Under the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Head Start promotes school readiness by enhancing the social and cognitive development of children through the provision of educational, health, nutritional, social and other services to enrolled children and families.  Head Start’s commitment to wellness embraces a comprehensive shared vision of health for children, families, and staff. Through collaboration among families, staff, and health professionals, many child health and developmental concerns are identified, and children and families are linked to accessible care to meet their health needs.

Head Start serves families within the context of the community, and recognizes that many other agencies and groups work with the same families.  The Head Start program provides grants to local public and private non-profit and for-profit agencies to provide comprehensive child development services. Because peering is a key attribute of these community partnerships, these local Head Start agencies then collaborate with partners in their communities in order to provide family centered services to eligible children.

Significant emphasis is also placed on the involvement of parents in the administration of local Head Start programs.  The objective is to support parents as they identify and meet their own goals, nurture the development of their children in the context of their family and culture.  The granting and building of trusting relationships between parents and staff allows them to share with and to learn from one another.

Created in 1965, Head Start is the most successful, longest-running, national school readiness program in the United States.  The rewards are shared by those who participate: nearly 25 million pre-school aged children have benefited from Head Start.  Through over 40 years of implementation, experimentation, and debate, Head Start remains an excellent example of an evolving and long lasting collaboration.