014.

The purpose of the Child Care and Early Education Policy and Research Analysis (CCEEPRA) project is to support policy and program planning and decision-making with rigorous, research-based information. Through CCEEPRA, Child Trends identifies high-priority issues in child care and early education (CCEE), develops research activities to address the issues, and shares results and implications with state, federal, and regional leaders.

The Child and Family Data Archive (CFData) is the place to discover, access, and analyze data on young children, their families and communities, and the programs that serve them. OPRE funds numerous data collection efforts through research studies on a wide range of early care and education (ECE) topics within and across child care, Head Start, and home visiting.

OPRE’s child and family development work includes research and evaluation projects primarily concerned with child care and child welfare. This portfolio additionally examines the culturally diverse experiences of children and families served by ACF programs.

Discover this project’s work to understand how and why Head Start grantees prepare for and engage in enrollment conversions, and its aim to identify facilitators and barriers to the provision of high-quality Early Head Start services that meet community needs.

Learn about this project’s work to explore how child care and Head Start programs can improve the quality of social-emotional learning services received by young children while institutionalizing continuous quality improvement activities.

The Early Care and Education Leadership Study (ExCELS), funded by the Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation (OPRE) in the Administration for Children and Families, has three goals: (1) fill the definitional and measurement gaps to understand what leadership looks like as defined by who participates in leadership in center-based ECE settings and the ways in which leaders can improve quality experiences for children in ECE settings, (2) develop a short-form measure of ECE leadership, and (3) identify actionable leadership quality improvement (QI) initiatives and methods of evaluating them.

Learn about the Early Care and Education Research Scholars (ECERS): The Head Start Dissertation 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 provides support for dissertation research conducted by graduate students working in partnership with local Head Start or Early Head Start programs.

Explore Early Head Start-Child Care Partnerships Research, a detailed follow-up study on EHS programs and child care providers (including child care center directors and family child care providers) who participated in the National Descriptive Study of Early Head Start-Child Care Partnerships, to learn whether and how partnerships have been sustained or have dissolved, and which features of partnerships support or impede sustainability.

Explore Baby FACES reports, data tables, briefs, and other publications about Early Head Start programs, centers, home visitors, classrooms, teachers, children and families.

Amid an unprecedented expansion of early care and education (ECE) programming, many ECE systems and program leaders must piece together multiple funding sources to meet the total cost of delivering high-quality programming. Bringing together, or braiding, these various funding streams requires coordination across different levels of the ECE system and has critical implications for program quality, workforce strength, and equity in access and outcomes for young children and their families. Of particular interest is how Head Start participates in or uses approaches that braid federal funding alongside state and local sources to provide high-quality, comprehensive services. 

Project Overview

Since its origins, Head Start has emphasized delivering comprehensive services that align with children and families’ diverse strengths and needs. A strength of Head Start’s approach has been its dual focus on offering comprehensive services that support both children and their families to improve child development in the long-term: coupling early care and education, nutrition, health, and social supports for children with parenting, self-sufficiency, health/mental health, and leadership services for parents.

Learn about a large-scale project studying the eligibility, recruitment, selection, enrollment, and attendance (ERSEA) and retention practices used by Head Start programs to engage families facing adversity.

The overall goal of these Head Start University Partnership grants, awarded in 2021, is to contribute to the knowledge base regarding the individual, program, and community factors that promote the well-being of Head Start and/or Early Head Start education staff (i.e., teachers and assistant teachers). Researchers are working in partnership with one or more Head Start programs.

Identifying the competencies (knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics) essential to a given profession may help to provide a common language and lens for assessing job performance and provide a clear structure for professional growth and development. The Infant and Toddler Teacher and Caregiver Competencies (ITTCC) project is examining existing efforts...

Learn about this project’s work and its reports regarding families that are eligible for Migrant and Seasonal Head Start.

Learn about the Center’s investigation of assets, needs, and experiences of the diverse population of African American families and children served (or potentially served) by ACF programs, as well as promising approaches to address economic and social inequities. This work includes a primary focus on childcare assistance, TANF, and Head Start and Early Head Start programs.

Learn about and read the 2019 National Survey of Early Care and Education, which includes four integrated surveys to characterize the supply of and demand for ECE.

The Network of infant/toddler Researchers (NitR) consortium brings together leading applied researchers with policymakers and technical assistance providers responsible for overseeing and supporting early childhood programs serving families during pregnancy and the first three years of life.

The Q-CCIIT PD Tools project developed a research-based professional development system called We Grow Together. As part of We Grow Together, teachers and caregivers work with their professional development providers (mentors, coaches, supervisors) using resources delivered on an interactive website.

Explore OPRE's Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Human Services Analysis Execution Project for information on OPRE's approach to identifying racial and ethnic disparities in human services programs administered by the Administration for Children and Families.

These grants aim to support researchers conducting secondary analyses of data to address key questions of relevance to Head Start, Early Head Start, American Indian Alaska Native Head Start, and Migrant and Seasonal Head Start programs.

In 2013, OPRE commissioned four interrelated reports on self-regulation and toxic stress from a team at the Center for Child and Social Policy at Duke University. That team and other experts have since created multiple practice-oriented resources grounded in the initial reports. Together, these reports and resources comprise the ’Self-Regulation and Toxic Stress Series.’ 

This is the landing page for the Study of Disability Services Coordinators and Inclusion in Head Start.

Explore the Tribal Early Childhood Research Center (TRC)'s goals for addressing gaps in early childhood research with American Indian and Alaska Native families through partnerships with tribal Head Start, Early Head Start, child care, and home visiting programs.

Explore how the Tribal Research Center for Early Childhood Development and Systems (TRC) promotes excellence in community-based participatory research and evaluation of ACF early childhood initiatives that serve tribal communities.

The purpose of this project is to better understand how to improve children’s transitions from Head Start programs to elementary schools. Central to this project is a systems approach that recognizes that effective transitions require intentional engagement from both the sending programs (Head Start) and the receiving programs (elementary schools). This approach also recognizes that transition strategies and practices must be implemented at multiple levels — among classroom teachers in Head Start and kindergarten, families and teachers, elementary school principals and Head Start directors, Head Start grantees and school districts, and state and federal agencies.

The VIQI study is testing how different levels and features of classroom quality relate to children’s developmental outcomes by looking at the relationship of initial child care and early education (CCEE) classroom quality to changes in observed quality and children’s outcomes through a rigorous experimental design.

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...

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...

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...

The American Indian and Alaska Native Early Childhood Needs Assessment Project (AI/AN EC Needs Assessment) seeks to lay the foundation for understanding the need for early childhood services in American Indian and Alaska Native communities.  The project outlines a series of designs for future studies that will inform a national assessment of the unmet need for early childhood care, education, and home visiting services (prenatal to age 5) in tribal communities...

In 1997, the Head Start Family and Child Experiences Survey (FACES) was launched to provide descriptive, nationally representative information on the characteristics, experiences, and development of Head Start children and families, and the characteristics of the Head Start programs and staff who serve them. FACES has historically not included Region XI, whose programs are designed to serve predominantly American Indian and Alaska Native (AIAN) children and families.

This contract supported the development of a literature review, conceptual model, and  tool designed to measure teachers’ use of child assessments for individualizing instruction to support optimal development in early childhood settings...

Descriptive study of the range of existing state and local approaches to coordinating early care and education services with other health and human services for children and families with low incomes.

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...

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...

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...

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...

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...

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...

The FPTRQ project  developed new measures to assess the quality of the relationship between families and providers/teachers of early care and education for children birth to 5 years of age. The measures examines this relationship...

The purpose of this project was to expand the knowledge base on early childhood development and programming by supporting secondary data analysis of archived datasets funded by the Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation (OPRE).

The overall goal the Early Head Start University Partnerships research grant program is to contribute to the knowledge base regarding how Early Head Start (EHS) and other early care and education programs can promote and improve early child development by supporting both parenting and caregiving. Researchers are working in partnership with one or more EHS center-based programs and/or EHS-Child Care Partnership programs...

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...

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...

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 Readiness Act of 2007...

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...

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...

Hurricane Katrina was perhaps the largest single natural disaster in America’s history. Millions of people were on the hurricane’s path. About half a million people in New Orleans were displaced by floods caused by Hurricane Katrina...

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)...

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...

The project developed 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...

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...

Descriptive, nationally representative information on the characteristics, experiences, and development of Head Start children and families, and the characteristics of the Head Start programs and staff who serve them.

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 programs and services being offered to children and families...

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...

The purpose of this project was 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...

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...

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...

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...

The overall goal of this year’s Head Start University Partnerships research grant program is to contribute to the knowledge base regarding the role that Head Start can play in promoting family well-being, including health, safety, financial...

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...

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...

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...

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...

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...

ACF’s Hispanic Research Work Group brings together experts in a wide range of content areas relevant to ACF’s mission to assist ACF/OPRE in identifying research priorities concerning low-income, Hispanic families.

In this project, the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) is exploring the application of Human-centered Design (HCD) across its service delivery programs at the federal, state, and local levels. To date, little is known regarding what HCD looks like in the context of human services, the requirements for implementation across a range of programs; the measurable outcomes and effectiveness of HCD; the evaluability of HCD; and the sustainability of HCD in practice.

The Human Services Research Partnership of the U.S. Virgin Islands (VI) explored issues related to social service needs and public welfare systems in the territory. This cooperative agreement supported partnerships among researchers, local governments, and community-based organizations to define and evaluate research questions relevant to low-income people in the U.S. Virgin Islands and to both the Head Start and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families programs.

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...

Explore OPRE's project, Integrated Approaches to Supporting Child Development and Improving Family Economic Security, for reports and briefs related to integrated (two-generation / whole-family) approaches to meeting the needs of children, parents, and families together.

 

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...

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..

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...

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...

National surveys conducted in 2012 of child care and early education programs, the early childhood workforce, and households with young children under age 13-years allowing for analyses of supply of and demand for child care and early education.

OPRE has developed the Next Steps for Rigorous Research on Two-Generation Approaches (NS2G) project to continue building the evidence base for fully integrated, intentional two-generation program models with adequate intensity and quality of services for both parents and their children.

This project investigated how existing work on racial and ethnic disparities could inform more accurate identification and interpretation of ethnic and racial differences in programs administered by the Administration for Children and Families (ACF). Through this work, this project...

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...

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 Start Impact Study Data.” This grant, awarded to New York University, supported secondary analyses of the Head Start Impact Study to answer questions related to the characteristics of effective Head Start centers, classrooms, and teachers.

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...

The Secondary Analyses of Data on Early Care and Education Grants aim to support researchers conducting secondary analyses of data to address key questions of relevance to the goals and outcomes of programs administered by the Administration for Children and Families (ACF), in particular the Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) and Head Start/Early Head Start (HS/EHS).

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),...

Learn about this study of coaching practices as implemented in Head Start and center-based and family child care settings.

The Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation (OPRE) is undertaking a descriptive study to document the approaches and strategies utilized by tribal organizations awarded cooperative agreements under the Coordination of Tribal TANF and Child Welfare...

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...

The Language Minority Roundtable was a working meeting where invited participants engaged in critical dialogue regarding how research can support efforts of policymakers and practitioners to serve the language and literacy needs of young language...

The Quality of Caregiver-Child Interactions for Infants and Toddlers (Q-CCIIT) observation tool is a reliable and valid research-based observational tool that measures the quality of interactions between infants and toddlers...

Effect sizes are increasingly applied to describe the magnitude of findings about program effectiveness across a range of policy contexts. Though more researchers are recognizing the importance of including effect sizes in manuscripts, at times these...

Explore the Touchpoints for Addressing Substance Use In Home Visiting page for a conceptual model and review of the literature on how home visiting programs can support families dealing with substance use issues.

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...

Technology has become increasingly prevalent in early care and education settings, yet little is known about the effectiveness, function, and requirements for technologies that are available to early childhood programs. The purpose of this project was to review the knowledge base related to the use of technology to support the practice of early childhood practitioners who work directly with children and families. The review was conducted by NORC at the University of Chicago...