About Us

Head Start is our nation’s premier provider of developmental and educational services to pregnant moms, babies, toddlers, preschoolers and their families, who live in poverty and struggle to meet the basic needs of life.

Our Vision for the Future

Head Start will continue to play a key role in the transformation of education in America. We will bring our long record of success in working with the most challenging young children and their families to our partnerships with those in education and family services.

Together we will deliver on our nation’s promise that all of our young children have the opportunity to succeed.

The Needs We Face

Our nation faces enormous challenges. Millions of children under the age of five are being raised in poverty. Our urban centers and rural communities are facing unparalleled challenges, and as financial inequality increases and the number of children in poverty grows, more and more families are unable to overcome the risk factors that perpetuate multi-generational poverty.

In the midst of these financial and familial struggles, too often our schools are unable to meet the challenge of preparing children for success in a global economy. More and more children are arriving at school with severe emotional distress and already significantly behind many of their peers.

Head Start and Early Head Start programs are supported by federal-to-local funding. Historically, funding has limited enrollment to less than half of all eligible children nationwide.