Head Start and Georgia Pre-K meet the early education needs of thousands of Georgia’s children. This fact sheet from Voices for Georgia’s Children is designed to provide information about the basic operations of Head Start and Georgia Pre-K and to promote continuing collaboration between the two programs.
Head Start is a federal program that provides grants to local public and private nonprofit and for-profit agencies, Indian tribes, and local school systems. The grants are used to provide comprehensive education, health, nutrition, parent involvement, and family support services to low-income children and their families. Since its inception in 1965, Head Start has aimed to meet the physical, social, emotional, and cognitive needs of more than 27 million children across the United States. In 1994 the reauthorization of Head Start, already serving children from age 3 to 5, added the Early Head Start program for children from birth to 3 as well as pregnant women.1 Children may be served in home-based or center-based programs or a combination of the two. The minimum length of service is 160 days per year. During the 2009-2010 program year, a national total of 1,117,687 women and children were served in Head Start and Early Head Start.
Georgia Pre-K is a lottery-funded program that aims to prepare four-year-olds for a successful transition into kindergarten. The program began as a state-funded pilot program serving low income children in 1992. It became the first universal program in the nation during the 1995-1996 school year when it opened to all children regardless of income. Through a competitive grant process, Bright from the Start, Georgia’s Department of Early Care and Learning, awards operating funds to program providers. The Georgia Pre-K program can be offered in a number of venues, including public and private elementary and secondary schools, postsecondary institutions, military bases, private and nonprofit child care centers, and Head Start program sites. The program served its 1 millionth child during the 2009-2010 school year.
Resources:
Bright from the Start: GA Dept. of Early Care & Learning
http://decal.ga.gov
404-656-5957
GA Head Start Association
www.georgiaheadstart.org
478-240-0925 Ext. 204 or 404-929-2457
National Head Start Association
www.nhsa.org
703-739-0875
Early Childhood Learning & Knowledge Center, Office of Head Start
http://eclkc.ohs.acf.hhs.gov
866-763-6481