Secondary Analyses of Head Start Data

Overview

HS programs serve children (ages birth to 5) and pregnant women from families with low income and offer early learning, nutritional, health, social, family well-being, and other services. HS programs are delivered through direct awards from the federal government to agencies in local communities throughout the nation that provide services in centers, schools, family child care homes, and through home visiting. HS programs are available at no cost to families with low income. Families and children experiencing homelessness and children in the foster care system are also eligible. Additionally, services are available to children with disabilities and other special needs. 

HS programs provide services to more than a million children every year, in every U.S. state and territory and in farm worker and tribal communities. HS includes several different program types reflecting the needs of specific populations within the community. These include HS programs serving families with children 3 to 5 years old, EHS programs serving expectant families and families with infants and toddlers, AI/AN HS programs serving families in tribal communities, and MSHS programs serving families engaged in migrant and seasonal farm work. 

To learn more about HS services, visit: https://www.acf.hhs.gov/ohs/head-start-services

This funding opportunity will address key questions of relevance to HS programs, inclusive of HS, EHS, AI/AN HS, and MSHS programs. Findings are intended to inform policy, program administration, and future research.

The following specific goals of the awards are to:
•Address topics of current relevance to the goals and outcomes of HS programs;
•Encourage active communication, networking, and collaboration among prominent HS researchers and policymakers; and
•Increase the capacity of HS researchers to analyze existing data sets and disseminate their findings to multiple audiences.
Topics of particular interest to ACF include, but are not limited to, the following:
•Effective approaches to recruit and retain qualified HS staff, including HS parents who may enter career paths through entry level positions;
•Supporting the well-being, mental and behavioral health, and wellness of HS staff;
•Efforts to increase compensation, wages, and benefits for the HS staff;
•Promoting equity and improvements in approaches to reach, recruit, enroll, and sustain families, particularly those most in need of HS services;
•Supporting the unique strengths and needs of MSHS and AI/AN HS children, families, and staff;
•Infant and early childhood mental health and approaches to support young children’s social-emotional well-being;
•Facilitators and barriers to the implementation of new or expansion of existing HS or EHS programs;
•Quality measurement and continuous quality improvement processes;
•Improving HS staff competencies and qualifications through professional development;
•Coordination and collaboration between HS and state, territory, or local early care and education or social service systems;
•Supports and services for families experiencing homelessness, families involved in the child welfare system, and for children with known or suspected disabilities;
•Costs associated with delivering HS services and blending/braiding of funding sources;
•Identifying practices or experiences within HS programs that drive child and family outcomes; and
•Approaches to engage, support, and meet the health, mental health, economic self-sufficiency, and other needs of HS families.

ACF is particularly interested in secondary analyses that examine the above topics with an equity and strength-based lens and provide insights into the experiences of HS staff and families from historically underserved or marginalized communities.

Project Requirements 
Grant recipients must conduct quantitative and/or qualitative analyses to address key questions of relevance to the goals and outcomes of HS programs and disseminate findings from those analyses.

Anticipated Project Start Date: 09/30/2024
Length of Project Periods: 18-month project period and budget period

Letter of Intent Due: 03/27/2024
Applicants are strongly encouraged to notify ACF of their intention to submit an application under this NOFO. The letter of intent is optional. Failure to submit a letter of intent will not impact eligibility to submit an application and will not disqualify an applicant from the merit review. Letter of intent information will be used to determine the number of expert reviewers needed to evaluate applications.