39–006 

109TH CONGRESS REPORT " ! HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 1st Session 109–136 

SCHOOL READINESS ACT OF 2005 

JUNE 16, 2005.—Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of 

the Union and ordered to be printed 

Mr. BOEHNER, from the Committee on Education and the 

Workforce, submitted the following 

R E P O R T 

together with 

ADDITIONAL VIEWS 

[To accompany H.R. 2123] 

[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office] 

The Committee on Education and the Workforce, to whom was 

referred the bill (H.R. 2123) to reauthorize the Head Start Act to 

improve the school readiness of disadvantaged children, and for 

other purposes, having considered the same, report favorably thereon with an amendment and recommend that the bill as amended 

do pass. 

The amendment is as follows: 

Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the following: 

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

This Act may be cited as the ‘‘School Readiness Act of 2005’’. 

SEC. 2. PURPOSE. 

Section 636 of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9831) is amended to read as follows: 

‘‘SEC. 636. STATEMENT OF PURPOSE. 

‘‘It is the purpose of this subchapter to promote school readiness by enhancing the 

development of low-income children, including development of cognitive abilities, 

through educational instruction in prereading skills, premathematics skills, language, and social and emotional development linked to school readiness and through 

the provision to low-income children and their families of health, educational, nutritional, social and other services that are determined, based on family needs assessments, to be necessary.’’. 

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

Section 637 of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9832) is amended— 

(1) in paragraph (17) by striking ‘‘, but for fiscal years’’ and all that follows 

down to the period; 

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(2) by redesignating paragraphs (16) and (17) as paragraphs (23) and (24), respectively; 

(3) by redesignating paragraph (15) as paragraph (21); 

(4) by redesignating paragraphs (11) through (14) as paragraphs (16) through 

(19), respectively; 

(5) by redesignating paragraph (10) as paragraph (14); 

(6) by redesignating paragraphs (3) through (9) as paragraphs (6) through 

(12), respectively; 

(7) by redesignating paragraph (2) as paragraph (4); 

(8) by inserting after paragraph (1) the following: 

‘‘(2) The term ‘challenging State developed academic content standards’ has 

the meaning given such term in paragraphs (1) and (5) of section 1111(b) of the 

Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965. 

‘‘(3) The term ‘deficient’ means— 

‘‘(A) systemic or significant failure of a Head Start agency in an area of 

performance that the Secretary determines involves— 

‘‘(i) a threat to the health, safety, or civil rights of children or staff; 

‘‘(ii) a denial to parents of the exercise of their full roles and responsibilities related to program governance; 

‘‘(iii) a failure to perform the requirements of section 641A(a), as determined by the Secretary; 

‘‘(iv) the misuse of funds received under this subchapter; 

‘‘(v) loss of legal status (as determined by the Secretary) or financial 

viability, loss of permits, debarment from receiving Federal grants or 

contracts, or the improper use of Federal funds; or 

‘‘(vi) failure to meet any other Federal or State requirement; 

‘‘(B) failure of the board of directors of a Head Start agency to fully exercise its legal and fiduciary responsibilities; 

‘‘(C) failure of a Head Start agency to meet the administrative requirements of section 644(b); or 

‘‘(D) failure of a Head Start agency to meet the integration requirements 

of section 642B(a).’’; 

(9) by inserting after paragraph (4), as so redesignated, the following: 

‘‘(5) The term ‘eligible entities’ means an institution of higher education or 

other agency with expertise in delivering training in early childhood development, family support, and other assistance designed to improve the quality of 

early childhood education programs.’’; 

(10) by inserting after paragraph (12), as so redesignated, the following: 

‘‘(13) The term ‘homeless children’ has the meaning given such term in subtitle B of title VII of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 

11431–11435).’’; 

(11) by inserting after paragraph (14), as so redesignated, the following: 

‘‘(15) LIMITED ENGLISH PROFICIENT; LIMITED ENGLISH PROFICIENCY.—The 

terms ‘limited English proficient’ and ‘limited English proficiency’ mean with respect to an individual, that such individual— 

‘‘(A)(i) was not born in the United States or has a native language that 

is not English; 

‘‘(ii)(I) is a Native American, an Alaska Native, or a native resident of a 

territory or possession of the United States; and 

‘‘(II) comes from an environment in which a language that is not English 

has had a significant impact on such individual’s level of English language 

proficiency; or 

‘‘(iii) is migratory, has a native language that is not English, and comes 

from an environment in which a language that is not English is dominant; 

and 

‘‘(B) has difficultly in speaking or understanding the English language to 

an extent that may be sufficient to deny such individual— 

‘‘(i) the ability to successfully achieve in classrooms in which the language of instruction is English; or 

‘‘(ii) the opportunity to fully participate in society.’’; 

(12) by inserting after paragraph (19), as so redesignated, the following: 

‘‘(20) PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT.—The term ‘professional development’ 

means high quality activities that will enhance the school readiness of eligible 

children and prevent such children from encountering difficulties once they 

enter school by improving the knowledge and skills of Head Start teachers and 

staff, as relevant to their roles and functions, including activities that— 

‘‘(A) provide teachers with the content knowledge and teaching strategies 

needed to provide effective instruction and other school readiness services 

in early language and literacy, early mathematics, cognitive skills, apVerDate Aug 04 2004 03:39 Jun 18, 2005 Jkt 039006 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6621 E:\HR\OC\HR136.XXX HR136
3 

proaches to learning, creative arts, science, physical health and development, and social and emotional development linked to school readiness; 

‘‘(B) assist teachers in meeting the requirements in paragraphs (1) and 

(2) of section 648A(a), as appropriate; 

‘‘(C) improve teachers’ classroom management skills, as appropriate; 

‘‘(D) for teachers, are sustained, intensive, and classroom-focused in order 

to have a positive and lasting impact on classroom instruction and teachers’ 

performance in the classroom; 

‘‘(E) are not primarily 1-day or short-term workshops or conferences, and 

attendance at activities that are 1-day or short-term workshops or conferences must be as part of the professional development plan defined in 

section 648A(f); 

‘‘(F) assist teachers and staff in increasing their knowledge and skills in 

program administration, program quality, and the provision of services and 

instruction, as appropriate, in a manner that improves service delivery to 

eligible children and families; 

‘‘(G) are part of a sustained effort to improve overall program quality and 

outcomes for eligible children and families; 

‘‘(H) advance teacher understanding of effective instructional strategies 

that are— 

‘‘(i) based on scientifically based research; and 

‘‘(ii) strategies for improving school readiness or substantially increasing the knowledge and teaching skills of teachers; 

‘‘(I) are, where applicable, aligned with and directly related to— 

‘‘(i) challenging State academic content standards, student academic 

achievement standards, assessments, and the Head Start Child Outcomes Framework developed by the Secretary; 

‘‘(ii) the curricula, ongoing assessments, and other instruction and 

services designed to help meet the standards described in section 

641A(a)(1); and 

‘‘(iii) the Head Start Child Outcomes Framework developed by the 

Secretary; 

‘‘(J) are developed or selected with extensive participation of administrators and teachers from Head Start programs; 

‘‘(K) are developmentally appropriate for the children being served; 

‘‘(L) are designed to give teachers of limited English proficient children, 

and other teachers and instructional staff, the knowledge and skills to provide instruction and appropriate language and support services to increase 

the English language skills of such children; 

‘‘(M) as a whole, are regularly evaluated for their impact on increased 

teacher and staff effectiveness and improved ability of teachers to support 

learning and increase participating children’s school readiness, with the 

findings of the evaluations used to improve the quality of professional development; 

‘‘(N) provide instruction in methods of teaching children with special 

needs, as appropriate; 

‘‘(O) include instruction in ways that Head Start personnel may work 

more effectively with parents, as appropriate; and 

‘‘(P) are designed to give teachers and staff the knowledge and skills to 

provide instruction and appropriate support services to children of diverse 

backgrounds, as appropriate.’’; 

(13) by inserting after paragraph (21), as so redesignated, the following: 

‘‘(22) The term ‘scientifically based research’— 

‘‘(A) means research that involves the application of rigorous, systematic 

and objective procedures to obtain reliable and valid knowledge relevant to 

education activities and programs; and 

‘‘(B) includes research that— 

‘‘(i) employs systematic, empirical methods that draw on observation 

or experiment; 

‘‘(ii) involves rigorous data analyses that are adequate to test the 

stated hypotheses and justify the general conclusions drawn; 

‘‘(iii) relies on measurements or observational methods that provide 

reliable and valid data across evaluators and observers, across multiple 

measurements and observations, and across studies by the same or different investigators; 

‘‘(iv) is evaluated using experimental or quasi-experimental designs 

in which individuals, entities, programs or activities are assigned to different conditions and with appropriate controls to evaluate the effects 

of the condition of interest, with a preference for random assignment 

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experiments, or other designs to the extent that those designs contain 

within-condition or across-condition controls; 

‘‘(v) ensures that experimental studies are presented in sufficient detail and clarity to allow for replication or, at a minimum, offer the opportunity to build systematically on their findings; and 

‘‘(vi) has been accepted by a peer-reviewed journal or approved by a 

panel of independent experts through a comparably rigorous, objective, 

and scientific review.’’; and 

(14) by inserting after paragraph (24), as so redesignated, the following: 

‘‘(25) The term ‘State educational agency’ has the meaning given such term 

in the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965. 

‘‘(26) The term ‘unresolved area of noncompliance’ means a failure to correct 

a noncompliance item within 90 days, or within such additional time (if any) 

authorized by the Secretary, after receiving from the Secretary notice of such 

noncompliance item.’’. 

SEC. 4. FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE FOR HEAD START PROGRAMS. 

Section 638 of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9833) is amended by inserting ‘‘for 

a period of 5 years’’ after ‘‘provide financial assistance to such agency’’. 

SEC. 5. AUTHORIZATION. 

Section 639 of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9834) is amended to read as follows: 

‘‘SEC. 639. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be appropriated for carrying out the provisions of this subchapter $6,899,000,000 for the fiscal year 2006 and such sums 

as may be necessary for the fiscal years 2007 through 2011. 

‘‘(b) SPECIFIC PROGRAMS.—From the amount appropriated under subsection (a), the Secretary shall make available not more than $20,000,000 for fiscal year 2006, 

and such sums as may be necessary for fiscal years 2007 through 2011 to carry out 

such other research, demonstration, and evaluation activities, including longitudinal 

studies, under section 649, of which not more than $7,000,000 for each of the fiscal 

years 2006 through 2011 to carry out impact studies under section 649(g).’’. 

SEC. 6. ALLOTMENT OF FUNDS; LIMITATIONS ON ASSISTANCE. 

(a) ALLOTMENTS.—Section 640(a) of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9835(a)) is 

amended— 

(1) in paragraph (2)— 

(A) by amending subparagraph (A) to read as follows: 

‘‘(A) Indian Head Start programs, services for children with disabilities, 

and migrant and seasonal Head Start programs, except that— 

‘‘(i) there shall be made available for each fiscal year for use by Indian Head Start programs and by migrant and seasonal Head Start 

programs, on a nationwide basis, not less than the amount that was 

obligated for use by Indian Head Start programs and by migrant and 

seasonal Head Start programs for fiscal year 2005; 

‘‘(ii) migrant and seasonal Head Start programs shall receive at least 

5 percent of the amount appropriated for such fiscal year until such 

time as the Secretary can make funding decisions to ensure access to 

funding for eligible children of migrant and seasonal farmworkers is 

comparable to access to funding for other eligible children based on the 

data collected and reported pursuant to section 648(j), except that no 

future reduction in funding shall result in the termination of Head 

Start services provided to any eligible child 3 years of age or older who 

is participating in any such program on the date a reduction in funding 

occurs, and shall, to the extent possible, continue participation for children less than 3 years of age receiving services prior to such reduction 

in funding; and 

‘‘(iii) Indian Head Start programs shall receive at least 3.5 percent 

of the amount appropriated for such fiscal year until such time as the 

Secretary can make funding decisions to ensure access to funding for 

eligible Indian children is comparable to access to funding for other eligible children;’’; and 

(B) by amending subparagraph (B) to read as follows: 

‘‘(B) payments, subject to paragraph (7) to Guam, American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and the Virgin Islands of the 

United States, and subject to the requirements of section 105(f)(1)(B)(ix) of Public Law 108–188 to Palau;’’; 

(C) by amending (C) to read as follows: 

‘‘(C) training and technical assistance activities to foster program quality and 

management improvement as described in section 648, in an amount for each 

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fiscal year which is equal to 2 percent of the amount appropriated for such fiscal year, of which— 

‘‘(i) not less than 50 percent shall be made available to local Head Start 

agencies to make program improvements identified by such agencies and 

comply with the standards described in section 641A(a)(1), of which not less 

than 50 percent shall be used to comply with the standards described in 

section 641A(a)(1)(B) and for the uses described in clauses (iii), (iv), and 

(vii) of subsection (a)(3)(B); 

‘‘(ii) not less than 20 percent shall be made available to support a State 

system of early childhood education training and technical assistance, including the State Early Learning Council described in section 642B(b); 

‘‘(iii) not less than 30 percent shall be made available to the Secretary 

to assist local programs in meeting the standards described in section 

641A(a)(1) and shall be allocated to address program weaknesses identified 

by monitoring activities conducted by the Secretary under section 641A(c); 

and 

‘‘(iv) not less than $3,000,000 of the amount in clause (iii) appropriated 

for such fiscal year shall be made available to carry out activities described 

in section 648(d)(4);’’; and 

(D) by striking the last sentence. 

(2) in paragraph (3)— 

(A) in subparagraph (A)— 

(i) in clause (i)(I) by striking ‘‘year 1999’’ and all that follows down 

to the semicolon and inserting ‘‘years 2006 through 2011’’; and 

(ii) by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘(iii) After the reservation of amounts under paragraph (2) and the 60 percent 

amount referred to in subparagraph (A) of this paragraph, a portion of the remaining funds shall be made available— 

‘‘(I) to expand services to underserved populations, such as children receiving 

services under Early Head Start programs and under migrant and seasonal 

Head Start programs; and 

‘‘(II) to increase funding to grantees with full enrollment and whose aggregate 

amount of financial assistance provides funding per child that is below the national average.’’; 

(B) by amending subparagraph (B) to read as follows: 

‘‘(B) Funds reserved under this paragraph (in this paragraph referred to as ‘quality improvement funds’) shall be used to accomplish the following goals: 

‘‘(i) Ensuring that Head Start programs meet or exceed standards pursuant 

to section 641A(a)(1). 

‘‘(ii) Ensuring that such programs have adequate numbers of qualified staff, 

and that such staff is furnished adequate training, including developing skills 

to promote the development of language skills, premathematic skills, and 

prereading in young children and in working with children with limited English 

proficiency, children referred by child welfare services, and children with disabilities, when appropriate. 

‘‘(iii) Developing and financing the salary scales described under section 

644(a)(3) and section 653, in order to ensure that salary levels and benefits are 

adequate to attract and retain qualified staff for such programs. 

‘‘(iv) Using salary increases— 

‘‘(I) to assist with the implementation of quality programs and improve 

staff qualifications; 

‘‘(II) to ensure that staff can promote the language skills and literacy 

growth of children and can provide children with a variety of skills that 

have been identified, through scientifically based early reading research, as 

predictive of later reading achievement; and 

‘‘(III) to encourage the staff to continually improve their skills and expertise by informing the staff of the availability of Federal and State incentive 

and loan forgiveness programs for professional development. 

‘‘(v) Improving community-wide strategic planning and needs assessments for 

such programs and collaboration efforts for such programs, including collaborations to increase program participation by underserved populations of eligible 

children. 

‘‘(vi) Ensuring that the physical environments of Head Start programs are 

conducive to providing effective program services to children and families, and 

are accessible to children with disabilities and their parents. 

‘‘(vii) Ensuring that such programs have qualified staff that can promote language skills and literacy growth of children and that can provide children with 

a variety of skills that have been identified, through scientifically based reading 

research, as predictive of later reading achievement. 

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‘‘(viii) Providing assistance to complete postsecondary course work including 

scholarships or other financial incentives, such as differential and merit pay, to 

enable Head Start teachers to improve competencies and the resulting child outcomes. ‘‘(ix) Upgrading the qualifications and skills of educational personnel to meet 

the professional standards established under section 648A(a)(1), including certification and licensure as bilingual education teachers and other educational 

personnel who serve limited English proficient children. 

‘‘(x) Promoting the regular attendance and stability of all children participating in Head Start programs, with particular attention to highly mobile children, including children from migrant and seasonal farm worker families (if appropriate), homeless children, and children in foster care. 

‘‘(xi) Making such other improvements in the quality of such programs as the 

Secretary may designate.’’; and 

(C) by amending subparagraph (C) to read as follows: 

‘‘(C) Quality improvement funds shall be used to carry out the activities in any 

or all of the following clauses: 

‘‘(i)(I) Not less than one-half of the amount reserved under this paragraph, 

to improve the compensation (including benefits) of classroom teachers and 

other staff of Head Start agencies providing instructional services and thereby 

enhancing recruitment and retention of qualified staff, including recruitment 

and retention pursuant to achieving the requirements set forth in section 

648A(a). The expenditure of funds under this clause shall be subject to section 

653. Salary increases, in excess of cost-of-living allowance, provided with such 

funds shall be subject to the specific standards governing salaries and salary 

increases established pursuant to section 644(a). 

‘‘(II) If a Head Start agency certifies to the Secretary for such fiscal year that 

part of the funds set aside under subclause (I) to improve wages cannot be expended by such agency to improve wages because of the operation of section 

653, then such agency may expend such part for any of the uses specified in 

this subparagraph (other than wages). 

‘‘(III) From the remainder of the amount reserved under this paragraph (after 

the Secretary carries out subclause (I)), the Secretary may carry out the activities described in clauses (ii) through (vii). 

‘‘(ii) To train classroom teachers and other staff to meet the education standards described in section 641A(a)(1)(B), through activities— 

‘‘(I) to promote children’s language and prereading growth, through techniques identified through scientifically based reading research; 

‘‘(II) to promote the acquisition of the English language for limited 

English proficient children and families, while ensuring that children are 

making meaningful progress in attaining the knowledge, skills, abilities, 

and development described in section 641A(a)(1)(B); 

‘‘(III) to foster children’s school readiness through activities described in 

section 648A(a)(1); and 

‘‘(IV) to provide education and training necessary to improve the qualifications of Head Start staff, particularly assistance to enable more instructors to be fully competent and to meet the degree requirements under section 648A(a)(2)(A), and to support staff training, child counseling, and other 

services necessary to address the challenges of children participating in 

Head Start programs, including children from immigrant, refugee, and 

asylee families, children from families in crisis, children who experience 

chronic violence in their communities, children who experience substance 

abuse in their families, and children with emotional and behavioral problems. 

‘‘(iii) To employ additional Head Start staff, including staff necessary to reduce the child-staff ratio, lead instructors who meet the qualifications of section 

648A(a) and staff necessary to coordinate a Head Start program with other 

services available to children participating in such program and to their families. 

‘‘(iv) To pay costs incurred by Head Start agencies to purchase insurance 

(other than employee benefits) and thereby maintain or expand Head Start 

services. 

‘‘(v) To supplement amounts provided under paragraph (2)(C) to provide training necessary to improve the qualifications of the staff of the Head Start agencies, and to support staff training, child counseling, and other services necessary 

to address the problems of children participating in Head Start programs, including children from dysfunctional families, children who experience chronic violence in their communities, and children who experience substance abuse in 

their families. 

7 

‘‘(vi) To conduct outreach to homeless families in an effort to increase the program participation of homeless children. 

‘‘(vii) To conduct outreach to migrant and seasonal farm-working families and 

families with children with a limited English proficiency. 

‘‘(viii) Such other activities as the Secretary may designate.’’; 

(3) in paragraph (4) by striking ‘‘1998’’ in subparagraph (A) and inserting 

‘‘2005’’; 

(4) in paragraph (5) by amending subparagraphs (A), (B), and (C) to read as 

follows: 

‘‘(A) From amounts reserved and allotted pursuant to paragraph (4), the Secretary 

shall award the collaboration grants described in subparagraphs (B) and (D). 

‘‘(B) From the reserved sums in paragraph (4), the Secretary shall award a collaboration grant to any State that submits a written request. Such grant shall be 

equal to the amount the State received under this paragraph for such activity for 

fiscal year 2005. Such grant shall be used by the State to facilitate collaboration regarding activities carried out in the State under this subchapter, and other activities carried out in and by the State that are designed to benefit low-income children 

and families and to encourage Head Start agencies to collaborate with entities involved in State and local planning processes (including the State lead agency administering the financial assistance under the Child Care and Development Block Grant 

Act of 1990 and the entities that provide child care resource and referral services 

in the State) in order to better meet the needs of low-income children and their families. 

‘‘(C) In order to improve results for children, a State that receives a grant under 

subparagraph (B) shall appoint an individual to serve as the State Director of Head 

Start Collaboration to be a liaison between the appropriate regional office of the Administration for Children and Families and agencies carrying out Head Start programs in the State. The State shall— 

‘‘(i) ensure that such Director holds a position with sufficient authority and 

access to ensure that the collaboration described in subparagraph (B) is effective 

and involves a range of State agencies and local entities, including— 

‘‘(I) the State educational agency; 

‘‘(II) the State Department of Health and Human Services; 

‘‘(III) the State agency that oversees child care; 

‘‘(IV) the State agency that assists children with developmental disabilities; 

‘‘(V) the State Head Start Association; 

‘‘(VI) the State network of child care resource and referral agencies; 

‘‘(VII) local educational agencies; 

‘‘(VIII) community-based and faith-based organizations; 

‘‘(IX) representatives of migrant and seasonal Head Start programs located in the State; 

‘‘(X)representatives of Indian Head Start programs located in the State; 

‘‘(XI) State and local providers of early childhood education and child 

care, including providers with experience serving children with limited 

English proficiency; and 

‘‘(XII) other entities carrying out programs serving low-income children 

and families in the State; 

‘‘(ii) involve the entities described in clause (i) to develop a strategic plan for 

the coordinated outreach to identify eligible children and to implement strategies based on a needs assessment, which shall include an assessment of the 

availability of high quality prekindergarten services for low-income children in 

the State. Such assessment shall be completed not later than 1 year after the 

date of enactment of the School Readiness Act of 2005 and be updated on an 

annual basis and shall be made available to the general public within the State; 

‘‘(iii) ensure that the collaboration described in subparagraph (B) involves coordination of Head Start services with health care, welfare, child care, child protective services, education, and community service activities, family literacy 

services, activities relating to children with disabilities (including coordination 

of services with those State officials who are responsible for administering part 

C and section 619 of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 

1419, 1431 et seq.)), and services for homeless children (including coordination 

of services with the Office of Coordinator for Education of Homeless Children 

and Youth designated under section 722(g)(1)(J)(ii) of the McKinney-Vento 

Homeless Assistance Act of 2001 (42 U.S.C. 11432(g)(1)(J)(ii)); 

‘‘(iv) require the State Director of Head Start Collaboration to— 

‘‘(I) serve on the Early Learning Council pursuant to section 642B(b); 

‘‘(II) consult with the Early Learning Council, chief State school officer, 

local educational agencies, representatives of local Head Start agencies and 

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providers of early childhood education and care in unified planning regarding early care and education services at both the State and local levels, including collaborative efforts to develop school readiness standards; 

‘‘(III) consult with the chief State school officer, local educational agencies, State child care administrators, State human services administrators, 

representatives of local child care resource and referral agencies, local early 

childhood councils, providers of early childhood education and care, and 

other relevant State and local agencies, and representatives of the State 

Head Start Association to plan for the provision of full-working-day, fullcalendar-year early care and education services for eligible children with 

working parents who have a demonstrated need; 

‘‘(IV) consult with the chief State school officer, local educational agencies 

and Head Start agencies to improve alignment between Head Start programs and State-funded prekindergarten activities to meet shared goals of 

school readiness; and 

‘‘(V) establish improved linkages between Head Start agencies and other 

children and family agencies, including agencies that provide health, mental health or family services or other child and family support services.’’; 

(C) in subparagraph (D)(i) by inserting ‘‘and providers of services supporting early childhood education and child care’’ after ‘‘Associations’’; and 

(D) by amending paragraph (6)(A) to read as follows: 

‘‘(A) From amounts reserved and allotted pursuant to paragraphs (2) and (4), the 

Secretary shall use, for grants for programs described in section 645A(a) of this subchapter, a portion of the combined total of such amounts equal to at least 10 percent 

for each of the fiscal years 2006 through 2011, of the amount appropriated pursuant 

to section 639(a), except as provided in subparagraph (B).’’. 

(b) SERVICE DELIVERY MODELS.—Section 640(f) of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 

9835(f)) is amended by inserting before the period at the end the following: ‘‘, including models that leverage the existing capacity and capabilities of the delivery system of early childhood education and child care’’. 

(c) MAINTENANCE OF SERVICE LEVELS.—Section 640(g)(2) of the Head Start Act 

(42 U.S.C. 9835(g)(2)) is amended— 

(1) by striking ‘‘For the purpose of expanding Head Start programs, in’’ and 

inserting ‘‘In’’; 

(2) by amending subparagraph (C) to read as follows: 

‘‘(C) the extent to which the applicant has undertaken community-wide strategic planning and needs assessments involving other community organizations 

and Federal, State, and local public agencies serving children and families (including organizations and agencies providing family support services and protective services to children and families and organizations serving families in 

whose homes English is not the language customarily spoken), and individuals, 

organizations, and public entities serving children with disabilities and homeless children including the local educational agency liaison designated under 

section 722(g)(1)(J)(ii) of the McKinney-Veto Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 

11432(g)(1)(J)(ii));’’; 

(3) in subparagraph (D) by striking ‘‘other local’’ and inserting ‘‘the State and 

local’’; 

(4) in subparagraph (E) by inserting ‘‘would like to participate but’’ after 

‘‘community who’’; 

(5) in subparagraph (G)— 

(A) by inserting ‘‘leverage the existing delivery systems of such services 

and’’ after ‘‘manner that will’’; and 

(B) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

(6) in subparagraph (H)— 

(A) by inserting ‘‘, including the local educational agency liaison designated under section 722(g)(1)(J)(ii) of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11432(g)(1)(J)(ii)),’’ after ‘‘community involved’’; 

(B) by striking ‘‘plans to coordinate’’ and inserting ‘‘successfully coordinated its activities’’; and 

(C) by striking the period at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

(7) by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘(I) the amount of funds used by such agency to pay administrative expenses 

and the amount of available funds received by such agency under this section 

to serve each enrolled child.’’. 

(d) VEHICLE SAFETY REQUIREMENTS.—Section 640(i) of the Head Start Act (42 

U.S.C. 9835(i)) is amended— 

(1) by striking ‘‘(i) The’’ and inserting the following: 

‘‘(i) TRANSPORTATION SAFETY.— 

‘‘(1) REGULATIONS.—The’’; and 

9 

(2) by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘(2) WAIVER AUTHORITY.— 

‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may waive for a period of up to one year 

the requirements of regulations promulgated under paragraph (1) for one 

or more vehicles used by the agency or its designee in transporting children 

enrolled in a Head Start program or an Early Head Start program if— 

‘‘(i) such requirements pertain to child restraint systems and bus 

monitors; 

‘‘(ii) the agency demonstrates that compliance with such requirements will result in a significant disruption to the Head Start program 

or the Early Head Start program; and 

‘‘(iii) is in the best interest of the child. 

‘‘(B) RENEWAL.—The Secretary may renew a waiver under subparagraph 

(A).’’. 

(e) MIGRANT AND SEASONAL HEAD START PROGRAMS.—Section 640(l) of the Head 

Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9835(l)) is amended— 

(1) by amending paragraph (3) to read as follows: 

‘‘(3) In carrying out this subchapter, the Secretary shall continue the administrative arrangement at the national level for meeting the needs of Indian children and 

children of migrant and seasonal farmworkers and shall ensure that appropriate 

funding is provided to meet such needs, including training and technical assistance 

and the appointment of a national migrant and seasonal Head Start collaboration 

director and a national Indian Head Start collaboration director.’’; and 

(2) by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘(4)(A) For the purposes of paragraph (3), the Secretary shall conduct an annual 

consultation in each affected Head Start region, with tribal governments operating 

Head Start programs and Early Head Start programs. 

‘‘(B) The consultations shall be for the purpose of better meeting the needs of 

American Indian and Alaska Native children and families pertinent to subsections 

(a), (b), and (c) of section 641, taking into consideration funding allocations, distribution formulas, and other issues affecting the delivery of Head Start services within 

tribal communities. 

‘‘(C) The Secretary shall publish a notification of the consultations in the Federal 

Register prior to conducting the consultations. 

‘‘(D) A detailed report of each consultation shall be prepared and made available, 

on a timely basis, to all tribal governments receiving funds under this subchapter.’’. 

(f) ENROLLMENT OF HOMELESS CHILDREN.—Section 640 of the Head Start Act (42 

U.S.C. 9835) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘(m) ENROLLMENT OF HOMELESS CHILDREN.—The Secretary shall by regulation 

prescribe policies and procedures to remove barriers to the enrollment and participation of homeless children in Head Start programs. Such regulations shall require 

Head Start agencies— 

‘‘(1) to implement policies and procedures to ensure that homeless children 

are identified and prioritized for enrollment; 

‘‘(2) to allow homeless families to apply to, enroll in and attend Head Start 

programs while required documents, such as proof of residency, immunization 

and other medical records, birth certificates and other documents, are obtained 

within a reasonable time frame; and 

‘‘(3) coordinate individual Head Start centers and programs with efforts to implement subtitle B of title VII of the McKinney-Vento± Homeless Assistance Act 

(42 U.S.C. 11431–11435). 

‘‘(n) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this subchapter shall be construed to 

require a State to establish a program of early education for children in the State, 

to require any child to participate in a program of early education, to attend school, 

or to participate in any initial screening prior to participation in such program, except as provided under section 612(a)(3), (consistent with section 614(a)(1)(C)), of the 

Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. 

‘‘(o) MATERIALS.—All curricula and instructional materials funded under this subchapter shall be scientifically based and age appropriate. Parents shall have the 

ability to inspect, upon request, any curricula or instructional materials.’’. 

SEC. 7. DESIGNATION OF AGENCIES. 

(a) AUTHORITY TO DESIGNATE.— Section 641(a) of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 

9836(a)) is amended to read as follows: 

‘‘(a) AUTHORITY TO DESIGNATE.— 

‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary is authorized to designate as a Head Start 

agency any local public or private nonprofit or for-profit agency within a State, 

including a community-based or faith-based organization that— 

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‘‘(A) has power and authority to carry out the purpose of this subchapter 

and perform the functions set forth in section 642 within a State; and 

‘‘(B) is determined to be capable of planning, conducting, administering, 

and evaluating, either directly or by other arrangements, a Head Start program. 

‘‘(2) DESIGNATION REQUIREMENTS.—To be designated as a Head Start agency 

and to receive financial assistance under this subparagraph, an entity described 

in sub paragraph (1) shall— 

‘‘(A) establish measurable objectives for— 

‘‘(i) the school readiness of children participating in the program 

under this subchapter; 

‘‘(ii) meeting the performance standards described in section 641A; 

‘‘(iii) educational instruction in prereading, premathematics, and language skills; and 

‘‘(iv) the provision of health, educational, nutritional, social and other 

services related to school readiness; and 

‘‘(B) align curricula to challenging State developed academic content 

standards and the Head Start Child Outcomes Framework developed by the 

Secretary. 

‘‘(3) ELIGIBILITY FOR SUBSEQUENT FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.—In order to receive 

financial assistance under this subchapter subsequent to the initial financial assistance provided following the effective date of this subsection, an entity described in paragraph (1) shall demonstrate that the entity has met the measurable objectives described in paragraph (2); 

‘‘(4) MEASURING PROGRESS.—Progress in meeting such measurable objectives 

shall not be measured primarily or solely by the results of assessments.’’ 

(b) PRIORITY IN DESIGNATION.—Section 641(c) of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 

9836(c)) is amended to read as follows: 

‘‘(c) CONSULTATION.—In the administration of this section, the Secretary shall, in 

consultation with the chief executive officer of the State involved, give priority in 

the designation of Head Start agencies to Head Start agencies that— 

‘‘(1) are receiving assistance under this subchapter on the effective date of 

this subsection; 

‘‘(2) meet or exceed program and financial management requirements, standards described in section 641A(a); 

‘‘(3) meet or exceed the education standards and requirements described in 

section 641A(a)(1)(B); 

‘‘(4) have no unresolved area of noncompliance; 

‘‘(5) have not been deemed deficient since the then most recent designation; 

‘‘(6) employ qualified staff (including in center-based programs, a teaching 

staff of whom at least 50 percent have an associate, baccalaureate, or advanced 

degree in early child education or a related field), except that the Secretary may 

waive the application of this paragraph, for a period not to exceed 3 years, for 

Head Start programs operating in rural areas, for migrant and seasonal Head 

Start programs, and for Indian Head Start programs, on a case-by-case basis, 

if the program demonstrates progress in increasing the qualifications of teaching staff and demonstrates adequate instructional supervision by qualified staff; 

‘‘(7) were not deemed by the Secretary as chronically under-enrolled since the 

then most recent designation; 

‘‘(8) utilize curricula based on scientifically based research, that are aligned 

with challenging State developed academic content standards and the Head 

Start Child Outcomes Framework developed by the Secretary; 

‘‘(9) demonstrate active partnerships with local educational agencies serving 

the same communities to facilitate smooth transitions to kindergarten; 

‘‘(10) actively implement a memorandum of understanding described in section 642B(a) and additional collaborative partnerships with organizations that 

enhance the delivery of services to children; 

‘‘(11) demonstrate success in improving child outcomes across all domains of 

development, including measurable progress in language skills, prereading 

knowledge, and premathematics knowledge; 

‘‘(12) maintain classroom environments constructive to early learning and future school success; 

‘‘(13) demonstrate strong parental involvement and activities to develop parent skills to support their children’s educational development and ability to participate effectively in decisions relating to the education of their children; 

‘‘(14) are overseen by a board described in section 642(b) that provides direction and actively oversees all program activities; 

‘‘(15) document strong fiscal controls, including— 

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‘‘(A) the employment of well-qualified fiscal staff with a history of successful management of a public or private organization; 

‘‘(B) having no reportable material weaknesses with applicable laws and 

regulations on all annual financial audits performed since the most recent 

designation; 

‘‘(C) meeting or exceeding annual requirements for financial support 

under section 640(b); and 

‘‘(D) maintaining total administrative costs at or below 15 percent of total 

program costs; 

‘‘(16) are licensed to operate in accordance with all applicable State child care 

regulations; 

‘‘(17) conduct outreach activities to ensure that services are provided to the 

most at-risk families in the community; 

‘‘(18) have developed strong community partnerships with public and private 

organizations, such as businesses, health, and social service providers; and 

‘‘(19) provide opportunities for ongoing professional development.’’. 

(c) DESIGNATION WHEN NO ENTITY HAS PRIORITY.—Section 641(d) of the Head 

Start Act (43 U.S.C. 9836(d)) is amended to read as follows: 

‘‘(d) DESIGNATION WHEN NO ENTITY HAS PRIORITY.— ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—If no entity in a community is entitled to the priority specified in subsection (c), the Secretary shall, after conducting an open competition, 

designate for a 5-year period a Head Start agency from among qualified applicants in such community. 

‘‘(2) CONSIDERATIONS IN DESIGNATION.—In selecting from among qualified applicants for designation as a Head Start agency, the Secretary shall consider the 

effectiveness of each such applicant to provide Head Start services, based on— 

‘‘(A) any past performance of such applicant in providing services comparable to Head Start services, including how effectively such applicant provided such comparable services; 

‘‘(B) the plan of such applicant to provide comprehensive health (including mental and behavioral health), educational, nutritional, social, and 

other services needed to prepare children to succeed in school; 

‘‘(C) the capacity of such applicant to serve eligible children with curriculum and teaching practices based on scientifically based research that 

promote the school readiness of children participating in the program; 

‘‘(D) the plan of such applicant to meet standards set forth in section 

641A(a)(1), with particular attention to the standards set forth in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of such section; 

‘‘(E) the proposed budget and plan of such applicant to maintain strong 

fiscal controls and cost effective fiscal management; 

‘‘(F) the plan of such applicant to coordinate the Head Start program the 

applicant proposes to carry out with other educational programs for young 

children, including— 

‘‘(i) the Early Reading First and Even Start programs under subparts 

2 and 3 of part B of title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education 

Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6371 et seq., 6381 et seq.); 

‘‘(ii) programs under section 619 and part C of the Individuals with 

Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1419, 1431 et seq.); 

‘‘(iii) State prekindergarten programs; 

‘‘(iv) child care programs; 

‘‘(v) the educational programs that the children participating in the 

Head Start program involved will enter at the age of compulsory school 

attendance; and 

‘‘(vi) reading readiness programs such as those conducted by public 

and school libraries; 

‘‘(G) the plan of such applicant to coordinate the Head Start program that 

the applicant proposes to carry out, with public and private entities that 

are willing to commit resources to assist the Head Start –program in meeting its program needs; 

‘‘(H) the plan of such applicant— 

‘‘(i) to seek the involvement of parents (including grandparents and 

kinship caregivers, as appropriate) of children participating in the proposed Head Start program, in activities (at home and, if practicable, at 

the location of the Head Start program) designed to help such parents 

become full partners in the education of their children; 

‘‘(ii) to afford such parents the opportunity to participate in the development and overall conduct of the program at the local level; 

‘‘(iii) to offer (directly or through referral to local entities, such as entities carrying out Even Start programs under subpart 3 of part B of 

12 

title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 

U.S.C. 6381 et seq.), public and school libraries, and entities carrying 

out family support programs) to such parents— 

‘‘(I) family literacy services; and 

‘‘(II) parenting skills training; 

‘‘(iv) to offer to parents of participating children, substance abuse 

counseling (either directly or through referral to local entities), including information on the effect of drug exposure on infants and fetal alcohol syndrome; 

‘‘(v) at the option of such applicant, to offer (directly or through referral to local entities) to such parents— 

‘‘(I) training in basic child development (including cognitive development); 

‘‘(II) assistance in developing literacy and communication skills; 

‘‘(III) opportunities to share experiences with other parents (including parent mentor relationships); 

‘‘(IV) regular in-home visitation; 

‘‘(V) mental and behavioral health services; or 

‘‘(VI) any other activity designed to help such parents become full 

partners in the education of their children; 

‘‘(vi) to provide, with respect to each participating family, a family 

needs assessment that includes consultation with such parents about 

the benefits of parent involvement and about the activities described in 

subparagraph (H) in which such parents may choose to become involved (taking into consideration their specific family needs, work 

schedules, and other responsibilities); and 

‘‘(vii) to extend outreach to fathers, in appropriate cases, in order to 

strengthen the role of fathers in families, in the education of their 

young children, and in the Head Start program, by working directly 

with fathers and father figures through activities such as— 

‘‘(I) in appropriate cases, including fathers in home visits and 

providing opportunities for direct father-child interactions; and 

‘‘(II) targeting increased male participation in the conduct of the 

program; 

‘‘(I) the ability of such applicant to carry out the plans described in paragraphs (2), (4), and (5); 

‘‘(J) the plan of such applicant to meet the needs of limited English proficient children and their families, including procedures to identify such 

children, plans to provide trained personnel, and plans to provide services 

to assist the children in making progress toward the acquisition of the 

English language, while making meaningful progress in attaining the 

knowledge, skills, abilities, and development described in section 

641A(a)(1)(B); 

‘‘(K) the plan of such applicant to meet the diverse cultural needs of the 

population served; 

‘‘(L) the plan of such applicant to meet the needs of children with disabilities; 

‘‘(M) the plan of such applicant who chooses to assist younger siblings of 

children who will participate in the Head Start program, to obtain health 

services from other sources; 

‘‘(N) the plan of such applicant to collaborate with other entities carrying 

out early childhood education and child care programs in the community; 

‘‘(O) the plan of such applicant to meet the needs of homeless children, 

including transportation needs, and children in foster care; 

‘‘(P) the plan of such applicant to maintain a qualified staff, including a 

teaching staff qualified to implement research-based educational curricula 

aligned with challenging State-developed academic content standards, the 

Head Start Child Outcomes Framework developed by the Secretary, and 

the State early learning standards in States in which such standards are 

developed; 

‘‘(Q) the plan of such applicant to enter into memoranda of understanding 

with local educational agencies, child care providers, and other entities 

within the service area; and 

‘‘(R) other factors related to the requirements of this subchapter.’’. 

(d) SELECTION OF APPLICANTS.—Section 641(g) of the Head Start Act (43 U.S.C. 

9836(g)) is amended to read as follows: 

‘‘(g) ISSUANCE OF RULES.—Not later than 180 days after the enactment of the 

School Readiness Act of 2005, the Secretary shall issue rules to carry out this section.’’. 

13 

SEC. 8. QUALITY STANDARDS; MONITORING OF HEAD START AGENCIES AND PROGRAMS. 

(a) QUALITY STANDARDS.—Section 641A(a) of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 

9836a(a)) is amended— 

(1) by amending paragraph (1)(B)— 

(A) in clause (i)— 

(i) by inserting ‘‘based on sound scientific evidence’’ after ‘‘standards’’; 

and 

(ii) by inserting ‘‘and sustained academic gains’’ after ‘‘readiness’’; 

and 

(B) by amending clause (ii) to read as follows: 

‘‘(ii) additional scientifically-based education standards to ensure that the 

children participating in the program, at a minimum develop and demonstrate— 

‘‘(I) language knowledge and skills, including oral language and listening comprehension; 

‘‘(II) prereading knowledge and skills that prepare children for early 

literacy in schools, including phonological awareness, print awareness 

and print skills, and alphabetic knowledge; 

‘‘(III) premathematics knowledge and skills, including aspects of classification, seriation, number, spatial relations, and time; 

‘‘(IV) cognitive abilities related to academic achievement and child development; 

‘‘(V) social and emotional development related to early learning, 

school success, and sustained academic gains; and 

‘‘(VI) in the case of limited-English proficient children, progress toward acquisition of the English language while making meaningful 

progress in attaining the knowledge, skills, abilities, and development 

described in subclauses (I) through (IV);’’; 

(2) in paragraph (2)— 

(A) by amending subparagraph (B) to read as follows: 

‘‘(B) take into consideration— 

‘‘(i) past experience with use of the standards in effect under this 

subchapter on October 27, 1998; 

‘‘(ii) changes over the period since October 27, 1998, in the circumstances and problems typically facing children and families served 

by Head Start agencies; 

‘‘(iii) developments concerning research based practices with respect 

to early childhood education and development, children with disabilities, family services, program administration, and financial management; 

‘‘(iv) projected needs of an expanding Head Start program; 

‘‘(v) guidelines and standards currently in effect or under consideration that promote child health services and physical development, including outdoor activity that supports children’s motor development 

and overall health and nutrition; 

‘‘(vi) changes in the population of children who are eligible to participate in Head Start programs, including the language background and 

family structure of such children; 

‘‘(vii) scientifically based research to ensure that children participating in Head Start programs make a successful transition to schools 

that the children will be attending; and 

‘‘(viii) the unique challenges faced by individual programs, including 

those that are seasonal or short term, and those that serve rural populations; and’’; and 

(B) in subparagraph (C)(ii) by striking ‘‘the date’’ and all that follows 

through ‘‘Act of 1998’’, and inserting ‘‘October 27, 1998’’; and 

(3) by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘(4) EVALUATIONS AND CORRECTIVE ACTIONS FOR DELEGATE AGENCIES.— 

‘‘(A) PROCEDURES.—The Head Start agency shall establish procedures relating to its delegate agencies, including— 

‘‘(i) procedures for evaluating delegate agencies; 

‘‘(ii) procedures for defunding delegate agencies; and 

‘‘(iii) procedures for appealing a defunding decision relating to a delegate agency. 

‘‘(B) EVALUATIONS.—Each Head Start agency— 

‘‘(i) shall evaluate its delegate agencies using the procedures established pursuant to this section, including subparagraph (A); and 

‘‘(ii) shall inform the delegate agencies of the deficiencies identified 

through the evaluation that shall be corrected. 

14 

‘‘(C) REMEDIES TO ENSURE CORRECTIVE ACTIONS.—If the Head Start agency identifies a deficiency for a delegate agency through the evaluation, the 

Head Start agency may— 

‘‘(i) initiate procedures to terminate the designation of the agency unless the agency corrects the deficiency; 

‘‘(ii) conduct monthly monitoring visits to such delegate agency until 

all deficiencies are corrected or the Head Start agency decides to 

defund such delegate agency; and 

‘‘(iii) release funds to such delegate agency only as reimbursements 

until all deficiencies are corrected or the Head Start agency decides to 

defund such delegate agency. 

‘‘(D) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed to impact or obviate the responsibilities of the Secretary with respect 

to Head Start agencies or delegate agencies receiving funding under this 

subchapter.’’. 

(b) RESULTS-BASED PERFORMANCE MEASURES.—Section 641A(b) of the Head Start 

Act (42 U.S.C. 9836a(b)) is amended— 

(1) by amending paragraph (2) to read as follows: 

‘‘(2) CHARACTERISTICS OF MEASURES.—The performance measures developed 

under this subsection shall— 

‘‘(A) be used to assess the impact of the various services provided by Head 

Start programs and, to the extent the Secretary finds appropriate, administrative and financial management practices of such programs; 

‘‘(B) be adaptable for use in self-assessment, peer review, and program 

evaluation of individual Head Start agencies and programs; 

‘‘(C) be developed for other program purposes as determined by the Secretary; 

‘‘(D) be appropriate for the population served; and 

‘‘(E) be reviewed no less than every 4 years, based on advances in the 

science of early childhood development. 

The performance measures shall include the performance standards described 

in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of subsection (a)(1).’’; 

(2) by amending paragraph (3) to read as follows: 

‘‘(3) USE OF MEASURES.— 

‘‘(A) The Secretary shall use the performance measures pursuant to this 

subsection to identify— 

‘‘(i) strengths and weaknesses in the operation of Head Start programs nationally, regionally, and locally; and 

‘‘(ii) program areas that may require additional training and technical assistance resources. 

‘‘(B) The Secretary shall provide a detailed justification to the Congress 

regarding the planned uses of the data collected by the National Reporting 

System developed by the Secretary and shall demonstrate its scientific validity and reliability for such purposes, including its scientific validity and 

reliability with children with limited English proficiency for such purposes; 

‘‘(C) The Secretary shall not use the National Reporting System assessment results either as the primary method for assessing program effectiveness or as the primary method for making grantee funding determinations. 

‘‘(D) The Secretary shall develop a process to ensure that the National 

Reporting System shall not be used to exclude children from Head Start 

programs.’’; and 

(3) by amending paragraph (4) to read as follows: 

‘‘(4) EDUCATIONAL MEASURES.—Results based measures shall be designed for 

the purpose of promoting the competencies of children participating in Head 

Start programs specified in subsection (a)(1)(B)(ii), with an emphasis on measuring those competencies that have a strong scientifically-based predictability 

of a child’s school readiness and later performance in school.’’. 

(c) MONITORING OF LOCAL AGENCIES AND PROGRAMS.—Section 641A(c) of the Head 

Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9836a(c)) is amended— 

(1) in paragraph (1)— 

(A) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A) by inserting ‘‘develop and 

utilize a risk-based assessment system to’’ after ‘‘shall’’; 

(B) by amending subparagraph (C) to read as follows: 

‘‘(C) Followup reviews, including unannounced reviews as appropriate, of 

programs with 1 or more findings of deficiencies not later than 6 months 

after the date of such finding.’’; and 

(C) by amending subparagraph (D) to read as follows: 

‘‘(D) Unannounced site inspections of Head Start centers and other reviews, as appropriate.’’; 

15 

(2) by amending paragraph (2) to read as follows: 

‘‘(2) CONDUCT OF REVIEWS.—The Secretary shall ensure that reviews described in subparagraphs (A) through (C) of paragraph (1)— 

‘‘(A) that incorporate a monitoring visit, may be done without prior notice 

of the visit to the local agency or program; 

‘‘(B) are conducted by review teams composed of individuals who are 

knowledgeable about the program areas they are reviewing and, to the 

maximum extent practicable, the diverse (including linguistic and cultural) 

needs of eligible children (including children with disabilities) and limitedEnglish proficient children and their families; 

‘‘(C) include as part of the reviews of the programs, a review and assessment of program effectiveness, including strengths and areas for improvement, as measured in accordance with the results-based performance measures developed by the Secretary pursuant to subsection (b) and with the 

standards established pursuant to subparagraphs (A) and (B) of subsection 

(a)(1); 

‘‘(D) seek information from the communities and the States involved 

about the performance of the programs and the efforts of the Head Start 

agencies to collaborate with other entities carrying out early childhood education and child care programs in the community; 

‘‘(E) seek information from the communities where Head Start programs 

exist about innovative or effective collaborative efforts, barriers to collaboration, and the efforts of the Head Start agencies and programs to collaborate 

with the entities carrying out early childhood education and child care programs in the community; 

‘‘(F) include as part of the reviews of the programs, a review and assessment of whether a program is in conformity with the income eligibility requirements, as defined in section 645 and regulations promulgated thereunder; 

‘‘(G) include as part of the reviews of the programs, a review and assessment of whether programs have adequately addressed the population and 

community needs (including populations of children with a limited English 

proficiency and children of migrant and seasonal farm-working families); 

‘‘(H) include as part of the review the extent to which the program addresses the community needs and strategic plan identified in section 

640(g)(2)(C); and 

‘‘(I) are conducted in a manner that evaluates program performance, 

quality, and overall operations with consistency and objectivity, and based 

on a transparent and reliable system of review.’’. 

(d) CORRECTIVE ACTION; TERMINATION.—Section 641A(d) of the Head Start Act (42 

U.S.C. 9836a(d)) is amended— 

(1) in paragraph (1) by amending the matter preceding subparagraph (A) to 

read as follows: 

‘‘(1) DETERMINATION.—If the Secretary determines, on the basis of a review 

pursuant to subsection (c), that a Head Start agency designated pursuant to 

section 641 fails to meet the standards described in subsection (a) or resultsbased performance measures developed by the Secretary under subsection (b), 

or fails to adequately address the community needs and strategic plan identified 

in 640(g)(2)(C), the Secretary shall—’’; 

(2) by amending paragraph (2) to read as follows: 

‘‘(2) QUALITY IMPROVEMENT PLAN.— 

‘‘(A) AGENCY AND PROGRAM RESPONSIBILITIES.—In order to retain a designation as a Head Start agency under this subchapter, or in the case of 

a Head Start program, in order to continue to receive funds from such agency, a Head Start agency, or Head Start program that is the subject of a determination described in paragraph (1) (other than an agency or program 

required to correct a deficiency immediately or during a 90-day period 

under clause (i) or (ii) of paragraph (1)(B)) shall— 

‘‘(i) develop in a timely manner, a quality improvement plan that 

shall be subject to the approval of the Secretary, or in the case of a program, the sponsoring agency, and which shall specify— 

‘‘(I) the deficiencies to be corrected; 

‘‘(II) the actions to be taken to correct such deficiencies; and 

‘‘(III) the timetable for accomplishment of the corrective actions 

specified; and 

‘‘(ii) eliminate each deficiency identified, not later than the date for 

elimination of such deficiency specified in such plan (which shall not 

be later than 1 year after the date the agency or program received notice of the determination and of the specific deficiency to be corrected). 

16 

‘‘(B) SECRETARIAL RESPONSIBILITY.—Not later than 30 days after receiving 

from a Head Start agency a proposed quality improvement plan pursuant 

to subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall either approve such proposed plan 

or specify the reasons why the proposed plan cannot be approved. 

‘‘(C) AGENCY RESPONSIBILITY FOR PROGRAM IMPROVEMENT.—Not later 

than 30 days after receiving from a Head Start program, a proposed quality 

improvement plan pursuant to subparagraph (A), the sponsoring agency 

shall either approve such proposed plan or specify the reasons why the proposed plan cannot be approved.’’; and 

(3) in paragraph (3) by inserting ‘‘and programs’’ after ‘‘agencies’’; 

(4) by amending subsection (e) to read as follows: 

‘‘(e) SUMMARIES OF MONITORING OUTCOMES.—Not later than 120 days after the 

end of each fiscal year, the Secretary shall publish a summary report on the findings of reviews conducted under subsection (c) and on the outcomes of quality improvement plans implemented under subsection (d), during such fiscal year. Such 

information shall be made available to all parents with children receiving assistance 

under this subchapter in an understandable and uniform format, and to the extent 

practicable, provided in a language that the parents can understand, and in addition, make the information widely available through public means such as distribution through public agencies, and at a minimum posting such information on the 

Internet immediately upon publication.’’; and 

(5) by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘(f) REDUCTION OF GRANTS AND REDISTRIBUTION OF FUNDS IN CASES OF UNDERENROLLMENT.— 

‘‘(1) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 

‘‘(A) ACTUAL ENROLLMENT.—The term ‘actual enrollment’ means, with respect to the program of a Head Start agency, the actual number of children 

enrolled in such program and reported by the agency (as required in paragraph (2)) in a given month. 

‘‘(B) BASE GRANT.—The term ‘base grant’ means, with respect to a Head 

Start agency for a fiscal year, that portion of the grant derived— 

‘‘(i) from amounts reserved for use in accordance with section 

640(a)(2)(A), for a Head Start agency administering an Indian Head 

Start program or migrant and seasonal Head Start program; 

‘‘(ii) from amounts reserved for payments under section 640(a)(2)(B); 

or 

‘‘(iii) from amounts available under section 640(a)(2)(D) or allotted 

among States under section 640(a)(4). 

‘‘(C) FUNDED ENROLLMENT.—The term ‘funded enrollment’ means, with 

respect to the program of a Head Start agency in a fiscal year, the number 

of children that the agency is funded to serve through a grant for the program during such fiscal year, as indicated in the grant agreement. 

‘‘(2) ENROLLMENT REPORTING REQUIREMENT FOR CURRENT FISCAL YEAR.—Each 

entity carrying out a Head Start program shall report on a monthly basis to 

the Secretary and the relevant Head Start agency— 

‘‘(A) the actual enrollment in such program; and 

‘‘(B) if such actual enrollment is less than the funded enrollment, any apparent reason for such enrollment shortfall. 

‘‘(3) SECRETARIAL REVIEW AND PLAN.—The Secretary shall— 

‘‘(A) on a semiannual basis, determine which Head Start agencies are operating with an actual enrollment that is less than the funded enrollment 

based on not less than the average of 4 consecutive months of data; 

‘‘(B) for each such Head Start agency operating a program with an actual 

enrollment that is less than 95 percent of its funded enrollment, as determined under subparagraph (A), develop, in collaboration with such agency, 

a plan and timetable for reducing or eliminating under-enrollment taking 

into consideration— 

‘‘(i) the quality and extent of the outreach, recruitment, and community needs assessment conducted by such agency; 

‘‘(ii) changing demographics, mobility of populations, and the identification of new underserved low-income populations; 

‘‘(iii) facilities-related issues that may impact enrollment; 

‘‘(iv) the ability to provide full-day programs, where needed, through 

Head Start funds or through collaboration with entities carrying out 

other preschool or child care programs, or programs with other funding 

sources (where available); 

‘‘(v) the availability and use by families of other preschool and child 

care options (including parental care) in the local catchment area; and 

17 

‘‘(vi) agency management procedures that may impact enrollment; 

and 

‘‘(C) provide timely and ongoing technical assistance to each agency described in subparagraph (B) for the purpose of implementing the plan described in such subparagraph. 

‘‘(4) IMPLEMENTATION.—Upon receipt of the technical assistance described in 

paragraph (3)(C), a Head Start agency shall immediately implement the plan 

described in paragraph (3)(B). 

‘‘(5) SECRETARIAL ACTION FOR CONVERSION TO SERVE YOUNGER CHILDREN.—If, 

after implementing the plan described in paragraph (3)(B), the grantee continues to operate a program at less than full enrollment, the grantee may, upon 

approval by the Secretary, be permitted to use a portion of the base grant equal 

to the percentage difference between funded enrollment and actual enrollment 

for the most then recent year, to serve persons described in section 645A(c) if 

such agency currently operates a grant described in section 645A and submits 

an application containing— 

‘‘(A) evidence of community need for such services; 

‘‘(B) a description of how the needs of pregnant women, infants, and toddlers will be addressed in accordance with section 645A(b) and with regulations prescribed by the Secretary pursuant to section 641A in areas including— 

‘‘(i) the approach to childhood development and health services; and 

‘‘(ii) the approach to family and community partnerships; and approach to program design and management; 

‘‘(C) assurances that the agency will participate in technical assistance 

activities for newly funded and existing grantees under section 654A; and 

‘‘(D) evidence that the agency meets the eligibility criteria as grantees 

under section 645A. 

Any grantee permitted to serve children under this paragraph shall be subject 

to the rules, regulations, and conditions under section 645A. 

‘‘(6) SECRETARIAL ACTION FOR CONTINUED UNDER-ENROLLMENT.—If, 1 year 

after the date of implementation of the plan described in paragraph (3)(B), the 

Head Start agency continues to operate a program at less than full enrollment, 

the Secretary shall, where determined appropriate, continue to provide technical assistance to such agency. 

‘‘(7) SECRETARIAL REVIEW AND ADJUSTMENT FOR CHRONIC UNDER-ENROLLMENT.— 

‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—If, after receiving technical assistance and developing 

and implementing a plan to the extent described in paragraphs (3), (4), and 

(5) for 6 months, a Head Start agency is still operating a program with an 

actual enrollment that is less than 95 percent of its funded enrollment, the 

Secretary may— 

‘‘(i) designate such agency as chronically under-enrolled; and 

‘‘(ii) recapture, withhold, or reduce the base grant for the program by, 

a percentage equal to the percentage difference between funded enrollment and actual enrollment for the program for the most recent year 

in which the agency is determined to be under-enrolled under paragraph (2)(B). 

‘‘(B) WAIVER OR LIMITATION OF REDUCTIONS.—If the Secretary, after the 

implementation of the plan described in paragraph (3)(B), finds that— 

‘‘(i) the shortfall can reasonably be expected to be temporary; or 

‘‘(ii) the number of slots allotted to the agency is small enough that 

under-enrollment does not constitute a significant shortfall, 

the Secretary may, as appropriate, waive or reduce the percentage recapturing, withholding, or reduction otherwise required by subparagraph (A). 

‘‘(C) PROCEDURAL REQUIREMENTS; EFFECTIVE DATE.—The actions taken by 

the Secretary under this paragraph with respect to a Head Start agency 

shall take effect 1 day after the date on which— 

‘‘(i) the time allowed for appeal under section 646(a) expires without 

an appeal by the agency; or 

‘‘(ii) the action is upheld in an administrative hearing under section 

646. 

‘‘(8) REDISTRIBUTION OF FUNDS.— 

‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Funds held by the Secretary as a result of recapturing, 

withholding, or reducing a base grant in accordance with paragraph (6) in 

a fiscal year shall be redistributed in such fiscal year as follows: 

‘‘(i) If such funds are attributable to the portion of a base grant derived from amounts specified in paragraph (1)(B)(i) payable, but for the 

operation of this paragraph, to carry out an Indian Head Start proVerDate Aug 04 2004 03:39 Jun 18, 2005 Jkt 039006 PO 00000 Frm 00017 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6621 E:\HR\OC\HR136.XXX HR136
18 

gram, then such funds shall be redistributed to increase enrollment in 

such fiscal year in 1 or more Indian Head Start programs. 

‘‘(ii) If such funds are attributable to the portion of a base grant derived from amounts specified in paragraph (1)(B)(i) payable, but for the 

operation of this paragraph, to carry out a migrant and seasonal Head 

Start program, then such funds shall be redistributed to increase enrollment in such fiscal year in 1 or more migrant and seasonal Head 

Start programs. 

‘‘(iii) If such funds are attributable to the portion of a base grant derived from amounts specified in clause (ii) or (iii) of paragraph (1)(B) 

payable, but for the operation of this paragraph, to carry out a Head 

Start program (excluding Indian Head Start programs, and migrant 

and seasonal Head Start programs) in a State, then such funds shall 

be redistributed to increase enrollment in such fiscal year in 1 or 

more— 

‘‘(I) other Head Start programs (excluding Indian Head Start programs and migrant and seasonal Head Start programs) that are 

carried out in such State; or 

‘‘(II) if the Secretary determines that children eligible under section 641 are being adequately served within such State, 1 or more 

Early Head Start programs (excluding Indian Head Start programs 

and migrant and seasonal Head Start programs) or 1 or more Head 

Start programs for the purpose of becoming a grantee pursuant to 

section 645A. 

‘‘(B) ADJUSTMENT TO FUNDED ENROLLMENT.—The Secretary shall adjust 

as necessary the requirements relating to funded enrollment indicated in 

the grant agreement of a Head Start agency receiving funds redistributed 

under this paragraph.’’. 

SEC. 9. POWERS AND FUNCTIONS OF HEAD START AGENCIES. 

(a) QUALIFICATIONS FOR DESIGNATION.—Section 642(b) of the Head Start Act (42 

U.S.C. 9837(b)) is amended to read as follows: 

‘‘(b) In order to be so designated, a Head Start agency shall do all of the following:— 

‘‘(1) Establish a program with standards set forth in section 641A(a)(1), with 

particular attention to the standards set forth in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of 

such section. 

‘‘(2) Demonstrate capacity to serve eligible children with scientifically-based 

curricula and other interventions that help promote the school readiness of children participating in the program. 

‘‘(3) Establish effective procedures by which parents and area residents concerned will be enabled to directly participate in decisions that influence the 

character of programs affecting their interests. 

‘‘(4) Establish an independent board of directors selected from among eligible 

individuals who shall serve on the board (or may designate an existing entity 

whose members are eligible individuals, that shall be such board) for a period 

not to exceed 5 years, except that board members who oversee a public entity 

and who are selected by election (or members of a board of a local educational 

agency or a local council, appointed by an elected official or an official of a general purpose local government), may serve for such period as may be determined by the electing or appointing authority, as the case may be. An individual who has a conflict of interest is ineligible to serve as a member of the 

board. Members of the board of all nonpublic entities shall include representatives of the local community (including at least 1 member with significant financial management or accounting experience and the chair of the council described 

in section 642(b)(4)(B)(ii)). Additional members shall be selected for their expertise in education, business administration, community affairs, government, legal 

affairs, and such other areas of expertise as may contribute to effective governance of the Head Start agency. All members of the board shall receive training 

in the management responsibilities and obligations, ethics, and financial literacy and management, and shall adopt practices that assure active, independent and informed governance of the Head Start agency, including independent oversight of the financial and management practices of such agency. 

The board shall provide direction to the executive director of the Head Start 

agency and shall operate as an entity independent of staff employed by the 

Head start agency, entity, or applicant and have the following duties and responsibilities: 

‘‘(A) To provide independent oversight to ensure that the Head Start 

agency under the direction of the executive director is delivering high qualVerDate Aug 04 2004 03:39 Jun 18, 2005 Jkt 039006 PO 00000 Frm 00018 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6621 E:\HR\OC\HR136.XXX HR136
19 

ity services to children and families in compliance with all applicable standards in effect under this subchapter and with the applicable performance 

measures established by the Secretary under section 644. 

‘‘(B) To establish 2 or more standing committees to facilitate governance 

of the Head Start agency which shall include both of the following: 

‘‘(i) An audit and finance committee whose primary responsibility 

shall be— 

‘‘(I) to approve annually the operating budget of the Head Start 

agency; 

‘‘(II) to review and recommend to the board the selection of independent auditors who shall report all critical accounting policies 

and practices to the finance and audit committee; 

‘‘(III) to review and recommend to the board the termination or 

extension of the existing audit firm at least once every 5 years; 

‘‘(IV) to review and advise the board of the audit management 

letter provided pursuant to the chapter 75 of title 31 of the United 

States Code, and of any audit findings; and 

‘‘(V) to monitor agency actions to correct any such audit findings 

or other actions necessary to comply with applicable laws (including regulations) governing financial statements and accounting 

practices. 

‘‘(ii) A policy council, a majority of whose representatives shall be 

parents of children participating in a Head Start program or in an 

Early Head Start program, or of children who participated in a Head 

Start program or in an Early Head Start program in the then most recent 5-year period preceding the selection of the particular representative involved, and whose primary responsibility shall be to serve as a 

link between parents and the board of directors and to make and submit recommendations on the following activities to the Board: 

‘‘(I) The strategic direction of the program, including long and 

short-term planning goals and objectives. 

‘‘(II) Program operation policies, including standards of conduct 

for program staff and volunteers. 

‘‘(III) Activities to support the active involvement of parents in 

supporting program operations. 

‘‘(IV) classroom activities and staffing; 

‘‘(V) program responsiveness to community and parent needs; 

and 

‘‘(VI) other areas the committee identifies as necessary to improve program operations. 

‘‘(C) To approve the selection and dismissal of the Head Start director, 

and to review annually the human resources available to ensure the effective operation of the Head Start agency. 

‘‘(D) To consult, on a regular basis, with the policy committee and to take 

actions on recommendations submitted by such committee. 

‘‘(E) To review and approve the major operational policies of the Head 

Start agency, including policies addressing accounting, financial management, procurement, record confidentiality, and personnel (including specific 

standards governing salaries, salary adjustments, travel and per diem allowances, and other employee benefits). 

‘‘(F) To ensure that the Head Start agency is operated in compliance with 

applicable Federal, State, and local laws (including regulations), and to 

monitor agency implementation of any corrective action necessary to comply 

with applicable laws (including regulations); 

‘‘(G) To oversee the program planning of the Head Start agency, including 

adoption of the Head Start agency philosophy and mission statement, adoption of policies for determining community needs, setting long- and shortrange goals and objectives, establishment of criteria for selecting families 

in Head Start programs or Early Head Start programs, and to oversee and 

approve the agency’s applications to receive funds made available under 

this subchapter; and 

‘‘(H) To establish, to adopt, and to periodically update written standards 

of conduct that establish standards and formal procedures for disclosing, 

addressing, and resolving— 

‘‘(i) any conflict of interest, and any appearance of a conflict of interest, by board members, officers, employees, consultants, and agents 

who provide services or furnish goods to the Head Start agency;and 

‘‘(ii) complaints, including investigations, when appropriate. 

20 

‘‘(5) To seek the involvement of parents, area residents, and local business in 

the design and implementation of the program. 

‘‘(6) To provide technical and other support needed to enable parents and area 

residents to secure on their own behalf available assistance from public and private sources. 

‘‘(7) To establish effective procedures to facilitate the involvement of parents 

of participating children in activities designed to help such parents become full 

partners in the education of their children, and to afford such parents the opportunity to participate in the development and overall conduct of the program 

at the local level, including a process through which parents of children currently participating in a Head Start program or an Early Head Start program 

select the parent representatives to serve on the council under section 

642(b)(4)(B)(ii). 

‘‘(8) To conduct outreach to schools in which children participating in Head 

Start programs enroll, local educational agencies, the local business community, 

community-based organizations, faith-based organizations, museums, and libraries to generate support and leverage the resources of the entire local community in order to improve school readiness. 

‘‘(9) To offer (directly or through referral to local entities, such as entities carrying out Even Start programs under subpart 3 of part B of title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 2741 et seq.)), to parents of participating children, family literacy services and parenting skills training. 

‘‘(10) To offer to parents of participating children substance abuse counseling 

(either directly or through referral to local entities), including information on 

drug-exposed infants and fetal alcohol syndrome. 

‘‘(11) At the option of such agency, to offer (directly or through referral to 

local entities), to such parents— 

‘‘(A) training in basic child development (including cognitive development); 

‘‘(B) assistance in developing literacy and communication skills; 

‘‘(C) opportunities to share experiences with other parents (including parent-mentor relationships); 

‘‘(D) mental and behavioral health services; 

‘‘(E) regular in-home visitation; or 

‘‘(F) any other activity designed to help such parents become full partners 

in the education of their children. 

‘‘(12) To provide, with respect to each participating family, a family needs assessment that includes consultation with such parents about the benefits of parent involvement and about the activities described in paragraphs (5) through 

(8) in which such parents may choose to be involved (taking into consideration 

their specific family needs, work schedules, and other responsibilities). 

‘‘(13) To consider providing services to assist younger siblings of children participating in its Head Start program to obtain health services from other 

sources. 

‘‘(14) To perform community outreach to encourage individuals previously unaffiliated with Head Start programs to participate in its Head Start program 

as volunteers. 

‘‘(15)(A) To inform custodial parents in single-parent families that participate 

in programs, activities, or services carried out or provided under this subchapter 

about the availability of child support services for purposes of establishing paternity and acquiring child support; and 

‘‘(B) refer eligible parents to the child support offices of State and local governments. 

‘‘(16) provide parents of limited English proficient children outreach and services under this subchapter, in an understandable and uniform format and, to 

the extent practicable, in a language that such parents can understand.’’. 

(b) COORDINATION AND COLLABORATION.—Section 642(c) of the Head Start Act (42 

U.S.C. 9837(c)) is amended to read as follows: 

‘‘(c) The head of each Head Start agency shall coordinate and collaborate with the 

State agency responsible for administering the State program carried out under the 

Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 9858 et seq.), and 

other early childhood education and development programs, including programs 

under subtitle B of title VII of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 

U.S.C. 11431–11435), Even Start programs under subpart 3 of part B of title I of 

the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 2741 et seq.), and 

programs under Part C and section 619 of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1431–1445, 1419), and the Child Abuse Prevention and TreatVerDate Aug 04 2004 03:39 Jun 18, 2005 Jkt 039006 PO 00000 Frm 00020 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6621 E:\HR\OC\HR136.XXX HR136
21 

ment Act (42 U.S.C. 5106a), serving the children and families served by the Head 

Start agency to carry out the provisions of this subchapter.’’. 

(c) OTHER COORDINATION.—Section 642(d) of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 

9837(d)) is amended— 

(1) by redesignating paragraphs (2) through (4) as paragraph (5) through (7), 

respectively; 

(2) by inserting after paragraph (1) the following: 

‘‘(2) COORDINATION.— ‘‘(A) LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY.—In communities where both public 

prekindergarten programs and Head Start programs operate, a Head Start 

agency shall collaborate and coordinate activities with the local educational 

agency or other public agency responsible for the operation of the prekindergarten program and providers of prekindergarten, including outreach 

activities to identify eligible children. 

‘‘(B) ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS.—Head Start staff shall, with the permission 

of the parents of children enrolled in Head Start programs, regularly communicate with the elementary schools such children will be attending— 

‘‘(i) to share information about such children; 

‘‘(ii) to receive advice and support from the teachers in such elementary schools participating in Early Reading First programs funded 

under subpart 1 of part B of title I of the Elementary and Secondary 

Education Act of 1965 regarding scientifically based teaching strategies 

and options; and 

‘‘(iii) to ensure a smooth transition to elementary school for such children. 

‘‘(C) OTHER EARLY EDUCATION AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS.—The 

head of each Head Start agency shall coordinate activities and collaborate 

with the State agency responsible for administering the State program carried out under the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990 

(42 U.S.C. 9858 et seq.), and other entities carrying out early childhood 

education and development programs, programs under subtitle B of title 

VII of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11431– 

11435), Even Start programs under subpart 3 of part B of title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6381 et seq.), and 

programs under section 619 and part C of the Individuals with Disabilities 

Education Act (20 U.S.C 1419, 1431 et seq.), serving the children and families served by the Head Start agency. 

‘‘(D) OTHER PROGRAMS.—Each Head Start agency shall collaborate, as appropriate, with providers of social and community services available to children and families participating in Head Start programs, and may support 

such partnerships with financial agreements, when applicable, for the provision of such services. 

‘‘(3) COLLABORATION.—A Head Start agency shall take steps to coordinate activities with the local educational agency serving the community involved and 

with schools in which children participating in a Head Start program operated 

by such agency will enroll following such program, including— 

‘‘(A) collaborating on the shared use of transportation and facilities; 

‘‘(B) collaborating to enhance the efficiency of services while increasing 

the program participation of underserved populations of eligible children; 

and 

‘‘(C) exchanging information on the provision of noneducational services 

to such children. 

‘‘(4) PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT.—In order to promote the continued involvement 

of the parents (including grandparents and kinship caregivers, as appropriate) 

of children that participate in Head Start programs in the education of their 

children upon transition to school, the Head Start agency shall work with the 

local educational agency— 

‘‘(A) to provide training to the parents— 

‘‘(i) to inform the parents about their rights and responsibilities concerning the education of their children; and 

‘‘(ii) to enable the parents— 

‘‘(I) to understand and work with schools in order to communicate with teachers and other school personnel; 

‘‘(II) to support the schoolwork of their children; and 

‘‘(III) to participate as appropriate in decisions relating to the 

education of their children; and 

‘‘(B) to take other actions, as appropriate and feasible, to support the active involvement of the parents with schools, school personnel, and schoolrelated organizations.’’; 

22 

(3) in paragraph (5), as so redesignated— 

(A) by striking ‘‘A’’ and inserting ‘‘Each’’; 

(B) by striking ‘‘may’’ and inserting ‘‘shall’’; 

(C) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of subparagraph (A); and 

(D) by redesignating subparagraph (B) as subparagraph (C); and 

(E) by inserting after subparagraph (A) the following: 

‘‘(B) collaborating to increase the program participation of underserved populations of eligible children; and’’; and 

(4) by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘(8) Head Start agencies shall implement a research-based early childhood curricula that promotes young children’s school readiness in the areas of language and 

cognitive development, early reading and premathematics skills, socio-emotional 

skills, physical development, and approaches to learning. Such curricula shall be— 

‘‘(A) based on scientifically based research and have standardized training 

procedures and published curriculum materials to support implementation; and 

‘‘(B) comprehensive, outcomes based, and linked to ongoing assessment with 

instructional goals and measurable objectives. 

‘‘(9) Head Start agencies shall use ongoing, research-based assessment methods 

that are developmentally appropriate, culturally and linguistically responsive, and 

tied to children’s daily activities in order to support the educational instruction of 

children in the program, including language skills, prereading knowledge and 

premathematics knowledge. Assessment instruments shall be those designed and 

validated for making decisions about teaching and learning and aligned with the 

program’s curricula and Section 641A(a)(1). 

‘‘(10) For the purpose of meeting the performance standards, Head Start agencies 

shall use high-quality research-based developmental screening tools that have been 

demonstrated to be standardized, reliable, valid, and accurate for children from a 

range of racial, ethnic, linguistic, and cultural backgrounds.’’. 

(d) ASSESSMENT.—Section 642 of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9837) is amended 

by striking subsection (e) and inserting the following: 

‘‘(e) ASSESSMENT.—Each Head Start agency shall adopt, in consultation with experts in child development and with classroom teachers, an assessment to be used 

when hiring or evaluating any classroom teacher in a center-based Head Start program. Such assessment shall measure whether such teacher has mastered the functions described in section 648A(a)(1) and attained a level of literacy appropriate to 

implement Head Start curricula. 

‘‘(f) FUNDED ENROLLMENT; WAITING LIST.—Each Head Start agency shall enroll 

100 percent of its funded enrollment and maintain an active waiting list at all times 

with ongoing outreach to the community and activities to identify underserved populations.’’. 

SEC. 10. LOCAL AND STATE INTEGRATION OF EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION. 

The Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9831 et. seq.) is amended by inserting after section 

642A the following: 

‘‘SEC. 642B. LOCAL AND STATE INTEGRATION OF EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION. 

‘‘(a) LOCAL INTEGRATION.—In general, Head Start agencies shall enter into ongoing partnerships with local educational agencies, State-funded preschool and other 

early childhood programs. Head Start agencies shall operate in a manner consistent 

with the goal of creating and expanding an efficient and effective system of early 

childhood and school readiness services in each State and community, while maintaining compliance with Standards under section 641A(a). 

‘‘(1) MEMORANDA OF UNDERSTANDING.—Each Head Start agency shall enter 

into a memorandum of understanding with any local educational agencies or 

local councils, responsible for managing publicly funded prekindergarten programs in the service area of the Head Start agency (or if such agencies and such 

councils are not applicable in the service area, with the largest provider of publicly funded prekindergarten in the service area), that shall include plans to coordinate the following activities: 

‘‘(A) Educational activities, curricula, and instruction aligned to challenging State developed educational activities, curricula, and instruction 

aligned to challenging State developed academic content standards. 

‘‘(B) Public information dissemination and access to programs for families 

contacting any of the early childhood programs. 

‘‘(C) Selection priorities for eligible children to be served by programs. 

‘‘(D) Service delivery areas. 

‘‘(E) Staff training, including opportunities for joint staff training on topics such as academic content standards and instructional methods. 

‘‘(F) Program technical assistance. 

23 

‘‘(G) Provision of additional services to meet the child care needs of working parents. 

‘‘(H) Planning and parent education for smooth transitions to kindergarten as required in section 642A(3) and 642A(6). 

‘‘(I) Provision and use of facilities, transportation, and other program elements, and 

‘‘(J) Other elements mutually agreed to by the parties to such memorandum. 

‘‘(2) TIMING OF MEMORANDA.—Each Head Start agency shall enter into a 

memorandum of understanding under paragraph (1) not later than 1 year after 

the effective date of this section. 

‘‘(3) SECRETARIAL REVIEW.—Each memorandum of understanding entered into 

under paragraph (1) shall be submitted to the Secretary not later than 30 days 

after entering into such memorandum. 

‘‘(A) If a Head Start agency is unable to comply with the requirement in 

(1) the Head Start agency shall notify the Secretary and the chief executive 

officer of the State not later than 30 days after determining that they are 

unable to enter into such memorandum. The Secretary, in cooperation with 

the State Early Learning Council and the State Director of Head Start Collaboration, shall evaluate the causes of failure to enter into a memorandum 

of understanding under paragraph (1). With the assistance of the State 

Early Learning Council and the State Director of Head Start Collaboration, 

all parties shall again attempt to enter into a memorandum of understanding under paragraph (1). Then if no such memorandum of understanding is entered into, the Secretary shall make 1 of the following determinations: 

‘‘(i) The local educational agency, local council, or other appropriate 

entity is unable or unwilling to enter into such a memorandum despite 

reasonable efforts on the part of the Head Start agency; or 

‘‘(ii) The Head Start agency has not engaged in reasonable efforts to 

successfully negotiate and enter into a memorandum of understanding 

pursuant to paragraph (1). 

‘‘(iii) There is an absence of publicly funded prekindergarten in the 

service area of the Head Start agency. 

‘‘(B) If the Secretary determines the Head Start agency is not making 

reasonable efforts to enter into a memorandum of understanding pursuant 

to paragraph (1), the Head Start agency shall be found deficient and shall 

be considered by the Secretary in the same manner as other deficiency findings. 

‘‘(C) If the Secretary concludes that the local educational agency, local 

council, or other appropriate entity is not making reasonable efforts to 

reach such a memorandum of understanding, the Head Start agency shall 

not be found out of compliance with paragraph (1). 

‘‘(4) REVISION OF MEMORANDA.—Each memorandum of understanding shall be 

revised and renewed annually by the parties to such memorandum, in alignment with the beginning of the school year. 

‘‘(5) ABSENCE OF PREKINDERGARTEN.—In the absence of publicly funded prekindergarten in the service area of a Head Start agency, the Head Start agency 

shall submit notice to the Secretary and the chief executive officer of the State, 

and shall work with the State Early Learning Council and the State Director 

of Head Start Collaboration to improve coordination in their service area. 

‘‘(b) STATEWIDE INTEGRATION.—From the amounts reserved under section 

640(a)(2)(C)(ii), the Secretary shall award an early learning collaboration grant to 

each State for the purposes of supporting a State Early Learning Council responsible for advancing the development of a coordinated early childhood services delivery system in the State. A State that receives a grant under this subparagraph 

shall— 

‘‘(1) establish a State Early Learning Council, which shall include the State 

Director of Head Start Collaboration, representatives from the State preschool 

programs, representatives of local educational agencies, the State official who 

oversees child care programs, the State official who oversees section 619 and 

part C of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1419, 1431 

et seq.), the State official who oversees the State educational agency, and representatives from Head Start agencies located in the State, including migrant 

and seasonal Head Start programs and Indian Head Start programs. The chief 

executive officer of the State may designate an existing entity to serve as the 

Early Learning Council if such entity includes representatives described in this 

paragraph; 

24 

‘‘(2) ensure that allotted funds distributed to a State for a fiscal year to carry 

out this subsection may be used by the State to pay not more than 30 percent 

of the cost of carrying out this subsection; 

‘‘(3) direct the Early Learning Council— 

‘‘(A) to increase coordination and collaboration among State preschool, 

Head Start programs, child care programs, early childhood special education, and other early childhood programs, including in the areas of outcomes and standards, technical assistance, coordination of services, crosssector professional development and training, community outreach, communication, and better serving the needs of working families through provision 

of full-day and full-year early education services; 

‘‘(B) to work with State agencies responsible for education, child care, and 

early intervention to provide leadership and assistance to local Head Start 

programs, school districts, and State and locally funded preschool and child 

care programs to increase integration among early childhood programs 

through adoption of local memoranda of understanding described in subparagraph (A) and other means; 

‘‘(C) to work with State agencies responsible for education, child care, and 

early intervention to provide leadership and assistance to develop a coherent sequence of standards for children age 3 through the early elementary 

grades to effect a smooth transition to and success in the early elementary 

grades; 

‘‘(D) to conduct periodic statewide needs assessments concerning early 

care and education programs for children from birth to school entry; 

‘‘(E) to work to identify and address barriers to and opportunities for integration between entities carrying out Federal and State child development, 

child care, and early childhood education programs; 

‘‘(F) to develop recommendations regarding means of establishing a unified data collection system for early care and education programs operating 

throughout the State; 

‘‘(G) to address coordination of early learning programs with health care 

(including mental and behavioral health care), welfare, family literacy and 

services for homeless children; 

‘‘(H) to support a State system of early childhood education, and training 

and technical assistance that improves the quality of early learning programs and the capacity of such programs to deliver services pursuant to 

section 648(b); and 

‘‘(I) to develop a plan for increasing the participation of children underrepresented in State early childhood education and child care programs, including Head Start, State preschool programs, and programs carried out 

under the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 

9858 et seq.). 

‘‘(4) Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to provide the Early Learning Council with authority to alter the provisions of this Act. 

‘‘(5) Funds made available under this section shall be used to supplement, 

and not supplant, other Federal, State, and local funds that would otherwise 

be expended to carry out the purposes of this section.’’. 

SEC. 11. HEAD START ALIGNMENT WITH K–12 EDUCATION. 

Section 642A of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9837a) is amended— 

(1) by amending the heading to read as follows: 

‘‘SEC. 642A. HEAD START ALIGNMENT WITH K–12 EDUCATION.’’; 

(2) in paragraph (2)— 

(A) by inserting ‘‘ongoing’’ after ‘‘establishing’’; and 

(B) by inserting ‘‘McKinney-Vento liaisons as established under section 

722 (g)(1)(J)(ii) of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 

11432(g)(1)(J)(ii)),’’ after ‘‘social workers,’’; 

(3) by redesignating paragraphs (3) through (7) as paragraphs (5) through (9), 

respectively; and 

(4) by inserting the following after paragraph (2): 

‘‘(3) developing continuity of developmentally appropriate curricula between 

Head Start and local educational agencies to ensure an effective transition and 

appropriate shared expectations for children’s learning and development as they 

make such transition to school; 

‘‘(4) organizing and participating in joint training, including transition-related 

training for school staff and Head Start staff;’’; 

(5) by amending paragraph (7), as so redesignated, to read as follows: 

‘‘(7) developing and implementing a family outreach and support program in 

cooperation with entities carrying out parental involvement efforts under title 

25 

I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 and family outreach 

and support efforts under subtitle B of title VII of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11431–11435);’’; 

(6) in paragraph (8), as so redesignated— 

(A) by inserting ‘‘and continuity in parental involvement activities’’ after 

‘‘developmental continuity’’; and 

(B) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

(7) by amending paragraph (9), as so redesignated, to read as follows: 

‘‘(9) linking the services provided in such Head Start program with the education services, including services relating to language, literacy, and numeracy, 

provided by such local educational agency;’’; and 

(8) by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘(10) helping parents (including grandparents and kinship caregivers, as appropriate) to understand the importance of parental involvement in a child’s 

academic success while teaching them strategies for maintaining parental involvement as their child moves from Head Start to elementary school; 

‘‘(11) developing and implementing a system to increase program participation 

of underserved populations of eligible children; and 

‘‘(12) coordinating activities and collaborating to ensure that curricula used in 

the Head Start program is aligned with— 

‘‘(A) State early learning standards with regard to cognitive, social, emotional, and physical competencies that children entering kindergarten are 

expected to demonstrate; and 

‘‘(B) the Head Start Child Outcomes Framework developed by the Secretary.’’. 

SEC. 12. ADMINISTRATIVE REQUIREMENTS AND STANDARDS. 

Section 644 of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9839(f)(2)) is amended— 

(1) in subsection (a)— 

(A) by inserting ‘‘(1) STANDARDS.—’’ after ‘‘(a)’’; and 

(B) by inserting after the 3d sentence the following: 

‘‘(2) ANNUAL REPORT.—Each Head Start agency shall make available to the public 

a report published at least once in each fiscal year that discloses the following information from the then most recently concluded fiscal year, except that reporting such 

information shall not reveal personally identifiable information about an individual 

child: 

‘‘(A) The total amount of public and private funds received and the amount 

from each source. 

‘‘(B) An explanation of budgetary expenditures and proposed budget for the 

following fiscal year. 

‘‘(C) The total number of children and families served and percent of average 

monthly enrollment, including the percent of eligible children served. 

‘‘(D) The results of the most recent review by the Secretary and the financial 

audit. 

‘‘(E) The percentage of enrolled children that received medical and dental 

exams. 

‘‘(F) Information about parent involvement activities. 

‘‘(G) The agency’s efforts to prepare children for kindergarten. 

‘‘(H) Any other information that describes the activities of the agency. 

‘‘(3) PROCEDURAL CONDUCT.—’’; and 

(2) in subsection (f)(2) 

(A) by redesignating subparagraphs (A) through (E) as subparagraphs (B) 

through (F), respectively; and 

(B) by inserting before subparagraph (B), as so redesignated, the following: 

‘‘(A) a description of the consultation conducted by the Head Start agency 

with the providers in the community demonstrating capacity and capability to 

provide services under this subchapter, and of the potential for collaboration 

with such providers and the cost effectiveness of such collaboration as opposed 

to the cost effectiveness of the purchase of a facility;’’. 

SEC. 13. ELIGIBILITY. 

Section 645(a) of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9840) is amended— 

(1) in paragraph (1)— 

(A) in subparagraph (B)(i)— 

(i) by striking ‘‘to a reasonable extent’’ and inserting ‘‘not to exceed 

10 percent of the total enrollment’’; 

(ii) by striking ‘‘benefit from such programs’’ and inserting ‘‘benefit 

from such programs, including children referred by child welfare services,’’; and 

26 

(iii) by inserting ‘‘(a homeless child shall be deemed to meet the lowincome criteria)’’ before the semicolon; and 

(2) by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘(3) The amount of a basic allowance provided under section 403 of title 37, 

United States Code, on behalf of an individual who is a member of the uniformed 

services for housing that is acquired or constructed under the authority of subchapter IV of chapter 169 of title 10, United States Code, or any other related provision of law, shall not be considered to be income for purposes of determining the 

eligibility of a child of the individual for programs assisted under this subchapter.’’. 

SEC. 14. EARLY HEAD START PROGRAMS. 

(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 645A(b) of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9840a(b)) is 

amended— 

(1) by amending paragraphs (4) and (5) to read as follows: 

‘‘(4) provide services to parents to support their role as parents (including parenting skills training and training in basic child development) and to help the 

families move toward self-sufficiency (including educational and employment 

services as appropriate); 

‘‘(5) coordinate services with services (including home-based services) provided 

by programs in the State and programs in the community (including programs 

for infants and toddlers with disabilities and programs for homeless infants and 

toddlers) to ensure a comprehensive array of services (such as health and mental health services, and family support services);’’; 

(2) by amending paragraph (8) to read as follows: 

‘‘(8) ensure formal linkages with the agencies and entities described in section 

644(b) of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1444(b)) and 

providers of early intervention services for infants and toddlers with disabilities 

under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1400 et seq.) 

and the agency responsible for administering section 106 of the Child Abuse 

Prevention and Treatment Act (42 U.S.C. 5106a);’’. 

(3) by redesignating paragraph (9) as paragraph (11); 

(4) by inserting after paragraph (8) the following: 

‘‘(9) develop and implement a systematic procedure for transitioning children 

and parents from an Early Head Start program into a Head Start program or 

another local early childhood education program; 

‘‘(10) establish channels of communication between staff of Early Head Start 

programs and staff of Head Start programs or other local early childhood education programs, to facilitate the coordination of programs; and’’. 

(b) MIGRANT AND SEASONAL PROGRAMS; COMMUNITY- AND FAITH-BASED ORGANIZATIONS.—Section 645A(d) of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9840a(d)) is amended— 

(1) by amending paragraph (1) to read as follows: 

‘‘(1) entities operating Head Start programs under this subpart, including migrant and seasonal Head Start programs; and’’; and 

(2) in paragraph (2) by inserting ‘‘, including community- and faith-based organizations’’ after ‘‘entities’’ the 2d place it appears. 

(c) TRAINING AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE ACCOUNT.—Section 645A(g)(2)(B) of the 

Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9640a(g)(2)(B)) is amended— 

(1) in clause (iii) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

(2) in clause (iv) by striking the period at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

(3) by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘(v) providing professional development designed to increase program 

participation for underserved populations of eligible children.’’. 

(d) CENTER-BASED STAFF.—Section 645A of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9840a) 

is amended by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘(h) CENTER-BASED STAFF.—The Secretary shall ensure that, not later than September 30, 2008, all teachers providing direct services to children and families participating in Early Head Start programs located in Early Head Start centers have 

a minimum of a child development associate credential or an associate degree, and 

have been trained (or have equivalent course work) in early childhood development.’’. 

SEC. 15. PARENTAL CONSENT REQUIREMENT FOR NONEMERGENCY INTRUSIVE PHYSICAL EXAMINATIONS. 

The Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9831 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 

645A the following: 

‘‘SEC. 645B. PARENTAL CONSENT REQUIREMENT FOR NONEMERGENCY INTRUSIVE PHYSICAL 

EXAMINATIONS. 

‘‘(a) DEFINITION.—The term ‘nonemergency intrusive physical examination’ means, 

with respect to a child, a physical examination that— 

27 

‘‘(1) is not immediately necessary to protect the health or safety of such child, 

or the health or safety of another individual; and 

‘‘(2) includes incision or is otherwise invasive, or includes exposure of private 

body parts. 

‘‘(b) REQUIREMENT.—Before administering any health care service (including any 

nonemergency intrusive physical examination) to a child (or referring such child to 

obtain such service) in connection with participation in a program under this subchapter, a Head Start agency and an entity that receives assistance under section 

645A shall obtain the written consent of a parent of such child. 

‘‘(c) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit a Head Start agency or an entity that receives assistance under section 645A 

from using established methods, for handling cases of suspected or known child 

abuse and neglect, that are in compliance with applicable Federal, State, or tribal 

law.’’. 

SEC. 16. RIGHT TO APPEAL. 

Section 646(a)(3) of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9841(a)(3)) is amended to read 

as follows: 

‘‘(3) if financial assistance under this subchapter is terminated or reduced, an 

application for a noncompeting continuation award is denied based on a previous failure to comply with terms applicable to financial assistance previously 

provided this subchapter, or suspension of financial assistance is continued for 

more than 30 days, the recipient with respect to whom such action is taken 

shall have the opportunity to appeal such action in accordance with such procedures, except that no funds made available under this subchapter may be used 

to reimburse any such recipient for legal fees and other costs incurred in pursuing such an appeal;’’. 

SEC. 17. AUDITS. 

Section 647 of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9842) is amended by adding at the 

end the following: 

‘‘(c)(1) Not later than 180 days after the end of each fiscal year, each Head Start 

agency, and each entity that receives assistance under section 645A, shall submit 

to the Secretary an independent financial audit of the Head Start program carried 

out with financial assistance provided under this subchapter. Such audit shall be 

carried out by a certified public accountant selected through a competitive process 

from among qualified certified accountants by the local oversight board established 

in accordance with section 642(b)(4) by such agency, except that no accountant may 

perform audits of such program for a period exceeding 5 consecutive fiscal years. 

‘‘(2) Not later than 60 days after receiving such audit, the Secretary shall provide 

to such agency or such entity, and to the chief executive officer of the State in which 

such program is operated, a notice identifying the actions such agency or such entity 

is required to take to correct all deficiencies identified in such audit. 

‘‘(d) Each recipient of financial assistance under this subchapter shall— 

‘‘(1) maintain, and annually submit to the Secretary, a complete accounting 

of its administrative expenses (including a detailed statement identifying the 

amount of financial assistance provided under this subchapter used to pay expenses for salaries and compensation and the amount (if any) of other funds 

used to pay such expenses); and 

‘‘(2) provide such additional documentation as the Secretary may require.’’. 

SEC. 18. TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE AND TRAINING. 

(a) ALLOCATION OF RESOURCES.—Section 648(c) of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 

9843(c)) is amended— 

(1) in paragraph (2) by inserting ‘‘and for activities described in section 

1221(b)(3) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965’’ after ‘‘disabilities’’ ; and 

(2) in paragraph (5) by inserting ‘‘, including the needs of homeless children 

and their families’’ after ‘‘assessment’’; 

(3) in paragraph (10) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

(4) in paragraph (11) by striking the period at the end and inserting a semicolon; and 

(5) by adding the following at the end: 

‘‘(12) assist Head Start agencies and programs in increasing program participation of homeless children; and 

‘‘(13) assist Head Start agencies and Head Start programs in improving outreach to, and the quality of services available to, limited English proficient children and their families, particularly in communities that have experienced a 

large percentage increase in the population of limited English proficient individuals, as measured by the Bureau of the Census.’’. 

28 

(b) TRAINING IN USE OF MEDIA.—Section 648(d) of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 

9843(d)) is amended by inserting ‘‘, including community- and faith-based organizations’’ after ‘‘entities’’ the first place such term appears. 

(c) CHILD DEVELOPMENT AND NATIONAL ASSESSMENT PROGRAM.—Section 648(e) of 

the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9843(e)) is amended to read as follows: 

‘‘(e) The Secretary shall provide, either directly or through grants or other arrangements, funds from programs authorized under this subchapter to support an 

organization to administer a centralized child development and national assessment 

program leading to recognized credentials for personnel working in early childhood 

development and child care programs, training for personnel providing services to 

limited English proficient children (including services to promote the acquisition of 

the English language), training for personnel providing services to children determined to be abused or neglected, training for personnel providing services to children referred by or receiving child welfare services, training for personnel in helping 

children cope with community violence, and resource access projects for personnel 

working with disabled children.’’. 

(d) ADDRESSING UNIQUE NEEDS.—Section 648 of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 

9843) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘(f) The Secretary shall provide, either directly or through grants, or other arrangements, funds for training of Head Start personnel in addressing the unique 

needs of migrant and seasonal working families, families with a limited English proficiency, and homeless families. 

‘‘(g) More than 50 percent of funds expended under this section shall be used to 

provide high quality, sustained, intensive, and classroom-focused training and technical assistance in order to have a positive and lasting impact on classroom instruction. Funds shall be used to carry out activities related to any or all of the following: 

‘‘(1) Education and early childhood development. 

‘‘(2) Child health, nutrition, and safety. 

‘‘(3) Family and community partnerships. 

‘‘(4) Other areas that impact the quality or overall effectiveness of Head Start 

programs. 

‘‘(h) Funds under this subchapter used for training shall be used for needs identified annually by a grant applicant or delegate agency in their program improvement 

plan, except that funds shall not be used for long-distance travel expenses for training activities available locally or regionally or for training activities substantially 

similar to locally or regionally available training activities. 

‘‘(i)(1) The Secretary shall work in collaboration with the Head Start agencies that 

carry out migrant and seasonal Head Start programs, State Directors of Head Start 

Collaboration, the migrant and seasonal Head Start collatoration director, and other 

appropriate entities— 

‘‘(A) to accurately determine the number of children nationwide who are eligible to participate in migrant and seasonal Head Start programs each year; 

‘‘(B) to document how many of these children are receiving Head Start services each year; and 

‘‘(C) to the extent practicable, to ensure that access to migrant and seasonal 

Head Start programs for eligible children is comparable to access to other Head 

Start programs for other eligible children; 

‘‘(2) In carrying out paragraph (1)(A), the Secretary shall consult with the Secretary of Education about the Department of Education’s systems for collecting and 

reporting data about, and maintaining records on, students from migrant and seasonal farmworker families. 

‘‘(3) Not later than 9 months after the effective date of this subsection, the Secretary shall publish in the Federal Register a notice of how the Secretary plans to 

carry out paragraph (1) and shall provide a period for public comment. To the extent 

practicable, the Secretary shall consider comments received before submitting a report to the Congress. 

‘‘(4) Not later than 1 year after the effective date of this subsection, the Secretary 

shall submit a report to the Committee on Education and the Workforce of the 

House of Representatives and the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate, detailing how the Department of Health and Human Services 

plans to carry out paragraph (1). 

‘‘(5) The Secretary shall submit annually a report to the Congress detailing the 

number of children of migrant and seasonal farmworkers, who are eligible to participate in Head Start programs and the number of such children who are enrolled in 

Head Start programs. 

‘‘(6) The Secretary shall take appropriate action, consistent with section 444 of the 

General Education Provisions Act, to ensure the protection of the confidentiality of 

any personally identifiable data, information, and records collected or maintained by 

the Secretary, by Head Start agencies that carry out migrant and seasonal Head 

29 

Start programs, by State Directors of Head Start Collaboration, by the Migrant and 

Seasonal Farmworker Collaboration Project Director, and by other appropriate entities pursuant to this subsection. 

‘‘(7) Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to authorize the development 

of a nationwide database of personally identifiable information on individuals involved in studies or other collections of data under this subsection. 

‘‘(j) For purposes of this section, the term ‘eligible entities’ means an institution 

of higher education or other entity with expertise in delivering training in early 

childhood development, family support, and other assistance designed to improve 

the delivery of Head Start services.’’. 

SEC. 19. STAFF QUALIFICATIONS AND DEVELOPMENT. 

(a) CLASSROOM TEACHERS.—Section 648A(a)(2) of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 

9843a(a)(2)) is amended to read as follows: 

‘‘(2) DEGREE REQUIREMENTS.— ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall ensure that not later than September 30, 2011, at least 50 percent of all Head Start teachers nationwide 

in center-based programs have— 

‘‘(i) a baccalaureate or advanced degree in early childhood education; or ‘‘(ii) a baccalaureate or advanced degree in a field related to early 

childhood education, with experience in teaching preschool children. 

‘‘(B) PROGRESS.—Each Head Start agency shall provide to the Secretary 

a report indicating the number and percentage of classroom instructors 

with child development associate credentials and associate, baccalaureate, 

or advanced degrees. The Secretary shall compile all program reports and 

make them available to the Committee on Education and the Workforce of 

the United States House of Representatives and the Committee on Health, 

Education, Labor, and Pensions of the United States Senate. 

‘‘(C) REQUIREMENT FOR NEW HEAD START TEACHERS.—Within 3 years after 

the effective date of this subparagraph, the Secretary shall require that all 

Head Start teachers nationwide in center-based programs hired following 

the effective date of this subparagraph— 

‘‘(i) have an associate, baccalaureate, or advanced degree in early 

childhood education or a related field; or 

‘‘(ii) be currently enrolled in a program of study leading to an associate degree in early childhood education and agree to complete degree 

requirements within 3 years from the date of hire. 

‘‘(D) SERVICE REQUIREMENTS.—The Secretary shall establish requirements to ensure that individuals who receive financial assistance under 

this subchapter in order to comply with the requirements under section 

648A(a)(2) shall subsequently teach in a Head Start center for a period of 

time equivalent to the period for which they received assistance or repay 

the amount of the funds. 

‘‘(E) LIMITATION.—The Secretary shall require that any Federal funds 

provided directly or indirectly to comply with subparagraph (A) shall be 

used toward degrees awarded by an institution of higher education, as defined by sections 101 or 102 of the Higher Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1001– 

1002).’’. ’’. 

(b) CLASSROOM TEACHERS.—Section 648A of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9843a) 

is amended by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘(f) PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT PLANS.—Each Head Start agency and program 

shall create, in consultation with an employee, a professional development plan for 

all full-time employees who provide direct services to children.’’. 

SEC. 20. RESEARCH, DEMONSTRATIONS, AND EVALUATION. 

(a) NEW IDEAS AND APPROACHES.—Section 649(a)(1)(B) of the Head Start Act (42 

U.S.C. 9844(a)(1)(B)) is amended to read as follows: 

‘‘(B) use the Head Start programs to develop, test, and disseminate new 

ideas and approaches based on existing scientifically based research, for addressing the needs of low-income preschool children (including children 

with disabilities and children determined to be abused or neglected) and 

their families and communities (including demonstrations of innovative 

non-center based program models such as home-based and mobile programs), and otherwise to further the purposes of this subchapter.’’. 

(b) STUDY.—Section 649(d) of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9844(d) is amended— 

(1) in paragraph (7) by adding ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

(2) in paragraph (8) by striking the semicolon and inserting a period; 

(3) by striking paragraph (9); and 

(4) by striking the last sentence. 

30 

(c) EXPERT PANEL.—Section 649(g) of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9844(g)) is 

amended— 

(1) in paragraph (1)(A)— 

(A) by striking clause (i); and 

(B) by redesignating clauses (ii) and (iii) as clauses (i) and (ii), respectively; and 

(2) in paragraph (7)(C)(i) is amended to read as follows: 

‘‘(i) Not later than September 30, 2007, the Secretary shall transmit 

to the committees specified in clause (ii) the final report.’’. 

(d) NAS STUDY.—Section 649(h) of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9844(h)) is 

amended to read as follows: 

‘‘(h) NAS STUDY.— 

‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall use funds allocated in section 

640(a)(2)(C)(iii) to contract with the National Academy of Sciences for the Board 

on Children, Youth, and Families of the National Research Council to establish 

an independent panel of experts to review and synthesize research, theory and 

applications in the social, behavioral and biological sciences and to make recommendations on early childhood pedagogy with regard to each of the following: 

‘‘(A) Age and developmentally appropriate Head Start academic requirements and outcomes, including the domains in 641A(a)(B). 

‘‘(B) Differences in the type, length, mix and intensity of services necessary to ensure that children from challenging family and social backgrounds including: low-income children, children of color, children with special needs, and children with limited English proficiency enter kindergarten 

ready to succeed. 

‘‘(C) Appropriate assessments of young children (including systematic observation assessment in a child’s natural environment, and parent and provider interviews) for purposes of improving instruction, services, and program quality, and accommodations for children with disabilities and appropriate assessments for children with special needs (including needs related 

to the acquisition of the English language). 

‘‘(D) An evaluation of the current and appropriate uses of the National 

Reporting System developed by the Secretary. 

‘‘(2) COMPOSITION.—The panel shall consist of multiple experts in each of the 

following areas: 

‘‘(A) Child development and education, including cognitive, social, emotional, physical, approaches to learning, and other domains of child development and learning. 

‘‘(B) Professional development, including teacher preparation, to individuals who teach young children in programs. 

‘‘(C) Assessment of young children, including screening, diagnostic and 

classroom-based instructional assessment; children with special needs, including children with disabilities and limited English proficient children. 

‘‘(3) TIMING.—The National Academy of Sciences and the Board shall establish the panel not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of the 

School Readiness Act of 2005. The panel shall complete its recommendations 

within 18 months of its convening. 

‘‘(4) APPLICATION OF PANEL RECOMMENDATIONS.—The recommendations of the 

panel shall be used as guidelines by the Secretary to develop, inform and revise, 

where appropriate, the Head Start education performance measures and standards and the assessments utilized in the Head Start program.’’. 

(e) STUDY OF STATUS OF LIMITED ENGLISH PROFICIENT CHILDREN.—Section 649 of 

the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9844) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘(i) LIMITED ENGLISH PROFICIENT CHILDREN.— 

‘‘(1) STUDY.— Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of the School 

Readiness Act of 2005, the Secretary shall conduct a study on the status of limited English proficient children and their families in Head Start programs and 

Early Head Start programs. 

‘‘(2) REPORT.—The Secretary shall prepare and submit to Congress, not later 

than September 2008, a report containing the results of such study, including 

information on— 

‘‘(A)(i) the demographics of limited English proficient children less than 

5 years of age and the geographical distribution of such children; and 

‘‘(ii) the number of such children receiving Head Start services and the 

number of such children receiving Early Head Start services, and the geographical distribution of such children receiving such services; 

‘‘(B) the nature of the Head Start services and of the Early Head Start 

services provided to limited English proficient children and their families, 

31 

including the types, content, duration, intensity, and costs of family services, language assistance, and educational services; 

‘‘(C) procedures in Head Start programs for assessing language needs and 

for making the transition of limited English proficient children to kindergarten, including the extent to which Head Start programs meet the requirements of section 642A for limited English proficient children; 

‘‘(D) the qualifications and training provided to Head Start teachers and 

Early Head Start teachers who serve limited English proficient children 

and their families; 

‘‘(E) the rate of progress made by limited English proficient children and 

their families in Head Start programs and in Early Head Start programs, 

including— 

‘‘(i) the rate of progress made by limited English proficient children 

toward meeting the additional educational standards described in section 641A(a)(1)(B)(ii) while enrolled in Head Start programs; 

‘‘(ii) the correlation between such progress and the type and quality 

of instruction and educational programs provided to limited English 

proficient children; and 

‘‘(iii) the correlation between such progress and the health and family 

services provided by Head Start programs to limited English proficient 

children and their families; and 

‘‘(F) the extent to which Head Start programs make use of funds under 

section 640(a)(3) to improve the quality of Head Start services provided to 

limited English proficient children and their families.’’. 

SEC. 21. REPORTS. 

(a) REPORT.—Section 650(a) of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9845(a)) is amended— 

(1) by amending the first sentence to read as follows: 

‘‘At least once during every 2-year period, the Secretary shall prepare and submit, 

to the Committee on Education and the Workforce of the House of Representatives 

and the Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions of the Senate, a report concerning the status of children (including disabled, homeless, and limited 

English proficient children) in Head Start programs, including the number of children and the services being provided to such children.’’; and 

(2) in paragraph (8) by inserting ‘‘, homelessness’’ after ‘‘background’’. 

(b) NATIONAL REPORTING SYSTEM.—Section 650 of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 

9845) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘(c) NATIONAL REPORTING SYSTEM.—The Secretary shall submit annually to the 

Committee on Education and the Workforce of the House of Representatives and the 

Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate, a report on 

the status of the National Reporting System developed by the Secretary. Such report 

shall include— 

‘‘(1) information on all contracts, grants, and expenses relating to the development and implementation of the National Reporting System; 

‘‘(2) information described in section 641A(b)(3)(B); and 

‘‘(3) a description of the recommendations made by the Technical Working 

Group, including issues of the technical adequacy, purpose, and administration 

of the System, and an explanation of how the Secretary plans to address these 

recommendations.’’. 

SEC. 22. LIMITATION ON RATE OF FEDERAL FUNDING FOR COMPENSATION. 

Section 653 of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9848) is amended— 

(1) by striking the heading; 

(2) by striking ‘‘SEC. 653. The’’ and inserting the following: 

‘‘SEC. 653. WAGES AND COMPENSATION. 

‘‘(a) COMPARABILITY OF WAGES.—The’’; and 

(3) by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘(b) FEDERAL RATE LIMITATION.—Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no 

Federal funds shall be used to pay all or any part of the compensation of an individual employed by a Head Start agency in carrying out programs under this subchapter, either as direct or indirect costs or any proration thereof, at a rate in excess 

of the rate then payable for level II of the Executive Schedule under section 5316 

of title 5, United States Code.’’. 

SEC. 23. LIMITATION ON USE OF FUNDS. 

The Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9831 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 

656 the following: 

32 

‘‘SEC. 656A. LIMITATION ON CERTAIN USES OF FUNDS. 

‘‘No funds made available to carry out this subchapter may be used— 

‘‘(1) for publicity or propaganda purposes not heretofore authorized by the 

Congress; or 

‘‘(2) unless authorized by law in effect on the effective date of this section, 

to produce any prepackaged news story intended for broadcast or distribution 

unless such story includes a clear notification contained within the text or audio 

of such story stating that the prepackaged news story was prepared or funded 

by the Department of Health and Human Services.’’. 

SEC. 24. CONFORMING AMENDMENT. 

Section 641A(a)(2)(A) of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9836a(a)(2)(A)) is amended 

by striking ‘‘non-English language background’’ and inserting ‘‘limited English proficient’’. 

SEC. 25. EFFECTIVE DATE; APPLICATION OF AMENDMENTS. 

(a) GENERAL EFFECTIVE DATE.—Except as provided in subsections (b) and (c), this 

Act and the amendments made by this Act shall take effect on the date of the enactment of this Act. 

(b) APPLICATION OF AMENDMENTS.—The amendments made by this Act shall not 

apply with respect to any fiscal year that begins before the date of the enactment 

of this Act. 

(c) PRIORITY IN THE DESIGNATION OF HEAD START AGENCIES.— 

(1) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Section 641(c), as amended by section 7(b) of this Act, 

shall take effect exactly twelve months from the date of the enactment of this 

Act, except for section 641(c)(5), which shall take effect on the date of the enactment of this Act. 

(2) IMPLEMENTATION RULE.—For purposes of carrying out section 641(c) of the 

Head Start Act, as amended by section 7(b) of this Act, the Secretary may only 

consider the performance of a Head Start program in meeting the requirements 

described in section 641(c) of the Head Start Act, as amended by section 7(b) 

of this Act, from the date of enactment of this Act, except any performance that 

constitutes a deficiency since the then most recent designation. 

PURPOSE

H.R. 2123, the School Readiness Act of 2005, amends the Head 

Start Act to improve the school readiness of disadvantaged children, and for other purposes. 

COMMITTEE ACTION

COMMITTEE HEARINGS

On April 5, 2005, the Full Committee on Education and the 

Workforce held a hearing on Financial Accountability in the Head 

Start Early Childhood Program. The hearing discussed the financial control problems that exist within the Head Start program. 

The witnesses who testified before the Full Committee included: 

Dr. Marnie S. Shaul, Director of Education Issues, Education, 

Workforce, and Income Security for the United States Government 

Accountability Office, Washington, DC; Dr. Wade F. Horn, Assistant Secretary, Administration for Children and Families, United 

States Department of Health and Human Services, Washington, 

DC; Ms. Pamela Henry, Head Start Parent, Las Vegas, Nevada, 

and Ms. Olivia Golden, Senior Fellow and Director of the Assessing 

the New Federalism Project at the Urban Institute, Washington, 

DC. 

On April 14, 2005 the Subcommittee on Education Reform held 

a hearing on The Best of Head Start: Learning from Model Programs. The hearing examined high quality Head Start grantees to 

understand what factors result in exemplary Head Start programs. 

The witnesses included Dr. Stephen W. Daeschner, Superintendent 

of Jefferson County Schools, Louisville, Kentucky; Mr. David MarkVerDate Aug 04 2004 03:39 Jun 18, 2005 Jkt 039006 PO 00000 Frm 00032 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\HR136.XXX HR136
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er, Chief Financial Officer of Miami Valley Child Development Centers, Inc., Dayton, Ohio; Mr. Scott Siegfried, Program Coordinator 

of Miami Valley Child Development Centers, Inc., Dayton, Ohio; 

Ms. Barbara Mainster, Executive Director, Redlands Christian Migrant Association, Immokalee, Florida; and Ms. Gayle 

Cunningham, Executive Director, Jefferson County Committee for 

Economic Opportunity Child Development Services, Birmingham, 

Alabama. 

On April 21, 2005, the Subcommittee on Education Reform held 

a second hearing discussing Early Childhood Education: Improvement through Integration. Ms. Marsha Moore, Commissioner, 

Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning, Atlanta, Georgia; 

Mr. Jeffrey Alexander, Assistant Head Start Director of Big Five 

Community Services Inc., Durant, Oklahoma; Dr. Steven Barnett, 

Director, National Institute for Early Education Research, New 

Brunswick, New Jersey; Dr. Richard M. Clifford, Senior Scientist, 

Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute, Chapel Hill, 

North Carolina, and Ms. Helen Blank, Director of Leadership and 

Public Policy at the National Women’s Law Center, Washington, 

DC all testified before the Subcommittee. 

LEGISLATIVE ACTION

On Thursday, May 5, 2005, Representative Michael N. Castle, 

along with Representatives Boehner (R–OH), McKeon (R–CA), Wilson (R–SC), Regula (R–OH), Cunningham (R–CA), Putnam (R–FL), 

and Sullivan (R–OK), introduced H.R. 2123, the School Readiness 

Act of 2005, a bill to reauthorize the Head Start Act through 2011. 

On Wednesday, May 11, 2005, the Subcommittee on Education 

Reform considered H.R. 2123 in a legislative session and reported 

it favorably, as amended, to the Committee on Education and the 

Workforce by voice vote. The Subcommittee adopted the following 

amendments: 

1. An amendment in the nature of a substitute offered by Mr. 

Castle, adopted by voice vote. The substitute amendment contained 

changes to H.R. 2123 including: 

• Language reserving 5 percent of the amount appropriated 

for migrant and seasonal Head Start programs until such time 

as the Secretary can make funding decisions to ensure comparable funding to other eligible children; 

• Language authorizing the appointment of a National Migrant and Seasonal Head Start Collaboration Director and the 

appointment of a National Indian Head Start Collaboration Director; 

• Language allowing agencies operating in rural areas, migrant and seasonal Head Start programs, and Indian Head 

Start programs extra time to meet the staff qualification requirement for priority designation if agencies and programs 

demonstrate progress toward meeting the requirement; 

• Language requiring agencies that are operating a program 

with an actual enrollment that is less than 95 percent of its 

funded enrollment to work with the Secretary to reduce or 

eliminate the under-enrollment; 

• Language allowing independent auditors of Head Start 

agencies to provide services for up to 4 consecutive years; 

34 

• Language requiring each Head Start agency to submit to 

the Secretary an independent financial audit of the program 

not later than 180 days after the end of each fiscal year; and 

• Ensuring that no funds under the Act can be used to pay 

journalists or media commentators to support activities for 

publicity or propaganda purposes 

2. An amendment offered by Mr. Castle, adopted by voice vote. 

Mr. Castle’s amendment makes technical changes to H.R. 2123. 

3. An amendment offered by Mr. Kind and Mr. Osborne, adopted 

by voice vote. This amendment increases emphasis of Head Start 

programs on the importance of physical activity, nutrition, and outdoor play. 

On May 18, 2005 the Committee on Education and the Workforce 

considered H.R. 2123 in legislative session, and reported the bill favorably, as amended, to the House of Representatives. The roll call 

vote was 48–0. The Committee adopted the following amendments: 

1. An amendment in the nature of a substitute offered by Mr. 

Castle, adopted by voice vote. The substitute amendment contained 

the following technical and clarifying changes to H.R. 2123: 

• Language reserving 3.5 percent of the total annual appropriation for Indian Head Start programs until such time as the 

Secretary can make funding decisions to ensure comparable 

funding to other eligible children; 

• Language clarifying the definition of ‘‘deficiency’’ to ensure 

that it includes a ‘‘systematic or significant failure’’ of a Head 

Start agency in an area of performance as determined by the 

Secretary; 

• Language clarifying the definition of ‘‘professional development’’ to ensure that teachers have access to professional development activities that will improve the school readiness of 

Head Start students; 

• Language clarifying that the Policy Council shall serve 

under the Board of Directors, make recommendations to the 

Board, and serve as a link between parents and the Board; 

• Language authorizing the Secretary to waive, on a case-by 

case basis, the staff qualification requirement for a limited period of time, for agencies operating in rural areas, migrant and 

seasonal Head Start programs, and Indian Head Start programs if such agencies and programs are demonstrating 

progress toward meeting the requirement; 

• Language clarifying the role of the State Collaboration Director; and 

• Language clarifying the limitation on the use of funds for 

propaganda and prepackaged news stories to ensure that the 

language is consistent with current law. 

2. An En Bloc Amendment offered by Mr. Osborne, adopted by 

voice vote. This amendment does the following: 

• Clarifies the role of the Policy Council and the majority of 

parents who serve on it; 

• Clarifies and improves the definition of professional development; 

• Ensures that children who are 3, 4, or 5 years old may 

continue to participate in migrant and seasonal Head Start 

programs if the temporary expansion of funding for such proVerDate Aug 04 2004 03:39 Jun 18, 2005 Jkt 039006 PO 00000 Frm 00034 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\HR136.XXX HR136
35 

grams is adjusted to accurately reflect the migrant and seasonal population; 

• Requires the Policy Council chair to serve on the Board of 

Directors; 

• Requires Head Start programs nationwide to meet new degree requirements for teachers by 2011; 

• Requires improved integration and coordination between 

Head Start and state pre-kindergarten programs; 

• Clarifies funding for Palau; 

• Encourages Head Start collaboration with social and community services; 

• Requires the Secretary to report to Congress on the 

planned uses of data collected by the National Reporting System and progress toward ensuring the assessment’s scientific 

validity and reliability; 

• Establishes an effective date of 12 months from the date 

of enactment for grantees to comply with new criteria established to receive a priority designation; and 

• Requires the Secretary to issue regulations on grantee designations within 180 days following enactment 

3. An Amendment offered by Mr. Grijalva, adopted by voice vote. 

Mr. Grijalva’s amendment encourages State Early Learning Councils to increase access to Head Start for underrepresented populations. 

4. An Amendment offered by Mrs. Biggert, Mr. Platts, and Mr. 

Van Hollen, adopted by voice vote. This Amendment allows grantees providing both Head Start and Early Head Start to have greater flexibility in using unfilled Head Start slots for younger children 

in order to maximize the total number of eligible children served 

within a community. 

5. An Amendment offered by Mr. Fortun ̃ o, Mr. Hinojosa, and Mr. 

Grijalva, adopted by voice vote. This Amendment does the following: 

• Defines limited English proficiency (LEP) in a way that is 

consistent with the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB); 

• Authorizes a study to determine how well LEP students 

are served by Head Start; 

• Ensures that parents of LEP children receive information 

in a clear and understandable format; and 

• Ensures LEP students are receiving academic content in 

addition to language proficiency instruction. 

SUMMARY

PURPOSE

The purpose of H.R. 2123, the School Readiness Act of 2005, is 

to promote school readiness by enhancing the development of lowincome children, including development of cognitive abilities, 

through educational instruction in pre-reading skills, pre-mathematics skills, language, and social and emotional development 

linked to school readiness and through the provision to low-income 

children and their families of health, educational, nutritional, social and other services that are determined, based on family needs 

assessments, to be necessary. 

36 

DEFINITIONS

Adds new definitions to the Head Start Act including: challenging State developed academic content standards, the term deficient, eligible entities, homeless children, limited English proficient, professional development, scientifically based research, 

state educational agency, and unresolved area of noncompliance. 

AUTHORIZATION LEVEL

Authorizes $6.899 billion for fiscal year 2006 and such sums as 

may be necessary for fiscal years 2007 through 2011. Of that 

amount, not more than $20 million may be used annually to carry 

out research, demonstration, and evaluation activities; of which not 

more than $7 million may be used to carry out studies on the impact of Head Start. 

ALLOTMENT OF FUNDS

H.R. 2123 amends various provisions regarding the allotment of 

Head Start funds. Specifically, the School Readiness Act of 2005: 

Reserves 5 percent of the total annual appropriation for migrant 

and seasonal Head Start programs until such time as the Secretary 

can make funding decisions to ensure comparable funding to other 

eligible children (except that no future reduction in funding shall 

result in the termination of Head Start services provided to any eligible child three years of age or older who is participating in any 

such program on the date a reduction in funding occurs, and shall, 

to the extent possible, continue participation for children less than 

three years of age receiving services prior to such reduction in 

funding). 

Reserves 3.5 percent of the total annual appropriation for Indian 

Head Start programs until such time as the Secretary can make 

funding decisions to ensure comparable funding to other eligible 

children. 

Reserves 2 percent of the total annual appropriation for training 

and technical assistance activities to foster program quality and 

management improvements, of which: 50 percent shall be made 

available to local Head Start agencies for use in complying with 

performance standards; 20 percent shall be made available to support State Early Learning Councils; and 30 percent shall be made 

available to the Secretary to assist local programs in meeting performance standards (of which not less than $3 million must be related to family literacy). 

Of any new funding appropriated above the previous fiscal year, 

60 percent (after an inflationary adjustment for grantees) must be 

used for quality improvement, including activities to improve the 

compensation of classroom teachers; provide training to improve 

the qualifications of classroom teachers and staff; hire additional 

classroom teachers and staff; and conduct outreach to families of 

homeless, migrant and seasonal, and limited English proficient 

children. 

The remaining 40 percent shall be used to expand participation 

among underserved populations, including migrant and seasonal 

Head Start children, and to increase funding per child for programs 

that receive per child funding below the national average. 

37 

TRANSPORTATION

Under current law, regulations have been established regarding 

the safety features and safe operation of vehicles used by Head 

Start agencies to transport children. H.R. 2123 provides the Secretary with a limited waiver authority for Head Start agencies in 

transporting children if such requirements pertain to child restraint systems and bus monitors; the agency demonstrates that 

compliance with such requirements will result in a significant disruption to the Head Start or Early Head Start program; and is in 

the best interest of the child. 

MIGRANT AND SEASONAL AND INDIAN HEAD START PROGRAMS

Authorizes the appointment of a National Migrant and Seasonal 

Head Start Collaboration Director and the appointment of a National Indian Head Start Collaboration Director. H.R. 2123 also requires the Secretary to continue the administrative arrangement at 

the national level for meeting the needs of Indian children and children of migrant and seasonal farmworkers to ensure that appropriate funding is provided to meet such needs. 

ENROLLMENT OF HOMELESS CHILDREN

Requires the Secretary to prescribe policies and procedures to remove barriers to the enrollment and participation of homeless children in Head Start programs. Such procedures shall require Head 

Start agencies to implement policies and procedures to ensure that 

homeless children are identified and prioritized for enrollment; to 

allow homeless families to apply to, enroll in and attend Head 

Start programs while required documents, such as proof of residency, immunization and other medical records, birth certificates 

and other documents, are obtained within a reasonable time frame; 

and coordinate individual Head Start centers and programs with 

efforts to implement the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act. 

ELIGIBILITY FOR INITIAL DESIGNATION AS HEAD START AGENCY

To receive an initial Head Start grant an entity must establish 

measurable objectives for improving the school readiness of children participating in a program and develop performance standards that include educational instruction in pre-reading, pre-mathematical, and language skills; the provision of health, educational, 

nutritional, social, and other services related to school readiness 

standards; and school readiness standards that are aligned with 

state-developed K–12 academic content standards and the Head 

Start Child Outcomes Framework. 

PRIORITY DESIGNATION FOR SUBSEQUENT, NON-COMPETITIVE HEAD

START GRANTS

H.R. 2123 specifies that the Secretary shall award a ‘‘priority 

designation’’ which will result in a subsequent, non-competitive 

grant to current Head Start agencies that: (1) have already received an initial designation as a Head Start agency; (2) meet or 

exceed program and financial management requirements; (3) meet 

or exceed the education standards and requirements in section 

641A(a)(1)(B); (4) have no unresolved areas of noncompliance; (5) 

have not been deemed deficient since the most recent designation; 

38 

(6) employ qualified staff, including a teaching staff of whom at 

least 50 percent have an associate, baccalaureate, or advanced degree in early childhood education or a related field (except that the 

Secretary may waive these requirements, on a case-by-case basis 

for up to three years, for an agency operating in a rural area, Indian Head Start programs, and migrant and seasonal Head programs if the program demonstrates progress in increasing the 

qualifications of its teaching staff and demonstrates adequate instructional supervision by qualified staff); (7) were not deemed by 

the Secretary as chronically under-enrolled at any time during the 

previous grant; (8) utilize curricula based on scientifically based research, that are aligned with challenging state-developed academic 

content standards and the Head Start Child Outcomes Framework 

developed by the Secretary; (9) demonstrate active partnerships 

with local educational agencies serving the same communities to 

facilitate smooth transitions to kindergarten; (10) actively implement a memorandum of understanding with any local educational 

agency, council or other provider of publicly funded pre-kindergarten within the service area and additional partnerships with organizations that enhance the delivery of services to children; (11) 

demonstrate success in improving child outcomes across all domains of development, including measurable progress in language 

skills, pre-reading knowledge, and pre-mathematics knowledge; 

(12) maintain classroom environments constructive to early learning and future school success; (13) demonstrate strong parental involvement and activities to develop parent skills to support their 

children’s educational development and ability to participate effectively in decisions relating to the education of their children; (14) 

are overseen by a local governance board that provides direction 

and actively oversees all program activities; (15) document strong 

fiscal controls, including the employment of well-qualified fiscal 

staff; no reportable material weaknesses with applicable laws and 

regulations on all annual financial audits; meeting or exceeding annual requirements for financial support; and maintaining total administrative costs at or below 15 percent of total program costs; 

(16) are licensed to operate in accordance with all applicable state 

child care regulations; (17) conduct outreach activities to ensure 

that services are provided to the most at-risk families in the community; (18) have developed strong community partnerships with 

public and private organizations, such as businesses, health, and 

social service providers; and (19) provide opportunities for ongoing 

professional development. 

In addition, H.R. 2123 provides that any Head Start agency that 

does not receive a priority designation will be eligible for a subsequent Head Start grant (which would be awarded in an open competition). 

QUALITY STANDARDS

Under current law, the Secretary has established quality standards that include minimum levels of overall accomplishment for 

Head Start agencies. H.R. 2123 adds to the current education performance standards provisions to ensure that the children participating in the program, at a minimum, develop and demonstrate 

language knowledge and skills; pre-reading knowledge and skills 

that prepare children for early literacy in schools; pre-mathematics 

39 

knowledge and skills; cognitive abilities related to academic 

achievement and child development; social and emotional development, early learning, and school success and sustained academic 

gains; and in the case of limited-English proficient children, 

progress toward acquisition of the English language. 

When developing quality standards, H.R. 2123 requires the Secretary to take into consideration guidelines and standards that promote child health services and physical development, including outdoor activity that supports children’s motor development and overall health and nutrition. 

RESULTS-BASED PERFORMANCE MEASURES

Under current law, the Secretary is required to develop methods 

and procedures for measuring, annually and over longer periods, 

the quality and effectiveness of programs operated by Head Start 

agencies. The School Readiness Act of 2005 clarifies current law 

provisions with regard to use of such measures. Specifically, the 

Secretary shall: (1) use the performance measures to identify 

strengths and weaknesses in the operation of Head Start programs 

and program areas that may require additional training and technical assistance resources; (2) provide a detailed justification to the 

Congress regarding the planned uses of the data collected by the 

National Reporting System and shall demonstrate its scientific validity and reliability for such purposes; (3) not use the National Reporting System assessment results either as the primary method 

for assessing program effectiveness or as the primary method for 

making grantee funding determinations; and (4) develop a process 

to ensure that the National Reporting System shall not be used to 

exclude children from Head Start programs. 

MONITORING OF LOCAL AGENCIES AND PROGRAMS

To determine whether Head Start agencies have met quality 

standards and results-based performance measures, the Secretary 

has developed local monitoring procedures that take into account 

program, administrative, financial management, and other requirements. H.R. 2123 adds a provision to current law to require the 

Secretary to develop and utilize a risk-based assessment system of 

agencies that includes unannounced site inspections of Head Start 

centers and follow-up reviews including a review of programs with 

citations that include one or more findings of deficiencies not later 

than six months after the date of such citation. 

H.R. 2123 also requires the Secretary to ensure that such reviews of Head Start agencies: (1) are conducted by review teams 

composed of individuals who are knowledgeable about the program 

areas they are reviewing and the diverse (including linguistic and 

cultural) needs of eligible children (including children with disabilities) and limited-English proficient children and their families; (2) 

include a review and assessment of program effectiveness, including strengths and areas for improvement, as measured in accordance with the results-based performance measures developed by 

the Secretary; (3) seek information from the communities and the 

states involved about the performance of the programs and the efforts of the Head Start agencies to collaborate with other entities 

carrying out early childhood education and child care programs in 

the community; (4) include an assessment of whether a program is 

40 

in conformity with the income eligibility requirements; (5) include 

a review and assessment of whether programs have adequately addressed the population and community needs (including populations of children with a limited English proficiency and children 

of migrant and seasonal farm-working families); and (6) are conducted in a manner that evaluates program performance, quality, 

and overall operations with consistency and objectivity, and based 

on a transparent and reliable system of review. 

UNDER-ENROLLMENT

Under the School Readiness Act of 2005, each entity carrying out 

a Head Start program must report on a monthly basis to the Secretary and the relevant Head Start agency: (1) the actual enrollment in such program; and (2) if such actual enrollment is less 

than the funded enrollment, any apparent reason for such enrollment shortfall. 

As a result, the Secretary shall: (1) on a semiannual basis, determine which Head Start agencies are operating with an actual enrollment that is less than the funded enrollment based on not less 

than the average enrollment during 4 consecutive months; and (2) 

for each such Head Start agency operating a program with an actual enrollment that is less than 95 percent of its funded enrollment, provide technical assistance and develop a plan for reducing 

or eliminating under-enrollment. 

If the Head Start agency continues to operate a program at less 

than full enrollment after the implementation of the under-enrollment plan, H.R. 2123 authorizes the Secretary to allow the agency 

to use funds from the enrollment shortfall to serve Early Head 

Start children if the agency already operates an Early Head Start 

program and submits an application to the Secretary. This application must contain: (1) evidence of community need for such services; (2) a description of how the needs of pregnant women, infants, 

and toddlers will be addressed including the agency’s approach to 

childhood development and health services; family and community 

partnerships; and program design and management; (3) assurances 

that the agency will participate in technical assistance activities for 

newly funded and existing grantees; and (4) evidence that the 

agency meets the eligibility criteria for Early Head Start programs. 

If the Head Start agency continues to operate a program at less 

than full enrollment for one year after the implementation of the 

under-enrollment plan, the Secretary shall continue to provide 

technical assistance to such agency. After receiving technical assistance and developing and implementing the under-enrollment 

plan the Secretary is authorized to: (1) designate such agency as 

chronically under-enrolled; and (2) recapture, withhold, or reduce 

the base grant for the program by a percentage equal to the percentage difference between funded enrollment and actual enrollment for the program for the most recent year in which the agency 

is determined to be under-enrolled. 

INDEPENDENT BOARD OF DIRECTORS

To be designated as a Head Start agency, the grantee must establish an independent board of directors (or may designate an existing entity to serve as the board) for a period not to exceed five 

years (except that board members who are elected to oversee a pubVerDate Aug 04 2004 03:39 Jun 18, 2005 Jkt 039006 PO 00000 Frm 00040 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\HR136.XXX HR136
41 

lic entity that administers a Head Start program may serve for the 

duration of their elected office). 

Members of the board of all nonpublic entities shall include representatives of the local community, including at least one member 

with significant financial management or accounting experience, 

and the policy council chair. Additional members shall be selected 

for their expertise in education, business administration, community affairs, government, legal affairs, and such other areas of expertise as may contribute to effective governance of the Head Start 

agency. 

All board members shall receive training in management responsibilities and obligations, ethics, and financial literacy and management and must adopt practices that assure active, independent and 

informed governance of the Head Start agency, including independent oversight of the financial and management practices of 

such agency. 

The board shall provide direction to the executive director of the 

Head Start agency and: (1) provide independent oversight to ensure 

that the Head Start agency is delivering high quality services to 

children and families in compliance with all applicable standards 

and performance measures; (2) establish two or more standing committees to facilitate governance of the Head Start agency which 

shall include an audit and finance committee and a policy council, 

a majority of whose representatives shall be parents of children 

participating in a Head Start program or in an Early Head Start 

program; (3) approve the selection and dismissal of the Head Start 

director and to review annually the human resources available to 

ensure the effective operation of the Head Start agency; (4) consult, 

on a regular basis, with the policy committee and to take actions 

on recommendations submitted by such committee; (5) review and 

approve the major operational policies of the Head Start agency, including policies addressing accounting, financial management, procurement, record confidentiality, and personnel (including specific 

standards governing salaries, salary adjustments, travel and per 

diem allowances, and other employee benefits); (6) ensure that the 

Head Start agency is operated in compliance with applicable federal, state, and local laws; (7) oversee the program planning of the 

Head Start agency; and (8) establish, adopt, and periodically update a written ‘‘Standards of Conduct’’ that establishes standards 

and procedures for disclosing and addressing conflicts of interest, 

and the appearance of conflicts of interest, by board members, officers, employees, consultants, and agents who provide services or 

furnish goods to the Head Start agency. 

LOCAL INTEGRATION

H.R. 2123 requires Head Start grantees to enter into a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with local educational agencies or 

other providers of publicly funded pre-kindergarten programs in 

their service area to better align their educational activities with 

state academic standards, improve the delivery of services to children, and better train all staff. Specifically, Head Start grantees 

will be required to coordinate the following activities with local providers of public pre-kindergarten: (1) educational activities, curricula, and instruction aligned to challenging state developed academic content standards; (2) public information dissemination and 

42 

access to programs for families; (3) selection priorities for eligible 

children to be served by programs; (4) service delivery areas; (5) 

staff training, including opportunities for joint staff training on topics such as academic content standards and instructional methods; 

(6) program technical assistance; (7) provision of additional services 

to meet the child care needs of working parents; (8) planning and 

parent education for smooth transitions to kindergarten; (9) provision and use of facilities, transportation, and other program elements; and (10) other elements mutually agreed to by the parties 

to such memorandum. 

If Head Start grantees fail to enter into an MOU with state-funded pre-kindergarten programs operating in their service area, they 

will be deemed deficient (unless the Secretary determines that 

Head Start has not complied because there is no state funded prekindergarten in the service area or the agency has not complied because the local pre-kindergarten agency is unwilling or unable) and 

will have to compete for funding against other applicants. 

STATEWIDE INTEGRATION

H.R. 2123 authorizes State Early Learning Councils to advance 

the development of a coordinated delivery system for early childhood services within a state. State Early Learning Councils will 

bring together Head Start, state pre-kindergarten programs, state 

child care programs and the schools that will one day serve the 

children enrolled in Head Start so that these programs can: (1) increase coordination and collaboration among state preschool, Head 

Start programs, child care programs, special education, and other 

early childhood programs in the state; (2) work with state agencies 

responsible for education, child care, and early intervention to provide leadership and assistance to local Head Start programs, school 

districts, and state and locally funded preschool and childcare programs to increase integration among early childhood programs; (3) 

conduct periodic statewide needs assessments concerning early care 

and education programs for children; (4) work to identify and address barriers to and opportunities for integration between entities 

carrying out federal and state child development, child care, and 

early childhood education programs; (5) address coordination of 

early learning programs with health care, welfare, family literacy 

and services for homeless children; (6) support a state system of 

early childhood education, and training and technical assistance 

that improves the quality of early learning programs and the capacity of such programs to deliver services; and (7) develop a plan 

for increasing the participation of children underrepresented in 

state early childhood education and child care programs. 

HEAD START ALIGNMENT WITH K–12 EDUCATION

Under current law, each Head Start agency is required to coordinate with the LEA serving the community involved and with 

schools in which children participating in a Head Start program 

will enroll. The School Readiness Act of 2005 adds provisions to 

this coordination which include: (1) developing continuity of developmentally appropriate curricula between Head Start and local 

educational agencies to ensure an effective transition for children’s 

learning and development as they make such transition to school; 

(2) organizing and participating in joint training; (3) developing 

43 

and implementing a family outreach and support program; (4) linking the services provided in such Head Start program with the education services, including services relating to language, literacy, 

and numeracy, provided by such LEA; (5) helping parents (including grandparent and kinship caregivers, as appropriate) to understand the importance of parental involvement in a child’s academic 

success; (6) developing and implementing a system to increase program participation of underserved populations of eligible children; 

and (7) coordinating activities to ensure that curricula used in the 

Head Start program are aligned with state early learning standards. 

ANNUAL REPORT

H.R. 2123 requires that each Head Start agency make available 

to the public an annual report that discloses: (1) the total amount 

of public and private funds received and the amount from each 

source; (2) an explanation of budgetary expenditures and a proposed budget for the following fiscal year; (3) the total number of 

children and families served and percent of average monthly enrollment, including the percent of eligible children served; (4) the results of the most recent review by the Secretary and the financial 

audit; (5) the percentage of enrolled children that received medical 

and dental exams; (6) information about parent involvement activities; (7) the performance of the agency in preparing children for 

kindergarten; and (8) other information that describes the activities 

of the agency. 

PARENTAL CONSENT FOR NON-EMERGENCY INTRUSIVE PHYSICAL

EXAMINATIONS

Before administering any health care service (including any nonemergency intrusive physical examination) to a child (or referring 

such child to obtain such service) in connection with participation 

in a program, a Head Start agency must obtain the written consent 

of a parent of such child. 

AUDITS

The School Readiness Act of 2005 updates current law provisions 

regarding records and audits by requiring each Head Start agency 

to submit to the Secretary an independent financial audit of the 

program not later than 180 days after the end of each fiscal year. 

The audit must be carried out by a certified public accountant selected through a competitive process from among qualified certified 

accountants by the local oversight board. H.R. 2123 also requires 

that each grantee maintain, and annually submit to the Secretary, 

a complete accounting of its administrative expenses (including a 

detailed statement identifying the amount of financial assistance 

used to pay expenses for salaries). 

TRAINING AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE FOR SPECIAL POPULATIONS

H.R. 2123 updates current law training and technical assistance 

provisions to better address the unique needs of migrant and seasonal working families, families with a limited English proficiency, 

and homeless families. 

44 

The Secretary is required to work in collaboration with the Head 

Start agencies that carry out migrant and seasonal Head Start programs, State Collaboration Directors, the Migrant and Seasonal 

Farm Worker Collaboration Project Director, and other appropriate 

entities to: accurately determine the number of children nationwide 

who are eligible to participate in migrant and seasonal Head Start 

programs each year; document how many of these children are receiving Head Start services each year; and ensure that access to 

migrant and seasonal Head Start programs for eligible children is 

comparable to access to other Head Start programs for other eligible children. 

QUALIFICATIONS FOR CLASSROOM TEACHERS

The School Readiness Act of 2005 requires that at least 50 percent of all Head Start teachers nationwide have a baccalaureate or 

advanced degree in early childhood education or related field by 

September 30, 2011. H.R. 2123 also requires that within three 

years all Head Start teachers hired after the date of enactment of 

this Act must have at least an associate degree in early childhood 

education or related field; or be enrolled in a program of study 

leading to an associate degree in early childhood education or related field within three years from the date of hire. 

NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES STUDY

Requires the Secretary to contract with the National Academy of 

Sciences to establish an independent panel of experts which shall 

review and synthesize research, theory and applications in the social, behavioral and biological sciences and shall make recommendations on early childhood pedagogy with regard to: (1) age 

and developmentally appropriate Head Start academic requirements and outcomes; (2) differences in the type, length, mix and intensity of services necessary to ensure that children from challenging family and social backgrounds enter kindergarten ready to 

succeed; (3) appropriate assessments of young children for purposes 

of improving instruction, services, program quality, and accommodations for children with disabilities and appropriate assessments for children with special needs (including needs related to 

the acquisition of the English language); and (4) an evaluation of 

the current and appropriate uses of the National Reporting System. 

STUDY OF STATUS OF LIMITED ENGLISH PROFICIENT CHILDREN

Not later than one year after the date of enactment of the School 

Readiness Act of 2005, the Secretary is required to conduct a study 

on the status of limited English proficient children and their families in Head Start programs and Early Head Start programs including information on: (1) the demographics of limited English 

proficient children less than five years of age and the geographical 

distribution of such children; (2) the number of such children receiving Head Start services and the number of such children receiving Early Head Start services, and the geographical distribution of 

such children receiving such services; (3) the nature of the Head 

Start services and of the Early Head Start services provided to limited English proficient children and their families; (4) procedures in 

Head Start programs for assessing language needs and for making 

45 

the transition of limited English proficient children to kindergarten; (5) the qualifications and training provided to Head Start 

teachers and Early Head Start teachers who serve limited English 

proficient children and their families; (6) the rate of progress made 

by limited English proficient children and their families in Head 

Start programs and in Early Head Start programs; and (7) the extent to which Head Start programs make use of funds to improve 

the quality of Head Start services provided to limited English proficient children and their families. 

LIMITATION ON RATE OF FEDERAL FUNDING FOR COMPENSATION

The School Readiness Act of 2005 ensures that no federal funds 

can be used to pay all or any part of the compensation of an individual employed by a Head Start agency at a rate in excess of the 

Secretary of Health and Human Services. 

LIMITATION ON CERTAIN USES OF FUNDS

H.R. 2123 ensures that no funds under the Act can be used: (1) 

for publicity or propaganda purposes not authorized by the Congress; or (2) unless authorized by law, to produce any prepackaged 

news story intended for broadcast or distribution unless such story 

includes a clear notification contained within the text or audio of 

such story stating that the prepackaged news story was prepared 

or funded by the Department of Health and Human Services. 

COMMITTEE VIEWS

OVERVIEW

Head Start was established in 1965 by President Lyndon B. 

Johnson as part of the War on Poverty and is one of the nation’s 

most popular domestic programs. The program provides educational and other support services to prepare extremely low-income children for school. Strengthening early childhood education 

programs, including Head Start, is one of President George W. 

Bush’s top domestic policy agenda items. Head Start is the federal 

government’s largest effort to prepare the nation’s most disadvantaged children for school. 

Head Start provides a range of services, including education, nutrition, health, and parent training, to over 900,000 children and 

their families living in poverty. Federal Head Start funds are provided directly to local grantees, rather than through states. Programs are locally designed and administered by a network of more 

than 1,600 public and private non-profit and for-profit agencies, or 

grantees operating about 2,600 programs nation-wide. Grantees are 

required to reserve at least ten percent of their slots for children 

with disabilities. In 1994, Early Head Start was established to 

serve pre-natal mothers and infants and toddlers under the age of 

three. 

The School Readiness Act of 2005, H.R. 2123, reforms Head Start 

to improve the overall school readiness of disadvantaged children 

through an increased focus on academic performance. Improving 

school preparedness and teacher quality are key components of 

H.R. 2123 since Head Start research consistently shows that participating children are making progress yet continuing to fall short 

of expectations by lagging behind their more affluent peers in some 

46 

domains of achievement. Eliminating academic and developmental 

disparities early on is an important goal of this legislation given 

the requirements of the No Child Left Behind Act, which mandate 

that children read on grade level by the end of third grade. 

The School Readiness Act is based upon the Bush Administration’s principles for Head Start that build upon the themes and 

conceptual framework for early childhood education outlined in the 

Good Start, Grow Smart plan introduced by the President in 2002. 

It includes provisions to strengthen program accountability, enhance the school readiness of participating children, and improve 

the integration of Head Start educational instruction with state 

pre-kindergarten programs. The School Readiness Act does not 

move the program’s administrative functions from the Department 

of Health and Human Services to the Department of Education or 

authorize states to administer the Head Start program. 

ENHANCING THE SCHOOL READINESS OF HEAD START CHILDREN

Knowledge about children’s learning has expanded greatly during the past two decades. Research in the neurobiological and behavioral sciences suggests the importance of a child’s experiences 

during the first years of life for healthy brain development. From 

birth through age five, children rapidly develop the capabilities on 

which subsequent development builds. According to child development expert Dr. T. Berry Brazeleton, ‘‘A child’s experiences in the 

first months and years of life determine whether he or she will 

enter school eager to learn or not.’’ 

Given all that has been learned about the development of young 

children, there is not a single definition of school readiness that is 

consistently used across this country. A group of researchers at the 

Frank Porter Graham Child Development Center at the University 

of North Carolina have defined school readiness as the condition of 

children when they enter school, and the capacity of schools to educate the children enrolled. According to the research team, ‘‘the 

readiness puzzle can only be solved if the two pieces fit together’’ 

(Bailey, 1999). 

While the resources to fund Head Start are significant, more 

work is needed to achieve the ultimate program goal of closing the 

readiness gap between Head Start children and their more advantaged peers when they enter kindergarten. Studies indicate that 

children who are enrolled in Head Start make some progress, but 

still are lagging behind national norms in all aspects of school 

readiness. Data from the Family and Child Experiences Survey 

(FACES) and the first year findings of the Head Start Impact study 

both suggest that Head Start participants show progress on some 

measures after completion of a year in Head Start, but not in others, and on balance remain below the national average. However, 

FACES data find the achievement gap has been closed in the areas 

of pre-reading and pre-writing by the time Head Start children 

complete kindergarten. The Committee looks forward to future reports from the Impact study to see if these results are replicated. 

These data indicate that Head Start children are entering kindergarten without the full set of knowledge and skills that are good 

predictors of later school success. The problems that so many of 

these children will experience later in their academic careers are 

beginning well before they enter school. Although some variation in 

47 

development can be expected among children, the importance of all 

children achieving academic parity upon entry into kindergarten is 

critical since children who start behind have been shown to stay 

behind. 

According to a 2001 report published by the Brookings Institution, huge developmental disparities, including sizable racial and 

ethnic gaps, already exist among young children at the time that 

formal education begins (Rouse, 2005). To accomplish the goal of 

ensuring that Head Start children develop the cognitive competencies necessary to succeed, the School Readiness Act significantly enhances program emphasis on the academic components of 

school readiness, while retaining the commitment to providing comprehensive early learning and social services. It is the Committee’s 

view that Head Start, a program to enhance school readiness, has 

historically placed an unbalanced emphasis on providing health 

and social services to children and their families, which has resulted in Head Start children not making the cognitive gains necessary to begin school with an equal opportunity to succeed. The 

Committee recognizes the importance of all domains of development in order for a child to be school ready, however Head Start 

is not making good on its promise if Head Start children are not 

fully prepared to enter school. 

There is a growing body of research and understanding of the 

early foundations of children’s positive development and learning. 

Though no one curricula has been identified as clearly more effective than others, research does suggest that use of comprehensive, 

research-based curricula is critical to preparing to succeed in school 

and in life. H.R. 2123 does not mandate a federal curriculum. Children’s readiness for school and positive overall development will be 

enhanced by teachers using a well-planned, research-based curriculum selected at the local level and implemented by teachers 

with education and training in child development and in the chosen 

curriculum. 

Research suggests that learning will be most effective if it builds 

on children’s existing understanding so it is critical that implementation attends to the individual developmental level of the child. 

Curricula should promote learning of concepts as well as information and skills. Curricula should increase in complexity and challenge of activities as children develop and should take into account 

and support the different ways children learn. It should be challenging, engaging, developmentally appropriate, culturally and linguistically responsive, and inclusive of children with disabilities. 

Curricula should be results-based and linked to instructional goals 

and measurable objectives. 

A critical component of school readiness is the attainment of prereading abilities. As such, Head Start programs should provide 

children from low income families a high-quality, oral language and 

literature-rich environment. Through scientific research, much has 

been learned about the way children learn to read, and the strong 

foundation that is important before children are given formal reading instruction in kindergarten and first grade. Consistent with the 

Early Reading First initiative launched as part of the No Child 

Left Behind Act, Head Start must play a pivotal role in this effort. 

In addition to supporting the socio-emotional development of children under their care, Head Start programs must encourage and 

48 

promote cognitive development activities along with professional 

development for teachers and staff based on scientific research in 

reading. 

Children who have poor beginning reading skills are less likely 

to develop better reading skills through their school careers. There 

are several generalizations about reading instruction that should 

be taken into account by Head Start teachers. For example, if children can correctly identify letters of the alphabet before they enter 

kindergarten, it is more likely that they will learn to read words 

in school faster than children who do not possess this knowledge. 

Experimental findings consistently confirm that children’s knowledge of the alphabet is a strong predictor of their later progress in 

learning to read words accurately, quickly and automatically. Professional development and instructional activities should include an 

understanding of semiotic concepts, a term to describe the general 

theory of signs and symbols that represent written language, comprised of syntactics, semantics and pragmatics. 

Head Start programs, in seeking to achieve the best pre-reading 

outcomes for children, are encouraged to access scientific, researchbased screening tools in order to assist Head Start children by 

fashioning activities and instruction to meet their specific needs. 

One such screening tool is the National Center for Learning Disabilities’ Get Ready to Read! pre-reading program. This allows 

teachers to screen four-year-olds to determine their familiarity with 

pre-reading concepts and provide parents, early childhood teachers, 

and caregivers with research-based information about how to build 

young children’s pre-reading abilities. 

The Committee urges the Secretary to encourage grantees to implement innovative methods that provide individualized instruction 

to children aimed at closing the school readiness gap. The Committee recognizes the one-to-one reading model developed and delivered in certain Head Start programs throughout the nation by 

Jumpstart. Jumpstart deploys 2100 college students each school 

year to mentor Head Start students by devoting an average of 15 

hours per week to their partner child. In addition, time is spent assisting the teacher and entire classroom. An independent evaluation commissioned by Jumpstart found that one-to-one reading instruction provided by Jumpstart mentors helped to narrow the language and literacy gap. Gains were seen in the areas of using letters and sounds, writing, using vocabulary, using complex patterns 

of speech, listening to and understanding speech, and awareness of 

sounds in words. The Committee encourages Head Start centers to 

partner with programs such as Jumpstart that provide individualized reading instruction and recognizes such mentors as a potentially useful way of supplementing the language and literacy skills 

of Head Start children. 

The Committee also recognizes the importance of pre-mathematics skills for young children. Promoting pre-mathematics and 

pre-science knowledge and abilities is important for school readiness. These competencies may be promoted through early science 

and math experiences, including observing with senses, predicting, 

inferring, defining and controlling variables, working in teams, and 

communicating discoveries. Examples of science and math experiences may include planting different seeds, with various types of 

growing medium, light, and water; building towers with various 

49 

block sizes; employing ramps and different balls; watching ice melt 

in different environments, etc. 

The School Readiness Act updates the Head Start quality standards and performance measures to reflect scientific advances relating to the core areas of competence fundamental to children’s 

school readiness. The new quality standards will require Head 

Start teachers to ensure that children enrolled in the program develop and demonstrate the following: language knowledge and 

skills; pre-reading knowledge and skills, including phonological 

awareness, print awareness and skills, and alphabetic knowledge; 

pre-mathematics knowledge and skills, such as aspects of classification, seriation, number, spatial relations and time; cognitive abilities related to academic achievement; social and emotional development related to early learning, school success and sustained academic gains; and for limited English proficient children, progress 

toward acquisition of the English language while making meaningful progress towards attaining the same school readiness knowledge and skills as other participating children. Additionally, the 

School Readiness Act eliminates the previous educational performance measures that were arbitrary and misaligned with the school 

readiness competencies specified under the quality and educational 

standards section. 

Finally, the School Readiness Act defines scientifically based research and requires Head Start grantees to demonstrate the capacity to serve eligible children with programs based on scientifically 

based research that promote school readiness and meet quality 

standards. Consistent with the No Child Left Behind Act, the Committee strongly believes that Head Start programs should be utilizing sound scientifically-based research when making program decisions. The language in H.R. 2123 will ensure that instructional 

strategies have resulted from the application of rigorous, systematic, and objective procedures; employ systematic empirical methods that draw on observation or experiment; involve rigorous data 

analyses; rely upon measurements or observational methods that 

provide valid data across evaluators and observers and across multiple measurements and observations; and have been accepted by 

a peer-reviewed journal or approved by a panel of independent experts through a comparably rigorous, objective, and scientific review. These requirements will lead to improved program quality 

and better outcomes for the children participating in Head Start. 

While the statutory improvements of H.R. 2123 are expected to 

improve the cognitive abilities of Head Start children, the Committee believes that the Head Start academic performance measures defined in regulations by the Secretary of Health and Human 

Services also need revision. The performance standards provided in 

regulations appear to be in many cases redundant, burdensome, 

and not measurable. Additionally, the regulations disproportionately address health and social development relative to standards 

for cognitive development and learning. For this reason, H.R. 2123 

requires that the results-based performance measures be updated 

no less than every four years, based on advances in the science of 

early childhood development. 

50 

TEACHER QUALITY

According to the National Research Council report, Eager to 

Learn, all preschool programs should have a teacher with at least 

a bachelor’s degree in early childhood education or a related field 

(National Research Council, 2000). Well-educated teachers are a 

key to early childhood program quality and outcomes for children. 

Research consistently demonstrates a link between the learning potential of children and the level of education and training of classroom teachers. A lack of professional preparation and low compensation affect a host of outcomes that may hamper a child’s readiness to succeed in school. 

Since its inception, the Head Start program has been providing 

training and professional development to its workers. Today, a certified Child Development Associate, or CDA, is the minimum teacher requirement in every Head Start classroom, and three-quarters 

of all Head Start teachers have at least an associate’s degree in 

child development or a related field. This is good progress, but the 

program must build upon this progress to advance the qualifications of educational staff. Improved academic achievement in Head 

Start cannot be accomplished without well-qualified Head Start 

teachers who are trained in child development, utilize researchbased literacy techniques, and understand the importance of a language-rich, interactive environment for children. 

Research shows that teachers with a minimum of a bachelor’s degree and specialized training in early childhood development are 

significantly more engaged with children, less critical, and less detached—characteristics related to better child outcomes—from students in their classrooms than teachers with less formal education. 

Research also demonstrates that higher teacher qualifications directly translate into better results for children in critical areas of 

development, including the attainment of the competencies needed 

to be successful in school. The three most renowned early childhood 

programs for low-income children—the Perry Preschool Project, 

Chicago Child Parent Centers, and Abecedarian Preschool—all 

were staffed by teachers with a minimum of a bachelor’s degree 

and specialized training in early childhood education. 

The School Readiness Act requires that a greater number of 

Head Start teachers are adequately trained and educated in early 

childhood development. In 1998, Congress required 50 percent of 

Head Start teachers nationwide to acquire a minimum of an associate degree by 2008—a goal that Head Start has successfully met. 

The School Readiness Act of 2005 sets a new target for teacher 

qualifications. It requires that by three years after enactment all 

newly hired Head Start teachers have at least an associate degree 

or be enrolled in a program leading to an associate degree within 

three years. Additionally, it would require that half of all Head 

Start teachers nationwide have a minimum of a baccalaureate degree by 2011. This revised requirement would help to make teacher 

qualifications more consistent with K–12 schools and many state 

pre-kindergarten programs. Twenty-seven state pre-kindergarten 

programs, and the District of Columbia, require that all preschool 

teachers have at least a bachelor’s degree, yet only about 34 percent of Head Start teachers have more than a two-year degree. In 

some states, the difference in the teacher requirements between 

51 

Head Start and state school readiness programs can be a barrier 

to collaboration and integration between the two programs. 

Among the requirements for priority designation, H.R. 2123 

would require grantees receiving priority designation to employ 

teachers of which at least half have an associate degree or higher. 

The Committee strongly believes all Head Start programs should 

meet this minimum standard but recognizes there can be logistical 

limitations to meeting the standard for certain programs that cannot access a workforce with these credentials for reasons outside of 

their control (such as regional isolation, provision of short-term 

services, and lack of an accessible institution of higher education 

that offers associate’s degrees in the area of early childhood education or a related field). For this reason, the School Readiness Act 

permits rural, Migrant and Seasonal, and Indian Head Start programs to apply to the Secretary for a three-year waiver that can 

be renewed. In these cases, the Committee encourages the Secretary to grant waivers to eligible grantees who are demonstrating 

effort and improvement toward better professional development. 

The School Readiness Act aims to increase the qualifications of 

educational staff with expertise and skills in providing academic 

services to limited English proficient (LEP) children. In order to effectively monitor progress towards the goal of increasing the qualifications of Head Start teachers with skills in serving LEP children, the Committee recommends that the Head Start Bureau include, as part of the annual program information report, information on the educational levels of Head Start teachers disaggregated 

by race, ethnicity, and primary language. 

H.R. 2123 also requires all Head Start grantees to create a professional development plan for all full-time employees who provide 

direct educational services to children. The Committee believes 

that this activity will result in high quality professional development that directly benefits the individual instructor, Head Start 

students, and the overall program. 

Navigating the maze of student aid can be a daunting task, and 

can be especially difficult for non-traditional students attending 

school part-time. While there are multiple authorities within the 

Head Start program to provide financial assistance for teachers obtaining higher education, budgetary constraints within Head Start 

programs may limit scholarship assistance under the Act. However, 

financial assistance is available under other federal programs (such 

as Pell Grants and student loans), under state programs, and from 

private foundations and organizations, and every effort should be 

made to raise awareness of financial assistance opportunities for 

Head Start teachers. The Secretary of Education is charged with 

overseeing outreach efforts to inform students about the availability of student financial assistance. The Secretary of Health and 

Human Services, in cooperation with the Secretary of Education, is 

encouraged to provide information to Head Start grantees informing teachers how to find and access various state, federal, and private funds to obtain Associate’s or Bachelor’s degrees. 

It is important that Head Start teachers receive their post-secondary education from credible institutions of higher education 

that will provide high quality teacher preparation. The Committee 

is troubled by reports that some Head Start teachers may have 

purchased college degrees from diploma mills. Although no formal 

52 

legal definition exists, a diploma mill is generally regarded as an 

entity that lacks accreditation from a state or professional accreditation organization, but that sells college and graduate degrees 

that are fraudulent or worthless because of lack of standards in 

curriculum, instruction and completion. The Committee is concerned that diploma mills have proliferated in recent years due to 

the rise in Internet education. Although many diploma mills use 

the Internet to operate illegitimate institutions of higher education, 

it is sometimes difficult to distinguish between phony degrees and 

legitimate on-line institutions that operate accredited distance education programs. Although the federal government has been successful in keeping phony institutions out of the federal student aid 

programs, it is less clear whether federal assistance through the 

Head Start Act has been used to attain degrees from illegitimate 

institutions. For this reason, H.R. 2123 contains language that prohibits Head Start funds from being used to support the attainment 

of higher education unless the institution is accredited by an independent agency or association recognized by the U.S. Department 

of Education. Further, the Committee does not condone the hiring 

of new teachers with degrees received from diploma mills, and 

urges the Secretary to raise grantee awareness of these bogus institutions. 

MEASURING PROGRESS

Head Start programs are currently required to measure children’s progress in key aspects of development, including language 

development, literacy, mathematics, science, creative arts, social 

and emotional development, approaches toward learning, and physical health and development. Programs are required to evaluate 

each child’s progress three times per year and use the results to 

help make decisions about staff training, mentoring and supervision; needed improvements in curriculum; reallocation of program 

resources; and plans for transitions of children from Head Start 

into elementary schools. 

The Committee believes that monitoring children’s growth and 

development throughout the Head Start year can be very helpful 

to continuous improvement in program quality. But in order for 

these assessments to provide teachers with useful information that 

can serve as a basis for teaching decisions, it is important that the 

self-assessment methods in the areas of emergent literacy and 

mathematics be research-based, developmentally appropriate, and 

culturally and linguistically responsive. The Committee believes it 

is important that these assessments be tied to children’s daily activities in order to better support educational instruction and decisions about teaching and curricula. 

NATIONAL REPORTING SYSTEM

The Department of Health and Human Services developed and 

implemented the Head Start National Reporting System (NRS) assessment nearly two years ago as a means to measure children’s 

progress in four basic areas: understanding spoken English, vocabulary, letter recognition, and early math. The NRS is a brief, standardized assessment administered by local grantees at the beginning 

and end of each program year to all four and five year old children 

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ment to evaluate how well individual Head Start programs are 

doing in preparing children for kindergarten. 

According to the Department of Health and Human Services, the 

NRS is the largest assessment of preschool children in history. 

During the first year of its administration, the NRS was completed 

by nearly 437,000 preschool children participating in Head Start, 

including 35,000 children with disabilities and 125,000 children 

with limited English proficiency. The assessment was developed 

with limited Congressional authority and input, and despite recognized merits of a common assessment tool for Head Start, the Committee is aware that the NRS has been the subject of great concern 

for many child development and educational assessment experts 

and early childhood educators. Concerns raised by experts of the 

Technical Work Group of the NRS, which was selected by the Administration, include insufficient validity and reliability, issues of 

cultural and linguistic inappropriateness, unnecessary assessment 

of every child, and lack of clarity about its purpose and the use of 

the data. The Committee is additionally concerned about reports 

that the Spanish version of the NRS is not comparable or parallel 

to the English assessment. For this reason, the Committee commends the Secretary for convening panels to review and make recommendations to improve the NRS and recommends that sufficient 

time is taken to ensure the scientific validity and reliability of the 

NRS before its data are used to evaluate the progress of children 

participating in individual Head Start programs. 

There is general agreement by early childhood experts on the 

value of assessment, and children are assessed regularly in nearly 

every preschool program across the country, including all Head 

Start classrooms. Currently, Head Start children participate in assessments that are locally selected and implemented. These local 

assessments may be useful to inform the instructional needs of individual children, but they often cannot be used to evaluate program effectiveness and cannot be used to compare rates of progress 

and the readiness of children in Head Start programs nationwide. 

H.R. 2123 requires no new testing. 

Evaluating children’s progress for the purposes of evaluating the 

effectiveness of early education programs is a relatively new concept that needs further study. Experts convened by the National 

Research Council state that young children inherently have developmental limitations that can affect the interpretation and use of 

assessments. For example, as discussed in Eager to Learn, young 

children still are developing the ability to focus, the capacity to be 

purposeful and intentional, and the ability to self-regulate. Furthermore, assessment results may be influenced by the fact that a 

preschool child may not fully understand what is being required of 

them during an assessment. In this 2001 report, experts under the 

National Research Council stated: 

All assessments, and particularly assessments for accountability, must be used carefully and appropriately if 

they are to resolve, and not create, educational problems. 

Assessment of young children poses greater challenges 

than people generally realize . . . Consequently, assessment results—in particular, standardized test scores that 

reflect a given point in time—can easily misrepresent children’s learning . . . . If the use of external standardized 

54 

tests increases in the preschool environment for reasons of 

public policy, it is essential that they meet the highest 

standards of reliability and validity. 

The U.S Government Accountability Office (GAO) published a 

May 2005 study on the Head Start assessment, which notes that 

some changes have been made to the test and its administration 

to address concerns voiced by child development and assessment 

experts. However, the GAO states that: 

The Bureau has yet to address other potential implementation problems, such as whether all 4- and 5-year 

olds eligible to participate in the NRS are assessed and 

whether assessors have narrowed the curriculum they 

teach in response to the NRS . . . Analysis of the NRS is 

currently incomplete to support its use for the purposes of 

accountability and targeting training and technical assistance. 

Therefore, this Committee intends to ensure that legislation to 

reauthorize the Head Start program includes directions to the Secretary regarding the development, implementation, and further use 

of the NRS. H.R. 2123 directs the Secretary to report to Congress 

all costs associated with the NRS and requires annual reports on 

its status. 

DEVELOPMENTAL SCREENING

Head Start currently requires a timely and systematic approach 

toward diagnostic screening of participating children in order to 

identify which children require more formal assessments of their 

developmental needs and follow-up services. The Head Start Program Performance Standards require all grantees and delegate 

agencies to perform or obtain linguistically and age appropriate 

screening procedures to identify concerns regarding a child’s developmental, sensory, behavioral, motor, language, social, cognitive, 

perceptual, and emotional skills (CFR 1304.20(b)(1)) within 45 days 

of the child’s entry into the program. However, screenings may be 

conducted only after a program files a written parental authorization for such services. Though the HHS Performance Standards 

provide important guidance on characteristics of screening tools, no 

particular strategy, instrument, or technique is required. 

The School Readiness Act reinforces that Head Start program 

must in every circumstance obtain written parental consent prior 

to conducting any health related service, including developmental 

and mental health screenings, and physical examinations. 

The Committee is concerned that some programs may be using 

outdated and inadequate screening instruments even though several evidence-based, quick, inexpensive, and accurate tools already 

exist. Given the great importance of identifying developmental 

delays early, it is critical that grantees utilize high-quality research-based developmental screening tools. The Secretary is encouraged to help grantees that are not already doing so, to incorporate high-quality screening tools into their program. 

High-quality research-based developmental screening tools are 

those that have been demonstrated to be reliable, valid, and accurate (that is, both sensitive and specific, correctly detecting children with and without delays) for children from a range of racial, 

55 

ethnic, linguistic and cultural backgrounds. In addition, high-quality developmental screening tools have been rigorously peer-reviewed, including publication in a refereed professional journal, to 

assure that their reliability, validity, sensitivity, and specificity are 

accurately reported. Finally, high-quality developmental screening 

tools have been demonstrated to work well with children from a 

wide range of racial, ethnic, linguistic and cultural backgrounds. 

PROGRAM ACCOUNTABILITY

While 85 percent of Head Start grantees provide quality services 

according to the latest monitoring report issued by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, there are some grantees that 

are not fulfilling their obligation to ensure that our nation’s neediest children enter school with the knowledge they need to succeed. 

This is evidenced by the approximately 170 Head Start programs 

that have been terminated by the Department due to concerns over 

their quality over the past 10 years. 

Since January 2003, media accounts in numerous U.S. cities and 

communities alleged serious financial abuses and irregularities by 

local individuals and/or entities entrusted with managing local 

Head Start programs. Other reports involving financial mismanagement suggested that often Head Start grantees have good 

intentions, yet lack strong fiscal controls and the skills needed to 

effectively manage complex, multi-million dollar non-profit organizations. The incidents identified in these media reports collectively 

involve the use of tens of millions in federal Head Start funds that 

were intended to serve more than 10,000 disadvantaged U.S. children. 

These reports suggest that an unacceptable share of Head Start 

funding never reaches the disadvantaged children the money is intended to serve, and is instead lost to financial abuse, mismanagement, impropriety, or outright theft within the Head Start system. 

In each instance, abuse takes place at the expense of children 

served by the many quality Head Start grantees. Of equal concern, 

there appears to be little ability on the part of the federal Head 

Start Bureau within the Administration on Children and Families 

to independently verify that the abuses reported by the media in 

the past two years are in fact ‘‘isolated incidents’’ and not the 

symptoms of a more widespread accountability problem. 

In light of these reports, the Committee is concerned about the 

degree to which Head Start grantees are held accountable at both 

the federal and local levels. The Committee believes the current 

Head Start monitoring system is not adequate to ensure that programs are consistently delivering the level of high quality services 

necessary for children to advance in all areas of development. It is 

the Committee’s view that the scheduled triennial review process, 

coupled with an automatic renewal of grants on an annual basis, 

does not provide adequate assurances to the Congress and the public about Head Start program operations. This is confirmed by a 

March 2005 report published by the Government Accountability Office that evaluated federal financial controls that exist in the Head 

Start system. 

In its report, GAO aimed to provide information on whether the 

Administration for Children and Families (ACF) could consistently 

identify financial management weaknesses and whether ACF enVerDate Aug 04 2004 03:39 Jun 18, 2005 Jkt 039006 PO 00000 Frm 00055 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\HR136.XXX HR136
56 

sures that grantees effectively resolve problems in a timely manner 

when they are detected. The GAO report concluded that, at the federal level, Head Start’s financial control system is flawed and failing to prevent financial abuse and mismanagement. The report 

stated: 

Ultimately, enforcing all the program’s requirements— 

especially financial management requirements—strengthens the federal commitment to poor children and their 

families by effectively managing scarce federal resources 

and making sure as many eligible families as possible can 

participate in the program. 

GAO provided a series of recommendations to hold grantees more 

fiscally accountable for federal Head Start funds. The GAO urged 

changes that could be made by HHS/ACF to improve the oversight 

of the Head Start program. These changes include: (1) implementing a comprehensive risk assessment of the Head Start Program; (2) improving the processes used to collect information on 

program risks; and (3) making greater use of authority to re-compete the grants that are currently awarded to poorly performing 

grantees (GAO, 2005). 

The School Readiness Act includes several new provisions to ensure greater public disclosure of information, including the authority of the Secretary to conduct unscheduled reviews of Head Start 

programs. It is the Committee’s view that unscheduled reviews will 

help to ensure that all programs are performing at the highest levels possible at all times. While recognizing that, at certain times, 

HHS may need to make scheduling arrangements with grantees in 

advance of a triennial review, the Department should have the authority to visit any Head Start program at any time and without 

prior notice. 

However, in addition to being a method of accountability, the 

Committee encourages the Secretary to use the monitoring process 

as a critical program support tool. The Committee believes close 

monitoring of Head Start programs is a key opportunity and useful 

method for identifying program strengths and weaknesses. Therefore, program monitoring should be used both to bolster program 

accountability and to better identify areas for program improvement so that resources can be effectively targeted. 

The School Readiness Act also requests an analysis of the income 

eligibility of participating children as part of the program reviews. 

While this is currently a fairly common practice, the Committee 

feels that adding specific statutory authority will help to better ensure that Head Start services are being targeted to those children 

who are most in need of them. 

To help ensure that Head Start programs are providing the highest quality services to students, the School Readiness Act also allows the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to utilize 

the services of third parties to conduct monitoring activities and 

adds a requirement that review teams include members with expertise in specific content areas. Monitoring is an important part 

of the Department’s responsibility for overseeing Head Start. In 

order to ensure the integrity of the monitoring process, the Committee believes that HHS should be allowed to contract out monitoring responsibilities to impartial third parties as needed. The use 

57 

of independent evaluators will assure the public that the monitoring process will not be influenced, even unintentionally, by the 

personal relationships between grantees and the regional offices 

that grantees rely on for guidance and assistance. 

The School Readiness Act strengthens federal authority to initiate grantee termination proceedings at any time. The Committee 

encourages the Secretary to use his authority under current law 

and new authorities under this legislation to expeditiously terminate any grantee that is found to have recurring deficiencies. In 

cases where the Secretary issues a letter of termination, H.R. 2123 

prohibits grantees from using federal monies to fund the appeal 

process. Furthermore, the Committee recognizes the Secretary’s existing authority to issue immediate suspensions of funding to any 

agency in emergency situations. In such instances, funding to the 

grantee is suspended and an interim organization provides services 

until a replacement agency can be identified or the Secretary determines it is appropriate to resume funding to such agency. 

The Committee recognizes the rights of a grantee to appeal a termination decision, but is concerned that some reviews have been 

reported to last several years. The Committee notes that seven 

months or several years is too long for children to endure programs 

with demonstrated deficiencies and urges the Departmental Administrative Boards to move swiftly to render decisions on such 

matters. 

INCREASING COMPETITION FOR HEAD START GRANTS

Evidence shows that competition fosters continuous program improvement and high expectations. The School Readiness Act ensures high quality programs continue to provide services in their 

communities, while providing the Secretary greater authority to replace grantees that are not meeting expectations. In the view of 

this Committee, programs that are not in compliance with federal 

law must not be given a free pass to continue receiving taxpayer 

funds. 

President George W. Bush has made competitive bidding for the 

provision of government services a priority of his Administration. 

This is good policy because when competition increases, the consumer generally benefits. Competitive bidding for federal monies 

promote basic fairness and encourages greater efficiencies and cost 

savings. With billions of dollars awarded each year in federal 

grants, the need for efficiency and accountability is significant. 

The Committee recognizes that the primary principles of government contracting and grant-making should be to purchase the best 

product, provide the best service, and fund the best operation at 

the best price for the American taxpayer. The federal Head Start 

program should not depart from these basic principles. Increased 

competition in Head Start will lead to cost savings and greater efficiencies, while delivering a better value to Americans taxpayers 

and better results for Head Start children and families. 

The Committee also recognizes the value of supporting the ongoing provision of Head Start services by high-performing grantees. 

Evidence shows that continuity of program services by high-quality 

grantees best serves children and families in Head Start. The most 

effective way of fighting the effects of poverty within a community 

is to provide a sustained and continual effort. Moreover, the existVerDate Aug 04 2004 03:39 Jun 18, 2005 Jkt 039006 PO 00000 Frm 00057 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\HR136.XXX HR136
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ing stability within Head Start, in most instances, promotes better 

quality and more efficiency. It helps the organization become trusted within the community it is trying to serve, creating better community relations and better outreach to eligible children and families. Continuity and stability provided by high-quality grantees 

helps programs to recruit and retain better teachers and better 

plan professional development. It can have a significant impact on 

cost effective resource allocation by affecting a program’s ability to 

leverage funds in their community and negotiate lower facilities 

costs and business loans. It also better ensures that taxpayer monies spent on professional development and facilities are investments that continue to benefit children served by Head Start. 

Thus, re-competition of high quality programs could have the unintended effect of undermining program quality and decreasing the 

efficiency of Head Start expenditures. 

Under H.R. 2123, grantees identified by federal authorities as 

being significantly or systemically deficient or those not meeting 

one or more of 18 specific federal guidelines will be required to recompete for their federal grants. Increasing the role of competition, 

in concert with other provisions contained in the School Readiness 

Act, H.R. 2123 will enhance grantee accountability and performance. 

LOCAL ACCOUNTABILITY

The School Readiness Act requires each grantee to establish or 

maintain an independent board of directors that includes representatives of the local community (including at least 1 member 

with significant financial management or accounting experience 

and the Chair of the Policy Council). Additional members shall be 

selected for their expertise in education, business administration, 

community affairs, government, legal affairs, and such other areas 

of expertise as may contribute to effective governance of the Head 

Start agency. The Committee does not intend this provision to require grantees with existing boards to set up a secondary board of 

director structure, but rather to set forth qualifications and responsibilities for existing boards to meet. Certain exceptions are granted to the board of directors of grantees that are public entities and 

subject to state and local laws that contradict these requirements. 

All members of the board shall receive training in the management responsibilities and obligations, ethics, and financial literacy 

and management, and shall adopt practices that assure active, objective, and informed governance of the Head Start agency, including independent oversight of the financial and management practices of such agency. The board shall provide direction to the executive director of the Head Start agency and shall operate as an entity independent of the staff employed by the Head Start agency. 

To foster improved local accountability, local governing boards 

must provide strong oversight to ensure that the Head Start agency is delivering high quality services to children and families in 

compliance with all applicable standards and performance measures. To accomplish this goal, H.R. 2123 requires the operation of 

two or more standing committees to facilitate governance of the 

Head Start agency, including an audit and finance committee and 

a policy council. 

59 

The audit and finance committee should have the lead responsibility in ensuring the financial health of the grantee, and should 

approve the program’s operating budget; review and recommend to 

the board the selection of independent auditors; review and recommend to the board the termination or extension of the existing 

audit firm at least once every 5 years; review and advise the board 

on audit issues and findings; and monitor agency actions to correct 

any such audit findings or other actions necessary to comply with 

applicable laws. 

The policy council, a majority of whose representatives must be 

parents of children participating in a Head Start or Early Head 

Start program serve as a link between parents and the board of directors and submit recommendations to the governing board. The 

policy council shall provide input to the governing board and may 

make recommendations on any aspect of program operations including: the strategic direction of the program, including long and 

short-term planning goals and objectives; program operation policies, including standards of conduct for program staff and volunteers; activities to support the active involvement of parents in supporting program operations; classroom activities and staffing; and 

program responsiveness to community and parent needs. 

It is the Committee’s intent that all legal and fiduciary responsibilities shall rest with the governing board. However, parents of 

children in the program need to have a meaningful say in how the 

program is run. As such, the Committee fully expects the governing 

board to regularly consult with the policy council on all issues and 

take action on recommendations submitted by the policy council. It 

is the Committee’s expectation that the governing board will set up 

an appropriate process for handling recommendations made by the 

policy council and that such recommendations will be handled in 

an open and timely manner. In those instances where the governing board disagrees with a recommendation of the policy council, the governing board should communicate their reasoning to the 

policy council. 

HEAD START ALIGNMENT WITH K–12 EDUCATION

The landmark No Child Left Behind Act dramatically reformed 

the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 by increasing 

resources and demanding results from our nation’s educational system. More specifically, the law required a narrowing of the achievement gap that exists between disadvantaged students and their 

more advantaged peers so that all children are able to read on 

grade level by the end of the third grade. 

Research shows that children who read well in the early grades 

are far more successful in later years. According to the National Institute for Child Health and Development, school readiness consists 

of a broad set of competencies. These academic and social competencies that define school readiness start developing long before 

children enter the elementary classroom. However, studies show 

that many children enter school without the necessary knowledge 

and abilities to succeed. States report that between 20 percent to 

nearly half of all children entering school are not prepared to succeed in school. Evidence further suggests that children who start 

behind tend to stay behind. For these reasons, the Committee recognizes the importance of coordinating preschool programs, includVerDate Aug 04 2004 03:39 Jun 18, 2005 Jkt 039006 PO 00000 Frm 00059 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\HR136.XXX HR136
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ing Head Start, with K–12 education goals and standards. It is critical that Head Start programs work closely with local educational 

agencies to coordinate curricula and facilitate a smooth transition 

from Head Start into school. 

The Language Enrichment Activities Program, or LEAP, developed for the Cone Head Start Center in Dallas has proven that the 

right curriculum and a strong relationship with a community’s 

local elementary school can successfully strengthen the cognitive 

and communications skills of low-income children. Children attending the Cone Head Start Center have proven that children from 

low-income families can perform at levels comparable to children 

from a higher socioeconomic level when given a quality preschool 

experience that includes a strong curriculum aligned with the K– 

12 system. 

In an effort to ensure that all children are proficient readers by 

a young age, the No Child Left Behind Act dedicates significant resources to reading programs such as Early Reading First and Reading First. These programs establish clear and specific expectations 

for what can and should happen for all students by insisting that 

they have the necessary language, cognitive, and early reading 

skills for continued success in school. 

The Committee recognizes that the No Child Left Behind Act and 

Head Start share the same goal of ensuring that all of our nation’s 

students are able to succeed in school. Therefore the School Readiness Act updates the Head Start performance standards in accordance with the latest scientifically based research regarding the 

knowledge children need to have in order to be successful in school. 

The School Readiness Act also helps to ensure a seamless system 

of education for children of all ages by requiring states to consult 

with their chief state school officer, local educational agencies, and 

local Head Start agencies when developing school readiness standards and general plans for the coordinated delivery of early care 

and education services at both the state and local level. 

IMPROVING COORDINATION, COLLABORATION, AND INTEGRATION

The Committee believes it is critically important to ensure continuity between Head Start and other early childhood programs 

that exist with increasing frequency in states and local communities in order to ensure that all children have the necessary 

knowledge to enter school ready to learn. This is why the School 

Readiness Act improves local and state integration of early childhood education by requiring Head Start agencies and local providers of state pre-kindergarten to enter into ongoing partnerships 

to create an efficient and effective system of early childhood and 

school readiness services in each state; and authorizing State Early 

Learning Councils to advance the development of a coordinated 

early childhood services delivery system in each state. 

H.R. 2123 requires Head Start grantees to enter into a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with providers, such as LEAs, of 

state pre-kindergarten programs in their service area in order to 

better align their activities. Specifically, Head Start grantees, 

LEAs, and providers of state pre-kindergarten programs are required to coordinate: educational activities, curricula, and instruction aligned to state developed K–12 academic standards; public information dissemination and access to programs for families; selecVerDate Aug 04 2004 03:39 Jun 18, 2005 Jkt 039006 PO 00000 Frm 00060 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\HR136.XXX HR136
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tion priorities for eligible children to be served by programs; service 

delivery areas; staff training, including opportunities for joint staff 

training on topics such as academic content standards and instructional methods; program technical assistance; provision of additional services to meet the child care needs of working parents; 

planning and parent education for smooth transitions to kindergarten; provision and use of facilities, transportation, and other 

program elements; and other elements mutually agreed to by the 

parties to such memorandum. If Head Start grantees fail to effectively implement an MOU with state-funded pre-kindergarten programs in their service area, they will be deemed deficient and will 

have to compete for funding against other applicants. 

The School Readiness Act also attempts to improve the integration of Head Start with other early education services by authorizing funds for establishing or expanding State Early Learning 

Councils to advance the development of a coordinated delivery system for early childhood services within a state. These State Early 

Learning Councils will bring together Head Start, state pre-kindergarten programs, state child care programs and the schools that 

will one day serve the children enrolled in Head Start and other 

preschool programs. The goals of the Early Learning Councils include: increasing coordination and collaboration among state preschool, Head Start programs, child care programs, early childhood 

special education, and other early childhood programs; working 

with state agencies responsible for education, child care, and early 

intervention to provide leadership and assistance to local Head 

Start programs, school districts, and state and locally funded preschool and childcare programs to increase integration among early 

childhood programs; conducting periodic statewide needs assessments concerning early care and education programs for children; 

working to identify and address barriers to and opportunities for 

integration between entities carrying out federal and state child development, child care, and early childhood education programs; addressing coordination of early learning programs with health care, 

welfare, family literacy and services for homeless children; and 

supporting a state system of early childhood education, and training and technical assistance that improves the quality of early 

learning programs and the capacity of such programs to deliver 

services. 

The School Readiness Act builds upon current law in the area of 

coordination between Head Start programs and other entities. Specifically, the language requires collaboration, as appropriate, with 

providers of social and community services. Furthermore, the language clarifies that Head Start programs may support such partnerships with financial agreements, when applicable, for the provision of such services. The Committee emphasizes that when appropriate, Head Start programs should make every effort to develop 

partnerships that expand the level and quality of services available 

to children. 

An example of such partnerships is with public libraries, which 

already are involved in Head Start programs throughout the nation, providing services such as taking children to the library for 

story hour; promoting the use of library cards for families so that 

children can bring books home; developing lending libraries and 

using a mobile library van, especially in rural areas where libraries 

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are otherwise not available. In some cases, such partnerships could 

be expanded through financial agreements with libraries to provide 

for services such as: ensuring a sufficient number of appropriate 

books are available on a regular basis at the library (or library 

vans) for use by Head Start students and their caregivers; to enable librarians to visit Head Start classrooms and provide services 

related to literacy and; where appropriate, expanding hours of libraries to ensure they are open during hours in which head start 

classes are in operation. The Committee is aware that certain partnerships may include local arrangements that provide financial 

support to Head Start or require a local Head Start program to 

compensate a partner for services rendered. 

TRAINING AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE

This bill reserves two percent of annual Head Start appropriations for the purposes of training and technical assistance (T/TA). 

These funds are intended to help agencies make continuous improvements in the quality of their programs and services. Regular, 

ongoing training and professional development for all Head Start 

staff is essential to the program’s continued success and the T/TA 

system is integral to this process. In addition, the science associated with preparing children for a lifetime of learning continues to 

evolve and inform best practices, and must be integrated into the 

Head Start classroom. The Committee encourages the Secretary, 

through T/TA specialists, to work with local grantees to ensure that 

grantees prepare annually a comprehensive assessment of their 

program needs prior to the development of their T/TA budget. 

Grantees’ T/TA activities should reflect the key areas of improvement identified by such assessment and be part of a comprehensive 

plan to improve program quality. 

Under the current system, the Secretary gives approximately 

half of these funds directly to grantees for the purposes of locallydetermined T/TA needs and uses the other half for meeting T/TA 

needs prioritized by the Secretary. H.R. 2123 formalizes the process 

of sending half of these funds to local grantees and provides 20 percent of the 2 percent set-aside to states willing to provide a state 

match for the purposes of establishing or supporting an Early 

Learning Council. If a state chooses not to accept their allotted 

funds, it is the Committee’s intent that the funds be used by the 

Secretary for other T/TA priorities. The Committee provides the 

Secretary with the remaining 30 percent of the set-aside to operate 

a nation-wide T/TA system and to fund additional T/TA priorities 

that would enhance program quality. The Committee believes a 

main goal of the Head Start monitoring system should be to identify grantee weaknesses and to use this information to better target 

T/TA resources. 

The Committee encourages the Secretary to improve the integration of the monitoring system with the T/TA system in light of evidence that insufficient coordination between these two systems currently takes place. The recent GAO report on financial management weaknesses in Head Start suggests that HHS is not adequately using the information collected through program monitoring for program improvements. The Committee recognizes that 

Head Start program monitoring should be improved to ensure that 

programs accurately document the demographics of their targeted 

63 

service area in annual community assessments, and the populations identified in such assessments are reflected in the programs’ enrollment. 

The School Readiness Act provides for the use of training and 

technical assistance funds to improve access to and quality of Head 

Start services for LEP populations. The Committee believes that 

this is particularly important in States that have experienced a 

growth in the limited-English-proficient population of the States of 

at least 100 percent between the years 1990 and 2000, as measured 

by the census. 

The School Readiness Act also restricts the use of training and 

technical assistance funds for travel expenditures associated with 

attending conferences when similar training and technical assistance is not available locally. It is the Committee’s view that occasional travel may be necessary, but that excessive travel to Head 

Start conferences or events is generally not an appropriate or effective use of training and technical assistance funds. Whenever possible, Head Start programs should utilize local or regionally based 

training opportunities and should restrict travel to occasions when 

an identified training need cannot be met through local or regional 

resources. All training and technical assistance expenditures 

should be consistent with the training and technical assistance 

needs identified in a grantee’s annual plan for training and technical assistance. 

The Committee believes that better information is needed on how 

funds for training and technical assistance are spent, and better accountability mechanisms for their use are needed. The Committee 

urges the Department of Health and Human Services to require 

better data reporting on the use of training and technical assistance dollars so that Congress has access to more complete information when assessing the amount of funds needed for this purpose. 

Better data reporting also will help the Department of Health and 

Human Services and Congress identify the most effective uses of 

these funds so that Head Start instructors and administrators are 

gaining the knowledge needed to improve program management 

and the delivery of services to children and their families. 

FUNDS FOR QUALITY IMPROVEMENT

The School Readiness Act provides greater support for improving 

program quality by significantly increasing the percentage of new 

dollars that must be spent on quality improvement. Research has 

demonstrated that the experiences of young children greatly affect 

all aspects of their development, including cognitive development. 

The level of commitment to quality improvement demonstrated in 

the School Readiness Act is critical if Head Start is to succeed in 

improving overall program quality and the school readiness of participating children. 

In an effort to ensure that Head Start programs are of the highest possible quality, and to ensure that funds are available to assist 

Head Start reach new goals for teacher quality, the School Readiness Act requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to 

reserve 60 percent of all new Head Start funds for purposes of 

quality improvement. Not less than half of that 60 percent must be 

used to increase teacher salaries and assist programs in recruiting 

and retaining quality staff. When new monies are made available, 

64 

these funds should be used to improve the salaries of classroom 

teachers and other staff who provide direct services to children before any salary increases are provided to management staff. 

Funds may also be spent on other functions that have been determined to improve program performance, such as providing ongoing professional development based on the latest early childhood 

research on curriculum and teaching methods, or improving communication with and outreach to families and external partners. 

The remaining 40 percent of new funds is to be used to expand 

Head Start services to more eligible children, particularly underserved populations. 

TRANSPORTATION WAIVER

Head Start regulations stipulate that Head Start, Early Head 

Start, and delegate agencies shall make ‘‘reasonable efforts to coordinate transportation resources to control costs and to improve 

the quality and the availability of transportation services.’’ The 

Committee encourages grantees, to the extent practicable, to facilitate the safe transport of children to Head Start programs and 

when possible, to leverage appropriate transportation services 

available in the community. However, the Committee does not intend for these regulations to be such an undue financial burden 

that programs limit transportation services or must dedicate substantial portions of their budgets to meet them. 

H.R. 2123 includes a waiver of Head Start transportation regulations to permit Head Start grantees to continue coordinated transportation arrangements with local school systems that allow Head 

Start children to be transported on school buses to and from their 

local Head Start center. The Committee is concerned that the Head 

Start transportation regulation could lead to other key services 

being reduced or result in some Head Start programs no longer 

having access to transportation services, often at no or reduced 

costs, by local school systems. The waiver authority provided in 

H.R. 2123 is intended to prevent a ‘‘significant disruption’’ in transportation services that may include the suspension of school bus 

services for Head Start grantees. It is the Committee’s expectations 

that Head Start agencies will make every practicable effort to meet 

the transportation regulations but that HHS would grant waivers 

in situations where doing so is in the best interest of the children 

enrolled in the program. 

FACILITIES MANAGEMENT

The Committee understands that Head Start grantees may be 

experiencing difficulties in meeting the Department’s grant period 

for facility-related funding in situations where grantees are governed by an alternate fiscal year. In cases where a grantee is 

awarded funds after the start of its fiscal year, grantees have been 

faced with a limited time period in which to obligate funds. Such 

grantees are working under an inadequate time period in order to 

meet all review and approval processes required at the local or 

state level. Under current rules, a grantee must submit a formal 

request to carry over funds, which can take several months to approve. The Committee recommends that the Department consider 

the needs of some grantees to obligate funds over a reasonable period of time that may exceed the current rules, and provide addiVerDate Aug 04 2004 03:39 Jun 18, 2005 Jkt 039006 PO 00000 Frm 00064 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\HR136.XXX HR136
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tional time to grantees in certain situations. In addition, the Committee understands that some portable facilities being used by 

Head Start grantees are well over 30 years old and are deteriorating to the point of no longer being suitable and the costs to repair these aging facilities often exceeds the cost of replacing them. 

The Committee encourages the Department to work closely with 

grantees to explore innovative solutions to this problem recognizing 

current budgetary constraints. 

The Committee also urges the Department to evaluate the location of Head Start facilities to ensure that services are located in 

the areas of most need and are conveniently located to the population served by Head Start. The Committee recognizes that over 

time low-income communities may shift locations, particularly 

within urban areas, and that in some cases Head Start programs 

have not moved along with the population. In an effort to reduce 

the chronic under-enrollment experienced by approximately seven 

percent of Head Start programs nationwide, the Committee encourages the Department to use its resources efficiently by re-locating 

programs to areas with the greatest need, and/or reducing funding 

for programs that continue to operate under-capacity, as appropriate. 

FAITH-BASED INITIATIVE

Approximately five percent of Head Start programs are operated 

by faith-based organizations. The Committee will propose an 

amendment to the School Readiness Act to provide consistent requirements for a religious organization with respect to the employment of individuals of a particular religion to perform work connected with activities for which they receive Head Start funding. 

This change will incorporate into Head Start the current exemption 

in hiring by religious organizations contained in Title VII of the 

Civil Rights Act. Currently under federal law, religious organizations may hire on a religious basis, and any federal legislation governing federal social service funds should continue to protect the 

rights of religious organizations to hire on a religious basis when 

they take part in federal social service efforts. However, the current Head Start act requires faith-based organizations to compromise their identity to compete for federal funds. 

There is a long history of making social service legislation more 

inclusive by extending the Title VII exemptions in various federal 

programs. During the Clinton Administration, four separate pieces 

of legislation were signed into law that explicitly allow religious organizations providing social services to make employment decisions 

based on religion, including the Welfare Reform Act of 1996 and 

the Community Services Block Grant Act of 1998. The addition of 

this language to the School Readiness Act will make Head Start 

consistent with the legislation governing other major social service 

programs. 

As President George W. Bush said on April 1, 2005, ‘‘[p]art of 

making sure you can do your job is to make sure regulations don’t 

stand in the way of doing your job. Congress needs to make sure 

that faith-based groups are not forced to give up their right to hire 

people of their own faith as a price for competing for federal money. 

I’m pleased that the House voted a month ago [on the Workforce 

Investment Act reauthorization] to protect the civil rights of faithVerDate Aug 04 2004 03:39 Jun 18, 2005 Jkt 039006 PO 00000 Frm 00065 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\HR136.XXX HR136
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based groups.’’ President Bush has called on his Administration 

and Congress to remove these barriers, and the Committee intends 

to allow the full House the opportunity to step up to that challenge 

when this bill receives floor consideration. 

HEAD START RESEARCH AND EVALUATION

There is an ongoing need for high quality research about the effectiveness of Head Start. During the last reauthorization, the Congress commissioned a national study on the impact of Head Start 

services. This study is the first of its kind comparing the outcomes 

of children in Head Start with similar children who do not participate in this program. The Family and Child Experiences Survey 

(known as FACES) provides valuable information on program performance over time, yet it is not designed to assess the overall 

quality or success of Head Start relative to other preschool programs serving a similar population. 

First year findings from the Impact study were released in June 

2005. Generally consistent with previously-released data from the 

FACES study, findings from the new research suggest that children participating in Head Start make small to moderate gains in 

some aspects of school readiness, but not in others. Preliminary 

findings relating to pre-reading, vocabulary, access to health care, 

and some parent skills showed positive gains from Head Start. 

However, Head Start children did not demonstrate significant improvement in other key constructs such as oral comprehension, 

phonological awareness, and pre-mathematics. Additional findings 

from the Impact study are expected by 2007, and should provide 

a more complete picture of the strengths and weaknesses of the 

current program, and identify areas in need of overall improvement. In particular, the Committee awaits additional information 

that might explain why children with disabilities showed no measurable improvement after participating in Head Start. In addition 

to current research, with input from the Head Start community, research needs should be continually assessed so that Congress can 

identify ways in which Head Start can be strengthened to best 

meet the needs of the children it serves. 

The Committee supports a one-time directive to the Board of 

Children, Youth, and Families of the National Research Council to 

establish an independent panel of experts to review the current 

body of early childhood research. This review is needed to determine age and developmentally appropriate academic standards and 

measurable benchmarks for achievement, the types of services (including classroom instruction) necessary to ensure school readiness, 

and appropriate methods to assess child progress in preparing for 

school. This study also is needed to ensure a well-informed approach to developing school readiness standards and will assist 

states in the process of developing and/or implementing such standards. 

UNDER-ENROLLMENT

The Committee believes that while small fluctuations in enrollment may occur, it is important that grantees meet the funded enrollment levels agreed upon in their annual budget renewals. According to the 2003 GAO report, Head Start: Better Data and Processes Needed to Monitor Underenrollment, the Administration on 

67 

Children and Families (ACF) identified seven percent of Head Start 

grantees as having an unacceptable level of unused slots during the 

2001–2002 program year. GAO reported that under-enrollment 

often resulted from a combination of factors, including increased 

parental demand for full-day services, difficulty in acquiring adequate facilitates, and an increase in parents seeking services from 

other early care and education programs. The report also concluded 

that the degree to which Head Start programs are under-enrolled 

is unknown because of flaws in ACF’s procedures to collect such information, including regional differences in definitions of unacceptable under-enrollment. GAO recommended ACF develop a more 

systematic process for assessing program enrollment and the Committee understands ACF has made important changes. 

The Committee urges the Secretary to utilize clear and consistent guidelines when calculating and defining under-enrollment 

and for recapturing and redistributing unused funded slots. To facilitate this goal, the School Readiness Act requires more frequent 

reporting by grantees on their enrollment levels and a clear process 

for defining chronic under-enrollment. The bill also creates a process for the Secretary to provide technical assistance to programs 

with under-enrollment as well as a process for reducing and redistributing grants in cases of chronic under-enrollment. The Committee does not intend this provision to create a disincentive for 

programs to serve homeless children or other underserved eligible 

children and families who are likely to be transitory and mobile 

and encourages the Secretary to design a process that will foster 

efficient use of Head Start funds without lessening agencies’ ability 

to reach the hardest to serve. 

IMPORTANCE OF PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT

Because parents are a child’s first teachers, parental involvement 

is a critical factor in determining a child’s educational success. For 

many children, particularly low-income children who are eligible 

for Head Start, having involved parents who are engaged in their 

education is critical to their future success. 

This Committee recognizes the valuable role that parents, grandparents, and kinship caregivers play in the success of the Head 

Start program. Parents (and their children) also benefit from the 

development of leadership and communication skills and the attainment of self-confidence that often result from their participation in the Head Start program. Most importantly, Head Start programs help parents learn strategies to maintain parental involvement in their children’s academic progression as the child transitions from Head Start to elementary school. These provisions are 

further strengthened by a new provision to ensure that Head Start 

grantees actively encourage fathers, grandparents, and other kinship providers to take a strong interest in their children’s lives and 

education. The School Readiness Act ensures that limited English 

proficient parents benefit from the broad array of Head Start family services and parent involvement opportunities by requiring that 

all information be provided to parents in their native language, to 

the extent practicable. 

H.R. 2123 maintains the vital role of parents in ensuring the success of Head Start. The reforms contained in the School Readiness 

Act will preserve and enhance this essential role in Head Start. 

68 

Under H.R. 2123, any grantee that denies parents their full roles 

and responsibilities related to program governance must be deemed 

deficient by the Secretary and required to compete for their next 

Head Start grant. Additionally, in order to receive a priority designation, the School Readiness Act requires grantees demonstrate 

strong parental involvement, the availability of activities to develop 

parent skills that support their children’s educational development, 

and the ability of parents to participate in decisions relating to the 

education of their children. 

The School Readiness Act maintains policy councils as part of the 

local Head Start governance structure, which must involve parents 

who are selected for participation by parents. The Committee recognizes the vital role of policy councils in local Head Start programs and reaffirms the meaningful contribution of these councils 

to local decisions regarding program operations. The Committee encourages Head Start grantees to train personnel in the development and implementation of strategies to work effectively with parents and policy councils. 

FAMILY LITERACY

Efforts to improve family literacy also are an important component of Head Start. Family literacy activities are critical to ensure 

the cohesive delivery of services to families and to enhance parental involvement in their child’s education, which is significantly 

challenged if parents cannot read. In keeping with the goal of improving school readiness and valuing the role of parents in their 

children’s education, the Committee bill renews its support for 

training and technical assistance in the area of family literacy services. Since the 1998 reauthorization of Head Start, grantees have 

received exemplary service from the Head Start Family Literacy 

Project. As a result, more than 8,500 Head Start staff has received 

training in providing comprehensive family literacy services and 

nearly 50,000 children’s books have been placed in Head Start 

classrooms. In addition, nearly 2,000 Head Start parent-mentors 

have received training to better prepare them to support their 

child’s language and literacy development and to encourage other 

parents to do the same. The Committee commends the work of the 

Head Start Bureau and the National Center for Family Literacy in 

its conduct of the Head Start Family Literacy Project. Not only 

have program grantees found the project’s training and technical 

assistance useful, but evaluations have proven the merit of this important work. The Committee encourages the Secretary to ensure 

the continuity of these important services so that Head Start children will be better prepared for school and Head Start parents will 

be better able to fulfill their role as their child’s first and best 

teacher. 

EARLY HEAD START

Neuroscience suggests that the ages of birth to three is the most 

critical period for a child’s brain growth. It is during this period 

that children acquire the ability to think, speak, learn, and reason. 

According to many brain researchers, the development between the 

prenatal period and the first years of life is more extensive than 

previously thought and susceptible to long-lasting early environmental influences (Moughty, 2003). Disparities in children’s cogVerDate Aug 04 2004 03:39 Jun 18, 2005 Jkt 039006 PO 00000 Frm 00068 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\HR136.XXX HR136
69 

nitive and social abilities become evident well before they enter 

Head Start or pre-kindergarten programs at age four. Early Head 

Start minimizes these disparities and helps to establish the foundation needed for children to enter school ready to learn. The 

ground-breaking report Starting Points: Meeting the Needs of Our 

Youngest Children cites, ‘‘Babies raised by caring, attentive adults 

in safe, predictable environments are better learners than those 

raised with less attention in less secure settings’’ (Carnegie Corporation of New York, 1994). 

The Committee is encouraged by the positive effects of Early 

Head Start on child development and parent self-sufficiency, as 

documented in the evaluation mandated by Congress and completed in 2002. The strong and careful implementation effort from 

Early Head Start’s inception, supported by a national and regional 

training and technical assistance system with expertise in infant 

and toddler development, contributed to these positive outcomes. 

Given the continued demands on the program, the dearth of trainers available with expertise in infant and toddler development, and 

the additional professional development requirements, a strong 

training and technical assistance effort should be sustained over 

time and Early Head Start program staff should seek effective professional development opportunities that focus specifically on the 

needs of infants and toddlers. 

Further, it is critical that training for Early Head Start programs 

continues to focus on the unique social and emotional development 

of infants and toddlers. Research indicates that early intervention 

programs that enhance social and emotional development are just 

as important as the components that enhance linguistic and cognitive competence in helping young children prepare for school. 

When the social and emotional development of very young children 

is ignored, it can have devastating effects on children’s overall 

functioning, their ability to form and maintain relationships, their 

ability to learn, and their future success in school and life. 

Currently, 10 percent of Head Start funds are allocated specifically for funding the Early Head Start program. Since infants and 

toddlers have needs different than three and four year olds, operating Early Head Start programs requires different environments 

and staff trained with the needed expertise in infant and toddler 

development. Seven hundred Early Head Start programs serve over 

71,000 low-income families with infants and toddlers. 

The Committee agrees that Early Head Start services are critically important. H.R. 2123 establishes the current 10 percent setaside as a floor and permits the Secretary of Health and Human 

Services to expand the allocation at his discretion. Even if the Secretary does not exercise his discretion, as levels of funding appropriated for Head Start grow over time, so will the overall amount 

of funds available for Early Head Start. The School Readiness Act, 

for the first time, directs the Department of Health and Human 

Services to give priority to Early Head Start and other underserved 

populations of Head Start-eligible children when allocating Head 

Start expansion funds. 

While waiting lists continue for Early Head Start services, in 

many communities, there are an increasing number of grantees 

that are not achieving and maintaining full Head Start enrollment 

for preschool age children. According to a December 2003 report by 

70 

the Government Accountability Office, as many as 50 percent of all 

Head Start grantees could be under-enrolled. Under the School 

Readiness Act, under-enrolled Head Start grantees could transfer 

unused slots to Early Head Start programs that could accommodate additional infants and toddlers who are eligible and not being 

served by Early Head Start programs. 

The Committee adopted an amendment that would permit Early 

Head Start grantees to serve additional infants and toddlers with 

funding for preschool slots that remain unfilled in certain circumstances where the needs of preschoolers are already met in a 

community. In the event a preschool grantee is under-enrolled, the 

Secretary could permit services to infants and toddlers to fill the 

gap. And, in the event of recapture of preschool funds as a result 

of chronic under-enrollment of preschoolers, funds can be reallocated to other Head Start grantees or Early Head Start grantees 

in the state or even new Early Head Start services in the state before being reallocated to grantees in other states. Because services 

for infants and toddlers are not identical to services for preschool 

age children, the Committee expects that the number of infants 

and toddlers served would not necessarily match the number of 

preschool age children served. Head Start funds used to serve infants and toddlers under this amendment would not be counted towards the statutory set-aside for Early Head Start. 

In order to maintain the success of the Early Head Start program, the Committee intends that preschool Head Start programs 

only be permitted to serve infants and toddlers under this amendment as long as the program: (1) shows evidence of community 

need for such services; (2) meets the same eligibility criteria as 

Early Head Start programs; (3) addresses the needs of pregnant 

women, infants and toddlers in the same matter as Early Head 

Start and in accordance with Sections 645A(b) [Scope and Design 

of EHS Programs] and 641A [Head Start Performance Standards]; 

and (4) participates in the same technical assistance activities as 

newly funded Early Head Start grantees. The Committee intends 

that the technical assistance activities for these programs be paid 

from funds specified in Section 640(2)(C). 

AT-RISK POPULATIONS

While all children served by Head Start are economically and 

academically in need, there are some subgroups within the eligible 

Head Start population that are at a heightened risk, and often underserved. The School Readiness Act includes several provisions to 

improve access to Head Start services by children who may be especially at-risk, including children with limited English proficiency, 

children of migrant and seasonal farm workers, and Indians and 

Alaskan natives. 

The Head Start Act requires that 13 percent of Head Start funding be set aside for five priorities that include funding for especially at-risk or underserved populations. The Committee is concerned that funding for these priorities has been reduced as a result of funds being transferred from the set-aside established by 

Congress to other purposes. The Committee is aware that for several years the Secretary has used his authority to transfer nearly 

three percent of the 13 percent set-aside back to traditional Head 

Start programs in order to supplement allotments to States. FurVerDate Aug 04 2004 03:39 Jun 18, 2005 Jkt 039006 PO 00000 Frm 00070 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\HR136.XXX HR136
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ther, the Committee understands that this activity has effectively 

reduced the 13 percent set-aside to approximately 10 percent. The 

Committee seeks greater transparency regarding the future expenditure of funds under the 13 percent set-aside and directs the 

Secretary to report annually to Congress on how these funds are 

spent. 

LIMITED ENGLISH PROFICIENT CHILDREN

The Committee recognizes that limited English proficient (LEP) 

children account for a large and growing share of the children in 

Head Start. In fact, 28 percent of all Head Start children are limited English proficient. The Committee recognizes that LEP children have unique needs that must be addressed in order to effectively prepare these children for the first day of school. The School 

Readiness Act improves Head Start for LEP children and their 

families in several key areas, including the academic skills necessary for school readiness, program training and technical assistance, parent involvement, teacher quality, and accountability. The 

School Readiness Act requires LEP children to make progress towards English language acquisition and other school readiness indicators as outlined in the education performance standards. The 

Committee intends for LEP children to receive high-quality academic services aimed at supporting their school readiness, including through the use of appropriate instructional and home language support for second language learning. 

Additionally, H.R. 2123 requires the Secretary to study the status of services to LEP children and their families in Head Start so 

that such children and families have meaningful opportunities to 

participate in Head Start programs. It is the intent of this Committee that the study provide demographic information on LEP 

children ages birth to five, including the number of such children 

receiving Head Start services and the geographic distribution of 

such children; provide information on the extent to which Head 

Start programs set policies to identify and serve LEP children 

through linguistically appropriate approaches; provide information 

on the extent to which Head Start programs adopt linguistically 

appropriate language instruction educational programs, including 

information on the rate of progress made by LEP children toward 

meeting educational standards described in section 641A(a)(1)(B)(ii) 

while enrolled in Head Start, and the correlation between such 

progress and the type of language instruction and educational program provided to LEP children; information on the extent to which 

LEP children are provided trained personnel (including bilingual 

staff to serve LEP children and families); provide information on 

the use of training and technical assistance and quality improvement funds to improve the quality of Head Start services provided 

to LEP children and their families; and, provide information on 

procedures used in Head Start for the assessment of language 

needs and the transition of LEP children to kindergarten, including 

the extent to which programs meet the requirements of section 

642A for LEP children. 

INDIAN HEAD START

Over the last 40 years, the Indian Head Start program has 

played a major role in the education of Indian children and in the 

72 

well-being of many tribal communities. Of the approximately 575 

federally recognized Tribes, 28 percent participate in Head Start/ 

Early Head Start Programs, with a funded enrollment of 23,374 

children. These programs employ approximately 6,449 individuals, 

of whom 3,263 are either former or current Head Start/Early Head 

Start parents. There are another 35,395 volunteers, 22,095 of 

whom are parents. Under the No Child Left Behind Act, the federal 

government recognizes the role and responsibilities of Indian tribal 

governments for the education of Indian people. H.R. 2123 makes 

the education of eligible children under the Head Start Act consistent with other federal education laws. 

The Committee recognizes the significant hardships of many eligible children living on Indian reservations, and this legislation 

seeks to address the unique educational and culturally related academic needs of Native American children. As such, H.R. 2123 requires the inclusion of representatives of Indian Head Start programs in the state collaboration grant program and maintains a 

separate Indian Head Start branch. H.R. 2123 also includes a requirement that the Secretary consult annually with tribal governments in each affected Head Start region for the purpose of better 

meeting the needs of American Indian and Alaska Native children 

and families, and the Committee understands that in many cases 

the Secretary has already made arrangements for such consultations. Finally, the Committee encourages the Secretary to consult 

with American Indian and Alaska Native experts in early childhood 

development, linguists, and representatives from Indian Head 

Start programs on the review and promulgation of any revised program standards and measures (including standards and measures 

for language acquisition and school readiness) developed by the 

Secretary. 

While the Indian Head Start program serves over 23,000 children each year, there still exists a need to expand services to serve 

additional eligible children. The Committee is concerned about a 

lack of quantifiable data on the number of children eligible for Indian Head Start services. For this reason, the Committee has directed the Secretary to establish a system by which the need for 

services by eligible children can be determined accurately. Until 

such a system is available, the Committee has required that not 

less than 3.5 percent of the annual Head Start appropriation be 

made available for the Indian Head Start program. The Committee 

is aware that providing minimum funding requirements for both 

Migrant and Seasonal and Indian Head Start may require a reduction in future funds transferred by the Secretary to support traditional Head Start grants. However, funding increases for both the 

Indian and Migrant and Seasonal Head Start programs are critical 

to enable these populations to reach children currently on waiting 

lists and to establish new programs in areas that lack services to 

these populations of children. 

H.R. 2123 allows for training and technical assistance funds to 

support a regional or State system of early childhood education 

training and technical assistance. The Committee encourages the 

Secretary to include in its regional system, assistance for the Migrant Seasonal Head Start program and the American Indian/Alaska Native programs. The Committee encourages the Secretary to 

provide the training and technical assistance for these two proVerDate Aug 04 2004 03:39 Jun 18, 2005 Jkt 039006 PO 00000 Frm 00072 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\HR136.XXX HR136
73 

grams through national awards by contractors with knowledge of, 

and experience in, working with the populations served by these 

programs. 

The Committee encourages the Secretary, in awarding collaboration grants to the States, to award funds for designation of a Migrant and Seasonal Farm Worker Collaboration Project Director 

and an Indian Head Start Collaboration Project Director. Such positions should be assigned the same responsibilities assigned to the 

State Directors of Head Start Collaboration. While it is important 

that the State Directors of Head Start Collaboration engage with 

the migrant and Indian populations in their respective States, 

these special Project Directors will ensure that the specific issues 

faced by children and families served by Migrant and Seasonal 

Head Start and Indian Head Start programs are addressed. These 

positions will also serve as a conduit for knowledge and understanding of these special populations served by the Head Start and 

Early Head Start programs. 

The Committee notes with some concern that there exists a paucity of research focusing on American Indian and Alaska Native 

Head Start programs, and therefore scant information is available 

on these programs. The Committee urges the Secretary to undertake a study or set of studies designed to focus on this population, 

with a focus on issues such as curriculum development, availability 

and need for services, appropriate research methodologies and 

measures for these populations, and best practices for teaching and 

educating American Indian and Alaska Native Head Start students. Furthermore, the Committee underscores the importance of 

providing tribes and tribal organizations the opportunity to contribute to and collaborate on this research, with tribes retaining as 

much local control over this process as is practicable. 

MIGRANT AND SEASONAL HEAD START

The children of migrant and seasonal workers are one of the 

most vulnerable populations of Head Start eligible children. Migrant and Seasonal Head Start (MSHS) was founded in 1969 as a 

direct response to the unique seasonal needs of migrant farm worker families—to ensure that these families and their children can 

enjoy the same advantages made available to other low income 

children through Head Start as they move across the country with 

their families to pursue seasonal work in agriculture. 

Migrant and Seasonal Head Start programs must address the 

unique challenges and opportunities faced by migrant farm worker 

families and their children. Because of the nature of farm labor, 

children need full day services—often from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. and 

often 6 days a week. In many states, MSHS programs operate from 

May to October, rather than the typical school year schedule, and 

of course, many of the families and children are on the move for 

much of the year and need services at different times, in different 

states and locations. In addition, the primary language spoken by 

most farm workers is Spanish, and programs need to have bilingual staff available in order to be able to communicate. 

Currently operating in 39 states, MSHS programs strive to provide coordinated services to mobile families as they migrate from 

state to state. Programs work to ensure that academic and medical 

records are transferred with the families and children and when 

74 

possible that children are placed in a MSHS Program in the next 

state before they move on. MSHS Programs partner with other social and health service organizations and with agencies throughout 

the country that serve children and families working in seasonal 

agriculture. 

The School Readiness Act contains several provisions that will 

assist migrant and seasonal Head Start in better serving eligible 

children. It temporarily reserves 5 percent of the total annual appropriation for migrant and seasonal Head Start programs and requires the Department of Health and Human Services, in conjunction with the U.S. Department of Education, to develop a data system that will more accurately determine the number of eligible migrant and seasonal children being served. Once such a data system 

is up and running it will be used by the Secretary to make funding 

decisions to ensure comparable funding to other eligible children. 

H.R. 2123 also allows migrant and seasonal programs to operate 

Early Head Start, clarifies that migrant and seasonal students 

should be making progress toward the acquisition of the English 

language, while making meaningful progress in attaining other 

academic skills, and makes it clear that migrant and seasonal 

Head Start programs should be included in the planning and coordination of state systems of training and technical assistance. 

The School Readiness Act also clarifies the unique nature of Migrant and Seasonal Head Start and ensures the Federal Programs 

Branch for Migrant and Seasonal Head Start is preserved. This is 

critical since the majority of children served by MSHS programs 

are migrants who reside in more than one state through the course 

of a year and therefore could not be served through a state formula. H.R. 2123 recognizes the importance of having a national migrant and seasonal head start collaboration director in place and 

given the same standing as state collaboration directors. It is 

through the services and resources provided by the Migrant and 

Seasonal Head Start Collaboration Director that states have knowledge and understanding of the MSHS programs and understand 

how they can work to ensure that farm worker families have access 

to critical resources in the state. The position provides critical services to the MSHS programs and facilitates the development of critical partnerships between service providers. 

H.R. 2123 also recognizes that the national training and technical assistance funds for MSHS be maintained. These funds enable MSHS Program Directors and staff to come together for 

trainings specifically designed to meet the unique needs and challenges faced in serving migrant and seasonal farm worker families. 

The mobility of families served by MSHS and the specific linguistic 

and culturally relevant needs of these families are among the factors that must be considered when designing training models. 

ENROLLMENT OF HOMELESS CHILDREN

Homeless children also face substantial barriers when it comes 

to gaining and maintaining access to Head Start services. The Department of Education’s fiscal year 2000 Report to Congress on the 

Education of Homeless Children and Youth identified Head Start 

as a program presenting significant barriers to access for homeless 

children. The School Readiness Act attempts to address this issue 

by increasing efforts to conduct outreach to homeless families, and 

75 

leveraging the experience of the homeless liaisons in public schools 

that are required under the McKinney-Vento Homeless Education 

Improvement Act. This coordination assists in identifying barriers 

to serving homeless children and facilitates a smooth transition 

when homeless children move from Head Start to elementary 

schools. The School Readiness Act also addresses the issue of required paperwork, which is one of the biggest barriers to enrolling 

homeless children in Head Start. Homeless families often have difficulty producing the necessary documents, such as birth certificates and immunization records. The School Readiness Act models 

provisions in the No Child Left Behind Act, that allow eligible 

homeless students to enroll in Head Start while those documents 

are being obtained. This will allow needy children to begin accessing critical Head Start services at the earliest possible opportunity. 

Consistent with HHS’ June 1992 Memorandum ACF–IM–92–12, 

the Committee directs the Secretary to create regulations that 

prioritize homeless children for enrollment by making available a 

percentage of slots that corresponds with the percentage of homeless pre-school age children in the service area (as determined 

through a community needs assessment). This new regulation 

should be modeled on current HHS regulations that make available 

slots for children with special needs. The Secretary is directed to 

create other appropriate regulations that remove barriers and facilitate enrollment, including requiring that homeless families receive priority on waiting lists and that homelessness be expressly 

incorporated as a priority consideration in determining which children are most in need of Head Start services. To the extent feasible, homeless children should maintain their placements until the 

end of the year, even if they move out of the program’s service 

area. Family transportation needs should be addressed in Head 

Start planning efforts. 

Concerns about the regular attendance of homeless children may 

discourage Head Start programs from prioritizing homeless children for enrollment and reserving slots for their benefit. Therefore, 

regulations should clarify that provisions designed to reduce under 

enrollment are not meant to prohibit or discourage Head Start 

grantees from prioritizing homeless children for enrollment or reserving slots for their benefit. HHS should work to insure that 

plans to prioritize homeless students do not interfere with the imperative to maximize overall student enrollment and attendance. 

To reduce barriers posed by enrollment documentation requirements, regulations should allow a 45–day grace period for families 

to produce required material (e.g. proof of age, proof of residency) 

or evidence that they are in the process of obtaining such documents from a relevant agency. Regulations should allow homeless 

families to produce alternative proofs of residency, as they may not 

possess items such as lease agreements and utility bills. To facilitate effective transitions, grantees should immediately request 

records from previous service providers and immediately transfer 

the records of former program participants. Such regulations are 

consistent with the McKinney-Vento Act and current Head Start 

regulations that allow children to enroll without medical records 

while grantees and parents assess children’s medical needs. 

76 

PREVENTING ABUSE AND NEGLECT

Through the comprehensive services provided to young children 

and their families, Head Start and Early Head Start programs can 

play an important role in preventing the abuse and neglect of children and in protecting children and ameliorating the affects of maltreatment they may have already suffered. Ensuring that children 

are ready to learn means ensuring that children are safe at home 

and receive the kind of nurturing and care that all children deserve. 

Research shows that abused and neglected children are more 

likely to suffer poor prospects for success in school; sexually abused 

and neglected children are at a higher risk for academic failure; 

that maltreatment appears to be an additional factor over and 

above poverty that affects the academic achievement of children; 

and a higher frequency of academic difficulties and school behavior 

problems is reported among abused children. 

The Committee recognizes that abused and neglected children 

and children at-risk of maltreatment are in need of preventive 

services and may benefit from Head Start and Early Head Start 

services. The School Readiness Act builds upon provisions already 

existing in the Head Start statute that provide for 1) home-based 

services to Head Start children and their families, 2) staff training 

in working with children who experience violence, 3) training to 

parents in parenting skills and basic child development, and 4) collaboration with other agencies and organizations involved in child 

and family services. 

CONCLUSION

Head Start is an important program that aims to eliminate the 

school readiness gap between low-income children and their economically more advantaged peers. Recent findings from the Head 

Start Impact study suggest that after one year in Head Start, participating children make significant improvements in some domains 

of early learning and healthy development. However, additional 

work is needed to close the readiness gap so that no child starts 

school behind. In addition, a March 2005 report from the independent Government Accountability Office (GAO) warned that the 

Department of Health and Human Services is failing to adequately 

identify and swiftly resolve financial management problems that 

often occur when a lack of strong financial controls are implemented at the local level. Moreover, states are increasingly focused 

on preparing young children for school success, and over 40 states 

now offer pre-kindergarten programs that often compete for Head 

Start children and operate under eligibility guidelines and program 

standards that differ from Head Start. In an effort to maximize the 

number of children served, eliminate potential gaps and duplication in service, and prepare all children to attain a comparable 

foundation for kindergarten, more must be done to coordinate and 

integrate Head Start and state pre-kindergarten programs. 

To close the readiness gap, the School Readiness Act will 

strengthen Head Start’s academic standards by emphasizing cognitive development and the results of scientifically-based research 

in topics critical to children’s school readiness (including language, 

pre-reading, pre-mathematics, and English language acquisition). 

77 

By strengthening the academic components of Head Start and 

maintaining comprehensive services, the legislation improves upon 

the good work that Head Start is doing in many centers across the 

country. The bill also will improve teacher quality by requiring a 

greater number of Head Start teachers to be adequately trained 

and educated in early childhood development, particularly in teaching the fundamental skills of language, pre-reading, and pre-mathematics. 

To address weaknesses in the Head Start financial control system, the School Readiness Act requires stronger safeguards against 

financial mismanagement and abuse. The legislation requires Head 

Start operators to meet a range of financial disclosure requirements as a condition of receiving and keeping their federal Head 

Start grants. Grantees will have to be overseen by a local governance board that provides direction and actively oversees all program activities, and will be required to document that they have 

strong fiscal controls in place, including the employment of wellqualified financial personnel. Grantees will also have to maintain 

administrative costs that do not exceed 15 percent of total program 

costs. 

As recommend by the Government Accountability Office, the 

School Readiness Act requires the Secretary to terminate poorly 

performing grantees or require them to compete in an open grant 

competition. Local Head Start operators identified as having one 

deficiency or more during the five-year grant cycle will be required 

to compete against other potential grantees when their grants come 

up for renewal. The U.S. Secretary of Health & Human Services, 

who oversees the Head Start program, will retain the right to terminate a Head Start grant at any time during the five-year grant 

cycle. Grantees that meet all requirements will be designated as 

‘‘priority’’ grantees. 

REFERENCES

Bailey, Don. ‘‘Pre-K at Issue,’’ ED, Volume 5, Number 1. Frank Porter Graham 

Child Development Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Chapel 

Hill, N.C. 1999. 

National Research Council. Eager to Learn. Washington, D.C. 2000. 

Moughty, Sarah. The Zero-to-Three Debate: A Cautionary Look at Turning 

Science Into Policy. Online Article. 2003. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/teenbrain/science/zero.html. 

Rouse, Cecilia, Jeanne Brooks-Gunn, and Sarah McLanahan. Introducing the 

Issue. School Readiness: Closing Racial and Ethnic Gaps. The Future of Children. 

Princeton University and the Brookings Institution. Volume 15, Number 1, Spring 

2005. 

Starting Points: Meeting the Needs of Our Youngest Children. Carnegie Corporation of New York. New York. 1994. 

SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS

Section 1. Short title 

Cites the short title as the ‘‘School Readiness Act of 2005.’’ 

Section 2. Purpose 

Amends Section 636 of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9831). Sets 

forth the purpose this bill. 

78 

Section 3. Definitions 

Amends Section 637 of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9832). 

Modifies and adds to the definitions under this act, including a definition of ‘‘Limited English Proficient’’. 

Section 4. Financial assistance for Head Start programs 

Amends Section 638 of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9833). 

Adds language to specify that the Secretary shall provide financial 

assistance to eligible agencies for a period of 5 years. 

Section 5. Authorization 

Amends Section 639 of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9834). Authorizes funds to carry out this act, including specific programs and 

administrative expenses. 

Section 6. Allotment of funds; limitations on assistance 

Amends Section 640 of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9835). Designates the purposes and percentages for funding. Adds further requirements for salary increases for Head Start staff and promotes 

the regular attendance and stability of Head Start children, especially highly mobile children. 

Section 7. Designation of agencies 

Amends Section 641 of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9836). 

Adds language naming faith-based organizations as eligible grantees. Declares that grantees must establish goals for enhancing the 

school readiness of children participating in that program. Adds details and further requirements for the plans submitted by grantees. 

Section 8. Quality standards; monitoring of Head Start agencies 

and programs 

Amends Section 641A of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9836a). 

Changes the quality standards, adds specific dates of reference, 

and adds language requiring the review to assess grantees compliance with income eligibility requirements and to seek information 

regarding general collaboration efforts, and efforts to address the 

needs the children of limited English proficient and migrant and 

seasonal farm-working families. Includes language to promote child 

health services and physical development as well as language to 

permit programs continually operating at less than full enrollment 

to use a portion of the base grant to serve persons described in section 645A. 

Section 9. Powers and functions of Head Start agencies 

Amends Section 642 of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9837). 

Adds language requiring the grantees to establish a program with 

standards referenced in Section 641A, demonstrate capacity to 

serve children with scientifically-based curricula, conduct outreach 

to various organizations to generate support and coordinate the recruitment of children, including outreach and services to parents of 

limited English proficient children. 

Section 10. Local and State integration of early childhood education 

Section 10 inserts Section 642B after section 642A, and amends 

the heading to read as follows: ‘‘Sec. 642B. Local and State IntegraVerDate Aug 04 2004 03:39 Jun 18, 2005 Jkt 039006 PO 00000 Frm 00078 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\HR136.XXX HR136
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tion of Early Childhood Education.’’. Adds Language to address the 

Local and Statewide integration of Head Start with local educational agencies and inserts language under Local Integration to 

include a memorandum of understanding between Head Start programs and local educational agencies. Also includes language to 

help increase the participation of children underrepresented in 

State early childhood education and childhood programs, including 

Head Start, State pre-school programs, and programs carried out 

under the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990 

(42 U.S.C. 9858 et seq.). 

Section 11. Head Start alignment with K–12 education 

Amends the heading for Section 642A of the Head Start Act (42 

U.S.C. 9837a). Changes the heading to read as follows: ‘‘Sec. 642A. 

Head Start Alignment with K–12 Education.’’. Adds Language to 

include McKinney-Vento liaisons among the school staff to be communicated. 

Section 12. Administrative requirements and standards 

Amends section 644 of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9839 (f)(2)). 

Changes language to require that each Head Start agency make 

public, an annual report at least once each fiscal year disclosing 

budgetary, enrollment, and performance information and any other 

information describing the activities of the agency. 

Section 13. Eligibility 

Amends Section 645(a) of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9840). 

Adds language regarding homeless children as meeting the low-income criteria to make them eligible for the Head Start Program. 

Section 14. Early Head Start programs 

Amends Section 645A of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9640a). 

Adds language to ensure a systematic procedure is in place to help 

in the transition between Early Head Start and Head Start. Adds 

language to include migrant and seasonal Head Start programs, 

community- and faith-based organizations as eligible service providers for Early Head Start. 

Section 15. Parental consent requirement for nonemergency intrusive physical examinations 

Amends Section 645A of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9831 et 

seq.) to insert after section 645A the following: ‘‘Sec. 645B. Parental Consent Requirement for Non-Emergency Intrusive Physical 

Examinations.’’. Adds language specifying the definition, requirements, and rules of construction regarding a nonemergency intrusive physical examination. 

Section 16. Right to appeal 

Amends Section 646(a)(3) of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 

9841(a)(3)). Changes financial assistance language in regard to the 

appeal process denying an application for a noncompeting continuation award based on previous failure to comply with terms applicable to financial assistance and specifies no funds be made available to reimburse any Head Start grantee for legal fees or costs 

while pursuing an appeal. 

80 

Section 17. Audits 

Amends section 647 of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9842). Adds 

language requiring each Head Start program to submit to the Secretary an independent financial audit of the Head Start program 

carried out by a certified public accountant who has been chosen 

through a competitive process. Specifies that no accountant may 

perform audits for more than 2 consecutive years. 

Section 18. Technical assistance and training 

Amends Section 648 of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9843). 

Adds language allowing, depending on a State’s financial contribution, a state-based system that delivers training and technical assistance to both Head Start Agencies (including migrant and seasonal Head Start programs and limited English proficient children 

and their families), and other providers of early childhood services 

in the state. 

Section 19. Staff qualifications and development 

Amends Section 648A of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9843a. 

Adds language requiring Head Start teachers to do the following: 

all new hires must have at least an Associate degree or be enrolled 

in a program working towards that degree within three years of enactment, 50 percent nationwide to have a Baccalaureate degree by 

2011, and those that have received financial assistance under Section 648A to teach in a Head Start Center for an amount of time 

equal to the time period in which they received financial assistance. Also requires all Head Start agencies to create professional 

development plans for all full-time employees who provide direct 

services to children. 

Section 20. Research, demonstrations, and evaluation 

Amends Section 649 of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9844). 

Eliminates language regarding completed research, demonstration, 

and evaluations. Eliminates additional language regarding a study 

comparing the experiences of Head Start children to those who did 

not participate in a Head Start program. Adds language requiring 

the Secretary to contract with the National Academy of Sciences 

and the National Research Council to establish an independent 

panel of experts to research and make recommendations on early 

childhood pedagogy, derived from the research. The Secretary shall 

use these recommendations, where appropriate, in relation to Head 

Start education performance standards, measures, and assessments. Adds language directing the Secretary to conduct a study on 

the status of limited English proficient children and their families 

in Head Start and Early Head Start programs and report on the 

study no later than September 2008. 

Section 21. Reports 

Amends Section 650 of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9845). 

Adds language requiring the Secretary to include the status of 

homeless children in his bi-annual report to the Committee on 

Education and the Workforce (House of Representatives), and to 

the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (Senate). 

81 

Section 22. Limitation on rate of Federal funding for compensation 

Amends heading of Section 653 of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 

9848) to read as follows: ‘‘Sec. 653. Wages and Compensation.’’. 

Adds language clarifying that no federal funds shall be used to pay 

all or any part of the compensation of an individual at a rate higher than that of the Secretary of Health and Human Services. 

Section 23. Limitation on use of funds 

Inserts section 656A after Section 656 of the Head Start Act (42 

U.S.C. 9831) to be read as follows: ‘‘Sec. 656A. Limitation on Certain Uses of Funds.’’. Adds language to clarify that no funds may 

be used to pay any person from the media to conduct or support 

activities for publicity or propaganda and that no funds may be 

used to produce any prepackaged news stories for broadcast or distribution. 

Section 24. Conforming amendment 

Amends sections of the Early Childhood Education Act by striking ‘‘non-English language background’’ and inserting ‘‘limited 

English proficient’’. 

Section 25. Effective date; application of amendments 

Sets forth the effective date of the act and states that amendments made by the act shall not apply to any fiscal year that begins before the date of the enactment of this Act. 

EXPLANATION OF AMENDMENTS

The Amendment in the Nature of a Substitute is explained in the 

body of this report. 

APPLICATION OF LAW TO THE LEGISLATIVE BRANCH

Section 102(b)(3) of Public Law 104–1 requires a description of 

the application of this bill to the legislative branch. H.R. 2123 

amends and improves the Head Start Act to improve the school 

readiness of disadvantaged children. The bill does not prevent legislative branch employees’ coverage under this legislation. 

UNFUNDED MANDATE STATEMENT

Section 423 of the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act (as amended by Section 101(a)(2) of the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act, P.L. 104–4) requires a statement of whether the 

provisions of the reported bill include unfunded mandates. H.R. 

2123 amends and improves the Head Start Act to improve the 

school readiness of disadvantaged children. As such, the bill does 

not contain any unfunded mandates. 

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87 

STATEMENT OF OVERSIGHT FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS OF

THE COMMITTEE

In compliance with clause 3(c)(1) of rule XIII and clause (2)(b)(1) 

of rule X of the Rules of the House of Representatives, the Committee’s oversight findings and recommendations are reflected in the 

body of this report. 

NEW BUDGET AUTHORITY AND CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE

COST ESTIMATE

With respect to the requirements of clause 3(c)(2) of rule XIII of 

the House of Representatives and section 308(a) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 and with respect to requirements of 

3(c)(3) of rule XIII of the House of Representatives and section 402 

of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, the Committee has received the following cost estimate for H.R. 2123 from the Director 

of the Congressional Budget Office: 

U.S. CONGRESS, 

CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE, 

Washington, DC, June 3, 2005. 

Hon. JOHN A. BOEHNER, 

Chairman, Committee on Education and the Workforce, 

House of Representatives, Washington, DC. 

DEAR MR. CHAIRMAN: As you requested, the Congressional Budget Office has prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 2123, the 

School Readiness Act of 2005. 

If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be pleased 

to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Kathleen FitzGerald. 

Sincerely, 

ELIZABETH M. ROBINSON

(For Douglas Holtz-Eakin, Director). 

Enclosure. 

HR. 2123—School Readiness Act of 2005 

Summary: H.R. 2123 would reauthorize the Head Start program 

through 2011. The program was authorized through 2003 by the 

Coats Human Services Reauthorization Act of 1998 (Public Law 

105–285) and has since been extended through annual appropriation acts. 

CBO estimates that the bill would authorize the appropriation of 

$6.9 billion in 2006 and about $35.7 billion over the 2006–2010 period, assuming that annual levels are adjusted for inflation when 

specific annual authorization levels are not provided. (Without such 

inflation adjustments, the authorizations would total about $34.5 

billion over the 2006–2010 period.) CBO estimates that appropriation of the authorized amounts would result in additional outlays 

of $32.3 billion over the 2006–2010 period, assuming annual adjustments for inflation (and about $31.3 billion without adjustments for inflation). Enacting H.R. 2123 would not affect direct 

spending or receipts. 

H.R. 2123 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined by the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA). 

Any costs to state, local, or tribal governments would result from 

complying with conditions for receiving federal assistance. 

88 

Estimated cost to the Federal Government: The estimated budgetary impact of H.R. 2123 is shown in the following table. The costs 

of this legislation fall within budget function 500 (education, training, employment, and social services). 

By fiscal year, in millions of dollars— 

2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 

SPENDING SUBJECT TO APPROPRIATION 

Spending Under Current Law: 

Budget Authority1 .................................................... 6,843 1,400 0 0 0 0 

Estimated Outlays ................................................... 6,810 3,735 765 96 14 0 

Proposed Changes: 

Estimated Authorization Level ................................. 0 6,899 7,010 7,142 7,273 7,404 

Estimated Outlays ................................................... 0 3,932 6,755 7,013 7,211 7,342 

Total Spending Under H.R. 2123: 

Estimated Authorization Level ................................. 6,843 8,299 7,010 7,142 7,273 7,404 

Estimated Outlays ................................................... 6,810 7,668 7,520 7,109 7,225 7,342 

1 The 2005 level is the amount appropriated for the Head Start program including an advance of $1.389 billion for the 2004–2005 aca- demic year. The 2006 level is the amount appropriated in an advance appropriation for the 2005–2006 academic year. 

Basis of estimate: H.R. 2123 would revise and reauthorize the 

Head Start program through 2011. For this estimate, CBO assumes that the bill will be enacted near the start of fiscal year 

2006, that the estimated amounts shown in the table will be appropriated for each year, and that outlays will follow historical spending patterns. 

The Head Start program provides comprehensive child development services to low-income children. Services include education, 

health, nutrition, and social services with the overall goal of increasing the school readiness of young children in low-income families. 

The bill would authorize the appropriation of $6.9 billion in 2006 

and such sums as may be necessary in 2007 through 2011 for the 

Head Start program. CBO estimates that the total authorizations 

for the 2006–2010 period would be about $35.7 billion, assuming 

adjustments for inflation, with resulting outlays of $32.3 billion 

over those five years. 

Funding for this program currently is provided on a programyear basis through appropriations in two separate fiscal years: a 

current fiscal year appropriation and an advance appropriation 

available October 1 of the next fiscal year. Although the program 

has been funded by two separate appropriations since 2001, funding does not need to be authorized separately because all of the 

funds for a program year could be provided in one appropriation. 

Intergovernmental and private-sector impact: H.R. 2123 contains 

no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined by 

UMRA. The bill would authorize $6.9 million to support Head Start 

and Early Head Start program activities, including new standards 

for the education and professional development of teachers serving 

program participants. Any costs incurred by state, local, or tribal 

governments would result from complying with conditions for receiving federal assistance. 

Estimate prepared by: Federal Costs: Kathleen FitzGerald. Impact on State, Local, and Tribal Governments: Lisa RamirezBranum. Impact on the Private Sector: Meena Fernandes. 

Estimate approved by: Peter H. Fontaine, Deputy Assistant Director for Budget Analysis. 

89 

STATEMENT OF GENERAL PERFORMANCE GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

In accordance with clause (3)(c) of House rule XIII, the goal of 

H.R. 2123 is to improve the Head Start Act to improve the school 

readiness of disadvantaged children. The Committee expects the 

Department of Health and Human Services to comply with H.R. 

2123 and implement the changes to the law in accordance with the 

changes. 

CONSTITUTIONAL AUTHORITY STATEMENT

Under clause 3(d)(1) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of 

Representatives, the Committee must include a statement citing 

the specific powers granted to Congress in the Constitution to 

enact the law proposed by H.R. 2123. The Committee believes that 

the amendments made by this bill, which authorize appropriations 

for Head Start programs, are within Congress’ authority under Article I, section 8, clause 1 of the Constitution. 

COMMITTEE ESTIMATE

Clause 3(d)(2) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives requires an estimate and a comparison by the Committee of the costs that would be incurred in carrying out H.R. 

2123. However, clause 3(d)(3)(B) of that rule provides that this requirement does not apply when the Committee has included in its 

report a timely submitted cost estimate of the bill prepared by the 

Director of the Congressional Budget Office under section 402 of 

the Congressional Budget Act. 

CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW MADE BY THE BILL, AS REPORTED

In compliance with clause 3(e) of rule XIII of the Rules of the 

House of Representatives, changes in existing law made by the bill, 

as reported, are shown as follows (existing law proposed to be omitted is enclosed in black brackets, new matter is printed in italic, 

existing law in which no change is proposed is shown in roman): 

HEAD START ACT 

Subchapter B—Head Start Programs 

SHORT TITLE

SEC. 635. This subchapter may be cited as the ‘‘Head Start Act’’. 

øSEC. 636. STATEMENT OF PURPOSE. 

øIt is the purpose of this subchapter to promote school readiness 

by enhancing the social and cognitive development of low-income 

children through the provision, to low-income children and their 

families, of health, educational, nutritional, social, and other services that are determined, based on family needs assessments, to be 

necessary.¿ 

SEC. 636. STATEMENT OF PURPOSE. 

It is the purpose of this subchapter to promote school readiness 

by enhancing the development of low-income children, including development of cognitive abilities, through educational instruction in 

prereading skills, premathematics skills, language, and social and 

emotional development linked to school readiness and through the 

90 

provision to low-income children and their families of health, educational, nutritional, social and other services that are determined, 

based on family needs assessments, to be necessary. 

DEFINITIONS

SEC. 637. For purposes of this subchapter: 

(1) * * * 

(2) The term ‘‘challenging State developed academic content 

standards’’ has the meaning given such term in paragraphs (1) 

and (5) of section 1111(b) of the Elementary and Secondary 

Education Act of 1965. 

(3) The term ‘‘deficient’’ means— 

(A) systemic or significant failure of a Head Start agency 

in an area of performance that the Secretary determines involves— 

(i) a threat to the health, safety, or civil rights of 

children or staff; 

(ii) a denial to parents of the exercise of their full 

roles and responsibilities related to program governance; 

(iii) a failure to perform the requirements of section 

641A(a), as determined by the Secretary; 

(iv) the misuse of funds received under this subchapter; 

(v) loss of legal status (as determined by the Secretary) or financial viability, loss of permits, debarment from receiving Federal grants or contracts, or the 

improper use of Federal funds; or 

(vi) failure to meet any other Federal or State requirement; 

(B) failure of the board of directors of a Head Start agency to fully exercise its legal and fiduciary responsibilities; 

(C) failure of a Head Start agency to meet the administrative requirements of section 644(b); or 

(D) failure of a Head Start agency to meet the integration 

requirements of section 642B(a). 

ø(2)¿ (4) The term ‘‘delegate agency’’ means a public, private 

nonprofit, or for-profit organization or agency to which a grantee has delegated all or part of the responsibility of the grantee 

for operating a Head Start program. 

(5) The term ‘‘eligible entities’’ means an institution of higher 

education or other agency with expertise in delivering training 

in early childhood development, family support, and other assistance designed to improve the quality of early childhood education programs. 

ø(3)¿ (6) The term ‘‘family literacy services’’ means services 

that are of sufficient intensity in terms of hours, and of sufficient duration, to make sustainable changes in a family, and 

that integrate all of the following activities: 

(A) * * * 

* * * * * * * 

ø(4)¿ (7) The term ‘‘financial assistance’’ includes assistance 

provided by grant, agreement, or contract, and payments may 

be made in installments and in advance or by way of reimVerDate Aug 04 2004 03:39 Jun 18, 2005 Jkt 039006 PO 00000 Frm 00090 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\HR136.XXX HR136
91 

bursement with necessary adjustments on account of overpayments or underpayments. 

ø(5)¿ (8) The term ‘‘full calendar year’’ means all days of the 

year other than Saturday, Sunday, and a legal public holiday. 

ø(6)¿ (9) The term ‘‘full-working-day’’ means not less than 10 

hours per day. Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed to 

require an agency to provide services to a child who has not 

reached the age of compulsory school attendance for more than 

the number of hours per day permitted by State law (including 

regulation) for the provision of services to such a child. 

ø(7)¿ (10) The term ‘‘Head Start classroom’’ means a group 

of children supervised and taught by two paid staff members 

(a teacher and a teacher’s aide or two teachers) and, where 

possible, a volunteer. 

ø(8)¿ (11) The term ‘‘Head Start family day care’’ means 

Head Start services provided in a private residence other than 

the residence of the child receiving such services. 

ø(9)¿ (12) The term ‘‘home-based Head Start program’’ 

means a Head Start program that provides Head Start services 

in the private residence of the child receiving such services. 

(13) The term ‘‘homeless children’’ has the meaning given 

such term in subtitle B of title VII of the McKinney-Vento 

Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11431–11435). 

ø(10)¿ (14) The term ‘‘Indian tribe’’ means any tribe, band, 

nation, pueblo, or other organized group or community of Indians, including any Native village described in section 3(c) of 

the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 1602(c)) 

or established pursuant to such Act (43 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.), 

that is recognized as eligible for the special programs and services provided by the United States to Indians because of their 

status as Indians. 

(15) LIMITED ENGLISH PROFICIENT; LIMITED ENGLISH PROFICIENCY.—The terms ‘‘limited English proficient’’ and ‘‘limited 

English proficiency’’ mean with respect to an individual, that 

such individual— 

(A)(i) was not born in the United States or has a native 

language that is not English; 

(ii)(I) is a Native American, an Alaska Native, or a native resident of a territory or possession of the United 

States; and 

(II) comes from an environment in which a language that 

is not English has had a significant impact on such individual’s level of English language proficiency; or 

(iii) is migratory, has a native language that is not 

English, and comes from an environment in which a language that is not English is dominant; and 

(B) has difficultly in speaking or understanding the 

English language to an extent that may be sufficient to 

deny such individual— 

(i) the ability to successfully achieve in classrooms in 

which the language of instruction is English; or 

(ii) the opportunity to fully participate in society. 

ø(11)¿ (16) The term ‘‘local educational agency’’ has the 

meaning given such term in the Elementary and Secondary 

Education Act of 1965. 

92 

ø(12)¿ (17) The term ‘‘migrant and seasonal Head Start program’’ means— 

(A) * * * 

* * * * * * * 

ø(13)¿ (18) The term ‘‘mobile Head Start program’’ means 

the provision of Head Start services utilizing transportable 

equipment set up in various community-based locations on a 

routine, weekly schedule, operating in conjunction with homebased Head Start programs, or as a Head Start classroom. 

ø(14)¿ (19) The term ‘‘poverty line’’ means the official poverty 

line (as defined by the Office of Management and Budget)— 

(A) * * * 

* * * * * * * 

(20) PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT.—The term ‘‘professional 

development’’ means high quality activities that will enhance 

the school readiness of eligible children and prevent such children from encountering difficulties once they enter school by improving the knowledge and skills of Head Start teachers and 

staff, as relevant to their roles and functions, including activities that— 

(A) provide teachers with the content knowledge and 

teaching strategies needed to provide effective instruction 

and other school readiness services in early language and 

literacy, early mathematics, cognitive skills, approaches to 

learning, creative arts, science, physical health and development, and social and emotional development linked to 

school readiness; 

(B) assist teachers in meeting the requirements in paragraphs (1) and (2) of section 648A(a), as appropriate; 

(C) improve teachers’ classroom management skills, as 

appropriate; 

(D) for teachers, are sustained, intensive, and classroomfocused in order to have a positive and lasting impact on 

classroom instruction and teachers’ performance in the 

classroom; 

(E) are not primarily 1-day or short-term workshops or 

conferences, and attendance at activities that are 1-day or 

short-term workshops or conferences must be as part of the 

professional development plan defined in section 648A(f); 

(F) assist teachers and staff in increasing their knowledge and skills in program administration, program quality, and the provision of services and instruction, as appropriate, in a manner that improves service delivery to eligible children and families; 

(G) are part of a sustained effort to improve overall program quality and outcomes for eligible children and families; 

(H) advance teacher understanding of effective instructional strategies that are— 

(i) based on scientifically based research; and 

(ii) strategies for improving school readiness or substantially increasing the knowledge and teaching skills 

of teachers; 

93 

(I) are, where applicable, aligned with and directly related to— 

(i) challenging State academic content standards, 

student academic achievement standards, assessments, 

and the Head Start Child Outcomes Framework developed by the Secretary; 

(ii) the curricula, ongoing assessments, and other instruction and services designed to help meet the standards described in section 641A(a)(1); and 

(iii) the Head Start Child Outcomes Framework developed by the Secretary; 

(J) are developed or selected with extensive participation 

of administrators and teachers from Head Start programs; 

(K) are developmentally appropriate for the children 

being served; 

(L) are designed to give teachers of limited English proficient children, and other teachers and instructional staff, 

the knowledge and skills to provide instruction and appropriate language and support services to increase the 

English language skills of such children; 

(M) as a whole, are regularly evaluated for their impact 

on increased teacher and staff effectiveness and improved 

ability of teachers to support learning and increase participating children’s school readiness, with the findings of the 

evaluations used to improve the quality of professional development; 

(N) provide instruction in methods of teaching children 

with special needs, as appropriate; 

(O) include instruction in ways that Head Start personnel may work more effectively with parents, as appropriate; and 

(P) are designed to give teachers and staff the knowledge 

and skills to provide instruction and appropriate support 

services to children of diverse backgrounds, as appropriate. 

ø(15)¿ (21) The term ‘‘scientifically based reading research’’— 

(A) * * * 

* * * * * * * 

(22) The term ‘‘scientifically based research’’— 

(A) means research that involves the application of rigorous, systematic and objective procedures to obtain reliable 

and valid knowledge relevant to education activities and 

programs; and 

(B) includes research that— 

(i) employs systematic, empirical methods that draw 

on observation or experiment; 

(ii) involves rigorous data analyses that are adequate 

to test the stated hypotheses and justify the general 

conclusions drawn; 

(iii) relies on measurements or observational methods 

that provide reliable and valid data across evaluators 

and observers, across multiple measurements and observations, and across studies by the same or different 

investigators; 

(iv) is evaluated using experimental or quasi-experimental designs in which individuals, entities, proVerDate Aug 04 2004 03:39 Jun 18, 2005 Jkt 039006 PO 00000 Frm 00093 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6603 E:\HR\OC\HR136.XXX HR136
94 

grams or activities are assigned to different conditions 

and with appropriate controls to evaluate the effects of 

the condition of interest, with a preference for random 

assignment experiments, or other designs to the extent 

that those designs contain within-condition or acrosscondition controls; 

(v) ensures that experimental studies are presented in 

sufficient detail and clarity to allow for replication or, 

at a minimum, offer the opportunity to build systematically on their findings; and 

(vi) has been accepted by a peer-reviewed journal or 

approved by a panel of independent experts through a 

comparably rigorous, objective, and scientific review. 

ø(16)¿ (23) The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary of 

Health and Human Services. 

ø(17)¿ (24) The term ‘‘State’’ means a State, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the District of Columbia, Guam, American Samoa, the Virgin Islands of the United States, and the 

Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islandsø, but for fiscal years ending before October 1, 2001 (and fiscal year 2002, 

if the legislation described in section 640(a)(2)(B)(iii) has not 

been enacted before September 30, 2001), also means the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau¿. (25) The term ‘‘State educational agency’’ has the meaning 

given such term in the Elementary and Secondary Education 

Act of 1965. 

(26) The term ‘‘unresolved area of noncompliance’’ means a 

failure to correct a noncompliance item within 90 days, or within such additional time (if any) authorized by the Secretary, 

after receiving from the Secretary notice of such noncompliance 

item. 

FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE FOR HEAD START PROGRAMS

SEC. 638. The Secretary may, upon application by an agency 

which is eligible for designation as a Head Start agency pursuant 

to section 641, provide financial assistance to such agency for a period of 5 years for the planning, conduct, administration, and evaluation of a Head Start program focused primarily upon the children from low-income families who have not reached the age of 

compulsory school attendance which (1) will provide such comprehensive health, education, parental involvement, nutritional, social, and other services as will enable the children to attain their 

full potential and attain school readiness; and (2) will provide for 

direct participation of the parents of such children in the development, conduct, and overall program direction at the local level. 

øAUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS

øSEC. 639. (a) There are authorized to be appropriated for carrying out the provisions of this subchapter such sums as may be 

necessary for fiscal years 1999 through 2003. 

ø(b) From the amount appropriated under subsection (a), the Secretary shall make available— 

ø(1) for each of fiscal years 1999 through 2003 to carry out 

activities authorized under section 642A, not more than 

95 

$35,000,000 but not less than the amount that was made available for such activities for fiscal year 1998; 

ø(2) not more than $5,000,000 for each of fiscal years 1999 

through 2003 to carry out impact studies under section 649(g); 

and 

ø(3) not more than $12,000,000 for fiscal year 1999, and such 

sums as may be necessary for each of fiscal years 2000 through 

2003, to carry out other research, demonstration, and evaluation activities, including longitudinal studies, under section 

649.¿ 

SEC. 639. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

(a) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be appropriated for carrying out the provisions of this subchapter $6,899,000,000 for the 

fiscal year 2006 and such sums as may be necessary for the fiscal 

years 2007 through 2011. 

(b) SPECIFIC PROGRAMS.—From the amount appropriated under 

subsection (a), the Secretary shall make available not more than 

$20,000,000 for fiscal year 2006, and such sums as may be necessary for fiscal years 2007 through 2011 to carry out such other research, demonstration, and evaluation activities, including longitudinal studies, under section 649, of which not more than $7,000,000 

for each of the fiscal years 2006 through 2011 to carry out impact 

studies under section 649(g). 

ALLOTMENT OF FUNDS; LIMITATIONS ON ASSISTANCE

SEC. 640. (a)(1) * * * 

(2) The Secretary shall reserve 13 percent of the amount appropriated for each fiscal year for use in accordance with the following 

order of priorities— 

ø(A) Indian Head Start programs, services for children with 

disabilities, and migrant and seasonal Head Start programs, 

except that there shall be made available for each fiscal year 

for use by Indian Head Start programs and by migrant and 

seasonal Head Start programs, on a nationwide basis, not less 

than the amount that was obligated for use by Indian Head 

Start programs and by migrant and seasonal Head Start programs for fiscal year 1998; 

ø(B) payments, subject to paragraph (7)— 

ø(i) to Guam, American Samoa, the Commonwealth of 

the Northern Mariana Islands, and the Virgin Islands of 

the United States; 

ø(ii) for fiscal years ending before October 1, 2001, to the 

Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau; and 

ø(iii) if legislation approving renegotiated Compacts of 

Free Association for the jurisdictions described in clause 

(ii) has not been enacted before September 30, 2001, for 

fiscal year 2002 to those jurisdictions; 

according to their respective needs, except that such amount 

shall not exceed one-half of 1 percent of the sums appropriated 

for any fiscal year; 

ø(C) training and technical assistance activities which are 

sufficient to meet the needs associated with program expansion 

and to foster program and management improvement activities 

96 

as described in section 648 of this subchapter, in an amount 

for each fiscal year which is not less than 2 percent of the 

amount appropriated for such fiscal year, of which not less 

than $3,000,000 of the amount appropriated for such fiscal 

year shall be made available to carry out activities described 

in section 648(c)(4);¿ 

(A) Indian Head Start programs, services for children 

with disabilities, and migrant and seasonal Head Start 

programs, except that— 

(i) there shall be made available for each fiscal year 

for use by Indian Head Start programs and by migrant 

and seasonal Head Start programs, on a nationwide 

basis, not less than the amount that was obligated for 

use by Indian Head Start programs and by migrant 

and seasonal Head Start programs for fiscal year 

2005; 

(ii) migrant and seasonal Head Start programs shall 

receive at least 5 percent of the amount appropriated 

for such fiscal year until such time as the Secretary 

can make funding decisions to ensure access to funding 

for eligible children of migrant and seasonal farmworkers is comparable to access to funding for other eligible children based on the data collected and reported 

pursuant to section 648(j), except that no future reduction in funding shall result in the termination of Head 

Start services provided to any eligible child 3 years of 

age or older who is participating in any such program 

on the date a reduction in funding occurs, and shall, 

to the extent possible, continue participation for children less than 3 years of age receiving services prior to 

such reduction in funding; and 

(iii) Indian Head Start programs shall receive at 

least 3.5 percent of the amount appropriated for such 

fiscal year until such time as the Secretary can make 

funding decisions to ensure access to funding for eligible Indian children is comparable to access to funding 

for other eligible children; 

(B) payments, subject to paragraph (7) to Guam, American 

Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, 

and the Virgin Islands of the United States, and subject to the 

requirements of section 105(f)(1)(B)(ix) of Public Law 108–188 

to Palau; 

(C) training and technical assistance activities to foster program quality and management improvement as described in 

section 648, in an amount for each fiscal year which is equal 

to 2 percent of the amount appropriated for such fiscal year, of 

which— 

(i) not less than 50 percent shall be made available to 

local Head Start agencies to make program improvements 

identified by such agencies and comply with the standards 

described in section 641A(a)(1), of which not less than 50 

percent shall be used to comply with the standards described in section 641A(a)(1)(B) and for the uses described 

in clauses (iii), (iv), and (vii) of subsection (a)(3)(B); 

97 

(ii) not less than 20 percent shall be made available to 

support a State system of early childhood education training and technical assistance, including the State Early 

Learning Council described in section 642B(b); 

(iii) not less than 30 percent shall be made available to 

the Secretary to assist local programs in meeting the standards described in section 641A(a)(1) and shall be allocated 

to address program weaknesses identified by monitoring activities conducted by the Secretary under section 641A(c); 

and 

(iv) not less than $3,000,000 of the amount in clause (iii) 

appropriated for such fiscal year shall be made available 

to carry out activities described in section 648(d)(4); 

* * * * * * * 

No funds reserved under this paragraph or paragraph (3) may be 

combined with funds appropriated under any other Act if the purpose of combining funds is to make a single discretionary grant or 

a single discretionary payment, unless such funds appropriated 

under this subchapter are separately identified in such grant or 

payment and are used for the purposes of this subchapter. øNo 

Freely Associated State may receive financial assistance under this 

subchapter after fiscal year 2002.¿ 

(3)(A)(i) In order to provide assistance for activities specified in 

subparagraph (C) directed at the goals specified in subparagraph 

(B), the Secretary shall reserve, from the amount (if any) by which 

the funds appropriated under section 639(a) for a fiscal year exceed 

the adjusted prior year appropriation, a share equal to the sum 

of— 

(I) 60 percent of such excess amount for fiscal øyear 1999, 

50 percent of such excess amount for fiscal year 2000, 47.5 percent of such excess amount for fiscal year 2001, 35 percent of 

such excess amount for fiscal year 2002, and 25 percent of such 

excess amount for fiscal year 2003¿ years 2006 through 2011; 

and 

* * * * * * * 

(iii) After the reservation of amounts under paragraph (2) and the 

60 percent amount referred to in subparagraph (A) of this paragraph, a portion of the remaining funds shall be made available— 

(I) to expand services to underserved populations, such as 

children receiving services under Early Head Start programs 

and under migrant and seasonal Head Start programs; and 

(II) to increase funding to grantees with full enrollment and 

whose aggregate amount of financial assistance provides funding per child that is below the national average. 

ø(B) Funds reserved under this paragraph (referred to in this 

paragraph as ‘‘quality improvement funds’’) shall be used to accomplish any or all of the following goals: 

ø(i) Ensuring that Head Start programs meet or exceed performance standards pursuant to section 641A(a)(1)(A). 

ø(ii) Ensuring that such programs have adequate numbers of 

qualified staff, and that such staff are furnished adequate 

training, including developing skills in working with children 

with non-English language background and children with disabilities, when appropriate. 

98 

ø(iii) Ensuring that salary levels and benefits are adequate 

to attract and retain qualified staff for such programs. 

ø(iv) Using salary increases to improve staff qualifications, 

and to assist with the implementation of career development 

programs, for the staff of Head Start programs, and to encourage the staff to continually improve their skills and expertise 

by informing the staff of the availability of Federal and State 

incentive and loan forgiveness programs for professional development. 

ø(v) Improving community-wide strategic planning and needs 

assessments for such programs and collaboration efforts for 

such programs. 

ø(vi) Ensuring that the physical environments of Head Start 

programs are conducive to providing effective program services 

to children and families, and are accessible to children with 

disabilities and their parents. 

ø(vii) Ensuring that such programs have qualified staff that 

can promote language skills and literacy growth of children 

and that can provide children with a variety of skills that have 

been identified, through scientifically based reading research, 

as predictive of later reading achievement. 

ø(viii) Making such other improvements in the quality of 

such programs as the Secretary may designate. 

ø(C) Quality improvement funds shall be used to carry out any 

or all of the following activities: 

ø(i)(I) Not less than one-half of the amount reserved under 

this paragraph, to improve the compensation (including benefits) of classroom teachers and other staff of Head Start agencies and thereby enhance recruitment and retention of qualified staff, including recruitment and retention pursuant to 

achieving the requirements set forth in section 648A(a). The 

expenditure of funds under this clause shall be subject to section 653. Preferences in awarding salary increases, in excess of 

cost-of-living allowances, with such funds shall be granted to 

classroom teachers and staff who obtain additional training or 

education related to their responsibilities as employees of a 

Head Start program. 

ø(II) If a Head Start agency certifies to the Secretary for 

such fiscal year that part of the funds set aside under subclause (I) to improve wages cannot be expended by such agency 

to improve wages because of the operation of section 653, then 

such agency may expend such part for any of the uses specified 

in this subparagraph (other than wages). 

ø(III) From the remainder of the amount reserved under this 

paragraph (after the Secretary carries out subclause (I)), the 

Secretary shall carry out any or all of the activities described 

in clauses (ii) through (vii), placing the highest priority on the 

activities described in clause (ii). 

ø(ii) To train classroom teachers and other staff to meet the 

education performance standards described in section 

641A(a)(1)(B), through activities— 

ø(I) to promote children’s language and literacy growth, 

through techniques identified through scientifically based 

reading research; 

99 

ø(II) to promote the acquisition of the English language 

for non-English background children and families; 

ø(III) to foster children’s school readiness skills through 

activities described in section 648A(a)(1); and 

ø(IV) to provide training necessary to improve the qualifications of the staff of the Head Start agencies and to support staff training, child counseling, and other services 

necessary to address the problems of children participating 

in Head Start programs, including children from dysfunctional families, children who experience chronic violence in 

their communities, and children who experience substance 

abuse in their families. 

ø(iii) To employ additional Head Start staff, including staff 

necessary to reduce the child-staff ratio and staff necessary to 

coordinate a Head Start program with other services available 

to children participating in such program and to their families. 

ø(iv) To pay costs incurred by Head Start agencies to purchase insurance (other than employee benefits) and thereby 

maintain or expand Head Start services. 

ø(v) To supplement amounts provided under paragraph 

(2)(C) to provide training necessary to improve the qualifications of the staff of the Head Start agencies, and to support 

staff training, child counseling, and other services necessary to 

address the problems of children participating in Head Start 

programs, including children from dysfunctional families, children who experience chronic violence in their communities, and 

children who experience substance abuse in their families. 

ø(vi) Such other activities as the Secretary may designate.¿ 

(B) Funds reserved under this paragraph (in this paragraph referred to as ‘‘quality improvement funds’’) shall be used to accomplish the following goals: 

(i) Ensuring that Head Start programs meet or exceed standards pursuant to section 641A(a)(1). 

(ii) Ensuring that such programs have adequate numbers of 

qualified staff, and that such staff is furnished adequate training, including developing skills to promote the development of 

language skills, premathematic skills, and prereading in young 

children and in working with children with limited English 

proficiency, children referred by child welfare services, and children with disabilities, when appropriate. 

(iii) Developing and financing the salary scales described 

under section 644(a)(3) and section 653, in order to ensure that 

salary levels and benefits are adequate to attract and retain 

qualified staff for such programs. 

(iv) Using salary increases— 

(I) to assist with the implementation of quality programs 

and improve staff qualifications; 

(II) to ensure that staff can promote the language skills 

and literacy growth of children and can provide children 

with a variety of skills that have been identified, through 

scientifically based early reading research, as predictive of 

later reading achievement; and 

(III) to encourage the staff to continually improve their 

skills and expertise by informing the staff of the availVerDate Aug 04 2004 03:39 Jun 18, 2005 Jkt 039006 PO 00000 Frm 00099 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6603 E:\HR\OC\HR136.XXX HR136
100 

ability of Federal and State incentive and loan forgiveness 

programs for professional development. 

(v) Improving community-wide strategic planning and needs 

assessments for such programs and collaboration efforts for 

such programs, including collaborations to increase program 

participation by underserved populations of eligible children. 

(vi) Ensuring that the physical environments of Head Start 

programs are conducive to providing effective program services 

to children and families, and are accessible to children with 

disabilities and their parents. 

(vii) Ensuring that such programs have qualified staff that 

can promote language skills and literacy growth of children 

and that can provide children with a variety of skills that have 

been identified, through scientifically based reading research, 

as predictive of later reading achievement. 

(viii) Providing assistance to complete postsecondary course 

work including scholarships or other financial incentives, such 

as differential and merit pay, to enable Head Start teachers to 

improve competencies and the resulting child outcomes. 

(ix) Upgrading the qualifications and skills of educational 

personnel to meet the professional standards established under 

section 648A(a)(1), including certification and licensure as bilingual education teachers and other educational personnel who 

serve limited English proficient children. 

(x) Promoting the regular attendance and stability of all children participating in Head Start programs, with particular attention to highly mobile children, including children from migrant and seasonal farm worker families (if appropriate), homeless children, and children in foster care. 

(xi) Making such other improvements in the quality of such 

programs as the Secretary may designate. 

(C) Quality improvement funds shall be used to carry out the activities in any or all of the following clauses: 

(i)(I) Not less than one-half of the amount reserved under this 

paragraph, to improve the compensation (including benefits) of 

classroom teachers and other staff of Head Start agencies providing instructional services and thereby enhancing recruitment 

and retention of qualified staff, including recruitment and retention pursuant to achieving the requirements set forth in section 648A(a). The expenditure of funds under this clause shall 

be subject to section 653. Salary increases, in excess of cost-ofliving allowance, provided with such funds shall be subject to 

the specific standards governing salaries and salary increases 

established pursuant to section 644(a). 

(II) If a Head Start agency certifies to the Secretary for such 

fiscal year that part of the funds set aside under subclause (I) 

to improve wages cannot be expended by such agency to improve 

wages because of the operation of section 653, then such agency 

may expend such part for any of the uses specified in this subparagraph (other than wages). 

(III) From the remainder of the amount reserved under this 

paragraph (after the Secretary carries out subclause (I)), the 

Secretary may carry out the activities described in clauses (ii) 

through (vii). 

101 

(ii) To train classroom teachers and other staff to meet the 

education standards described in section 641A(a)(1)(B), through 

activities— 

(I) to promote children’s language and prereading 

growth, through techniques identified through scientifically 

based reading research; 

(II) to promote the acquisition of the English language 

for limited English proficient children and families, while 

ensuring that children are making meaningful progress in 

attaining the knowledge, skills, abilities, and development 

described in section 641A(a)(1)(B); 

(III) to foster children’s school readiness through activities described in section 648A(a)(1); and 

(IV) to provide education and training necessary to improve the qualifications of Head Start staff, particularly assistance to enable more instructors to be fully competent 

and to meet the degree requirements under section 

648A(a)(2)(A), and to support staff training, child counseling, and other services necessary to address the challenges of children participating in Head Start programs, 

including children from immigrant, refugee, and asylee 

families, children from families in crisis, children who experience chronic violence in their communities, children 

who experience substance abuse in their families, and children with emotional and behavioral problems. 

(iii) To employ additional Head Start staff, including staff 

necessary to reduce the child-staff ratio, lead instructors who 

meet the qualifications of section 648A(a) and staff necessary to 

coordinate a Head Start program with other services available 

to children participating in such program and to their families. 

(iv) To pay costs incurred by Head Start agencies to purchase 

insurance (other than employee benefits) and thereby maintain 

or expand Head Start services. 

(v) To supplement amounts provided under paragraph (2)(C) 

to provide training necessary to improve the qualifications of 

the staff of the Head Start agencies, and to support staff training, child counseling, and other services necessary to address 

the problems of children participating in Head Start programs, 

including children from dysfunctional families, children who 

experience chronic violence in their communities, and children 

who experience substance abuse in their families. 

(vi) To conduct outreach to homeless families in an effort to 

increase the program participation of homeless children. 

(vii) To conduct outreach to migrant and seasonal farm-working families and families with children with a limited English 

proficiency. 

(viii) Such other activities as the Secretary may designate. 

* * * * * * * 

(4) Subject to section 639(b), the Secretary shall allot the remaining amounts appropriated in each fiscal year among the States, in 

accordance with latest satisfactory data so that— 

(A) each State receives an amount which is equal to the 

amount the State received for fiscal year ø1998¿ 2005; and 

* * * * * * * 

102 

(5)ø(A) From amounts reserved and allotted pursuant to paragraph (4), the Secretary shall reserve such sums as may be necessary to award the collaboration grants described in subparagraphs (B) and (D). 

ø(B) From the reserved sums, the Secretary may award a collaboration grant to each State to facilitate collaboration regarding 

activities carried out in the State under this subchapter, and other 

activities carried out in, and by, the State that are designed to benefit low-income children and families and to encourage Head Start 

agencies to collaborate with entities involved in State and local 

planning processes (including the State lead agency administering 

the financial assistance received under the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 9858 et seq.) and the 

entities providing resource and referral services in the State) in 

order to better meet the needs of low-income children and families. 

ø(C) A State that receives a grant under subparagraph (B) 

shall— 

ø(i) appoint an individual to serve as a State liaison between— 

ø(I) the appropriate regional office of the Administration 

for Children and Families and agencies and individuals 

carrying out Head Start programs in the State; and 

ø(II) agencies (including local educational agencies) and 

entities carrying out programs serving low-income children 

and families; 

ø(ii) involve the State Head Start Association in the selection 

of the individual, and involve the association in determinations 

relating to the ongoing direction of the collaboration; 

ø(iii) ensure that the individual holds a position with sufficient authority and access to ensure that the collaboration described in subparagraph (B) is effective and involves a range 

of State agencies; 

ø(iv) ensure that the collaboration described in subparagraph 

(B) involves coordination of Head Start services with health 

care, welfare, child care, education, and community service activities, family literacy services, activities relating to children 

with disabilities (including coordination of services with those 

State officials who are responsible for administering part C 

and section 619 of the Individuals with Disabilities Education 

Act (20 U.S.C. 1431–1444, 1419)), and services for homeless 

children; 

ø(v) include representatives of the State Head Start Association and local Head Start agencies in unified planning regarding early care and education services at both the State and 

local levels, including collaborative efforts to plan for the provision of full-working-day, full calendar year early care and education services for children; and 

ø(vi) encourage local Head Start agencies to appoint a State 

level representative to represent Head Start agencies within 

the State in conducting collaborative efforts described in subparagraphs (B) and (D), and in clause (v).¿ 

(A) From amounts reserved and allotted pursuant to paragraph 

(4), the Secretary shall award the collaboration grants described in 

subparagraphs (B) and (D). 

103 

(B) From the reserved sums in paragraph (4), the Secretary shall 

award a collaboration grant to any State that submits a written request. Such grant shall be equal to the amount the State received 

under this paragraph for such activity for fiscal year 2005. Such 

grant shall be used by the State to facilitate collaboration regarding 

activities carried out in the State under this subchapter, and other 

activities carried out in and by the State that are designed to benefit 

low-income children and families and to encourage Head Start 

agencies to collaborate with entities involved in State and local 

planning processes (including the State lead agency administering 

the financial assistance under the Child Care and Development 

Block Grant Act of 1990 and the entities that provide child care resource and referral services in the State) in order to better meet the 

needs of low-income children and their families. 

(C) In order to improve results for children, a State that receives 

a grant under subparagraph (B) shall appoint an individual to 

serve as the State Director of Head Start Collaboration to be a liaison between the appropriate regional office of the Administration for 

Children and Families and agencies carrying out Head Start programs in the State. The State shall— 

(i) ensure that such Director holds a position with sufficient 

authority and access to ensure that the collaboration described 

in subparagraph (B) is effective and involves a range of State 

agencies and local entities, including— 

(I) the State educational agency; 

(II) the State Department of Health and Human Services; 

(III) the State agency that oversees child care; 

(IV) the State agency that assists children with developmental disabilities; 

(V) the State Head Start Association; 

(VI) the State network of child care resource and referral 

agencies; 

(VII) local educational agencies; 

(VIII) community-based and faith-based organizations; 

(IX) representatives of migrant and seasonal Head Start 

programs located in the State; 

(X)representatives of Indian Head Start programs located 

in the State; 

(XI) State and local providers of early childhood education and child care, including providers with experience 

serving children with limited English proficiency; and 

(XII) other entities carrying out programs serving low-income children and families in the State; 

(ii) involve the entities described in clause (i) to develop a 

strategic plan for the coordinated outreach to identify eligible 

children and to implement strategies based on a needs assessment, which shall include an assessment of the availability of 

high quality prekindergarten services for low-income children 

in the State. Such assessment shall be completed not later than 

1 year after the date of enactment of the School Readiness Act 

of 2005 and be updated on an annual basis and shall be made 

available to the general public within the State; 

(iii) ensure that the collaboration described in subparagraph 

(B) involves coordination of Head Start services with health 

care, welfare, child care, child protective services, education, 

104 

and community service activities, family literacy services, activities relating to children with disabilities (including coordination of services with those State officials who are responsible for 

administering part C and section 619 of the Individuals with 

Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1419, 1431 et seq.)), and 

services for homeless children (including coordination of services with the Office of Coordinator for Education of Homeless 

Children and Youth designated under section 722(g)(1)(J)(ii) of 

the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act of 2001 (42 U.S.C. 

11432(g)(1)(J)(ii)); 

(iv) require the State Director of Head Start Collaboration 

to— 

(I) serve on the Early Learning Council pursuant to section 642B(b); 

(II) consult with the Early Learning Council, chief State 

school officer, local educational agencies, representatives of 

local Head Start agencies and providers of early childhood 

education and care in unified planning regarding early 

care and education services at both the State and local levels, including collaborative efforts to develop school readiness standards; 

(III) consult with the chief State school officer, local educational agencies, State child care administrators, State 

human services administrators, representatives of local 

child care resource and referral agencies, local early childhood councils, providers of early childhood education and 

care, and other relevant State and local agencies, and representatives of the State Head Start Association to plan for 

the provision of full-working-day, full-calendar-year early 

care and education services for eligible children with working parents who have a demonstrated need; 

(IV) consult with the chief State school officer, local educational agencies and Head Start agencies to improve 

alignment between Head Start programs and State-funded 

prekindergarten activities to meet shared goals of school 

readiness; and 

(V) establish improved linkages between Head Start 

agencies and other children and family agencies, including 

agencies that provide health, mental health or family services or other child and family support services. 

(D) Following the award of collaboration grants described in subparagraph (B), the Secretary shall provide, from the reserved sums, 

supplemental funding for collaboration grants— 

(i) to States that (in consultation with their State Head Start 

Associations and providers of services supporting early childhood education and child care) develop statewide, regional, or 

local unified plans for early childhood education and child care 

that include the participation of Head Start agencies; and 

* * * * * * * 

(6)ø(A) From amounts reserved and allotted pursuant to paragraphs (2) and (4), the Secretary shall use, for grants for programs 

described in section 645A(a), a portion of the combined total of such 

amounts equal to 7.5 percent for fiscal year 1999, 8 percent for fiscal year 2000, 9 percent for fiscal year 2001, 10 percent for fiscal 

year 2002, and 10 percent for fiscal year 2003, of the amount apVerDate Aug 04 2004 03:39 Jun 18, 2005 Jkt 039006 PO 00000 Frm 00104 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\HR136.XXX HR136
105 

propriated pursuant to section 639(a), except as provided in subparagraph (B).¿ 

(A) From amounts reserved and allotted pursuant to paragraphs 

(2) and (4), the Secretary shall use, for grants for programs described in section 645A(a) of this subchapter, a portion of the combined total of such amounts equal to at least 10 percent for each of 

the fiscal years 2006 through 2011, of the amount appropriated pursuant to section 639(a), except as provided in subparagraph (B). 

* * * * * * * 

(f) The Secretary shall establish procedures to enable Head Start 

agencies to develop locally designed or specialized service delivery 

models to address local community needs, including models that leverage the existing capacity and capabilities of the delivery system 

of early childhood education and child care. 

(g)(1) * * * 

(2) øFor the purpose of expanding Head Start programs, in¿ In 

allocating funds to an applicant within a State, from amounts allotted to a State pursuant to subsection (a)(4), the Secretary shall 

take into consideration— 

(A) * * * 

* * * * * * * 

ø(C) the extent to which the applicant has undertaken community-wide strategic planning and needs assessments involving other community organizations and public agencies serving 

children and families (including organizations serving families 

in whose homes English is not the language customarily spoken), and organizations and public entities serving children 

with disabilities;¿ 

(C) the extent to which the applicant has undertaken community-wide strategic planning and needs assessments involving 

other community organizations and Federal, State, and local 

public agencies serving children and families (including organizations and agencies providing family support services and protective services to children and families and organizations serving families in whose homes English is not the language customarily spoken), and individuals, organizations, and public 

entities serving children with disabilities and homeless children 

including the local educational agency liaison designated under 

section 722(g)(1)(J)(ii) of the McKinney-Veto Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11432(g)(1)(J)(ii)); 

(D) the extent to which the family and community needs assessment of the applicant reflects a need to provide full-working-day or full calendar year services and the extent to which, 

and manner in which, the applicant demonstrates the ability 

to collaborate and participate with øother local¿ the State and 

local community providers of child care or preschool services to 

provide full-working-day full calendar year services; 

(E) the numbers of eligible children in each community who 

would like to participate but are not participating in a Head 

Start program or any other early childhood program; 

* * * * * * * 

(G) the extent to which the applicant proposes to foster partnerships with other service providers in a manner that will leVerDate Aug 04 2004 03:39 Jun 18, 2005 Jkt 039006 PO 00000 Frm 00105 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\HR136.XXX HR136
106 

verage the existing delivery systems of such services and enhance the resource capacity of the applicant; øand¿ 

(H) the extent to which the applicant, in providing services, 

øplans to coordinate¿ successfully coordinated its activities 

with the local educational agency serving the community involved, including the local educational agency liaison designated under section 722(g)(1)(J)(ii) of the McKinney-Vento 

Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11432(g)(1)(J)(ii)),and with 

schools in which children participating in a Head Start program operated by such agency will enroll following such program, regarding such services and the education services provided by such local educational agencyø.¿; and 

(I) the amount of funds used by such agency to pay administrative expenses and the amount of available funds received by 

such agency under this section to serve each enrolled child. 

* * * * * * * 

ø(i) The¿ 

(i) TRANSPORTATION SAFETY.— 

(1) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary shall issue regulations establishing requirements for the safety features, and the safe 

operation, of vehicles used by Head Start agencies to transport 

children participating in Head Start programs. 

(2) WAIVER AUTHORITY.— 

(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may waive for a period 

of up to one year the requirements of regulations promulgated under paragraph (1) for one or more vehicles used by 

the agency or its designee in transporting children enrolled 

in a Head Start program or an Early Head Start program 

if— 

(i) such requirements pertain to child restraint systems and bus monitors; 

(ii) the agency demonstrates that compliance with 

such requirements will result in a significant disruption to the Head Start program or the Early Head 

Start program; and 

(iii) is in the best interest of the child. 

(B) RENEWAL.—The Secretary may renew a waiver under 

subparagraph (A). 

* * * * * * * 

(l)(1) * * * 

* * * * * * * 

ø(3) In carrying out this subchapter, the Secretary shall continue 

the administrative arrangement responsible for meeting the needs 

of children of migrant and seasonal farmworkers and Indian children and shall ensure that appropriate funding is provided to meet 

such needs.¿ 

(3) In carrying out this subchapter, the Secretary shall continue 

the administrative arrangement at the national level for meeting the 

needs of Indian children and children of migrant and seasonal 

farmworkers and shall ensure that appropriate funding is provided 

to meet such needs, including training and technical assistance and 

the appointment of a national migrant and seasonal Head Start colVerDate Aug 04 2004 03:39 Jun 18, 2005 Jkt 039006 PO 00000 Frm 00106 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6603 E:\HR\OC\HR136.XXX HR136
107 

laboration director and a national Indian Head Start collaboration 

director. 

(4)(A) For the purposes of paragraph (3), the Secretary shall conduct an annual consultation in each affected Head Start region, 

with tribal governments operating Head Start programs and Early 

Head Start programs. 

(B) The consultations shall be for the purpose of better meeting 

the needs of American Indian and Alaska Native children and families pertinent to subsections (a), (b), and (c) of section 641, taking 

into consideration funding allocations, distribution formulas, and 

other issues affecting the delivery of Head Start services within tribal communities. 

(C) The Secretary shall publish a notification of the consultations 

in the Federal Register prior to conducting the consultations. 

(D) A detailed report of each consultation shall be prepared and 

made available, on a timely basis, to all tribal governments receiving funds under this subchapter. 

(m) ENROLLMENT OF HOMELESS CHILDREN.—The Secretary shall 

by regulation prescribe policies and procedures to remove barriers 

to the enrollment and participation of homeless children in Head 

Start programs. Such regulations shall require Head Start agencies— 

(1) to implement policies and procedures to ensure that homeless children are identified and prioritized for enrollment; 

(2) to allow homeless families to apply to, enroll in and attend Head Start programs while required documents, such as 

proof of residency, immunization and other medical records, 

birth certificates and other documents, are obtained within a 

reasonable time frame; and 

(3) coordinate individual Head Start centers and programs 

with efforts to implement subtitle B of title VII of the McKinneyVento± Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11431–11435). 

(n) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this subchapter shall be 

construed to require a State to establish a program of early education for children in the State, to require any child to participate 

in a program of early education, to attend school, or to participate 

in any initial screening prior to participation in such program, except as provided under section 612(a)(3), (consistent with section 

614(a)(1)(C)), of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. 

(o) MATERIALS.—All curricula and instructional materials funded 

under this subchapter shall be scientifically based and age appropriate. Parents shall have the ability to inspect, upon request, any 

curricula or instructional materials. 

DESIGNATION OF HEAD START AGENCIES

SEC. 641. ø(a) The Secretary is authorized to designate as a Head 

Start agency any local public or private nonprofit or for-profit agency, within a community, which (1) has the power and authority to 

carry out the purposes of this subchapter and perform the functions set forth in section 642 within a community; and (2) is determined by the Secretary (in consultation with the chief executive officer of the State involved, if such State expends non-Federal funds 

to carry out Head Start programs) to be capable of planning, conducting, administering, and evaluating, either directly or by other 

arrangements, a Head Start program.¿ 

108 

(a) AUTHORITY TO DESIGNATE.— (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary is authorized to designate as 

a Head Start agency any local public or private nonprofit or 

for-profit agency within a State, including a community-based 

or faith-based organization that— 

(A) has power and authority to carry out the purpose of 

this subchapter and perform the functions set forth in section 642 within a State; and 

(B) is determined to be capable of planning, conducting, 

administering, and evaluating, either directly or by other 

arrangements, a Head Start program. 

(2) DESIGNATION REQUIREMENTS.—To be designated as a 

Head Start agency and to receive financial assistance under 

this subparagraph, an entity described in sub paragraph (1) 

shall— 

(A) establish measurable objectives for— 

(i) the school readiness of children participating in 

the program under this subchapter; 

(ii) meeting the performance standards described in 

section 641A; 

(iii) educational instruction in prereading, 

premathematics, and language skills; and 

(iv) the provision of health, educational, nutritional, 

social and other services related to school readiness; 

and 

(B) align curricula to challenging State developed academic content standards and the Head Start Child Outcomes Framework developed by the Secretary. 

(3) ELIGIBILITY FOR SUBSEQUENT FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.—In 

order to receive financial assistance under this subchapter subsequent to the initial financial assistance provided following the 

effective date of this subsection, an entity described in paragraph (1) shall demonstrate that the entity has met the measurable objectives described in paragraph (2); 

(4) MEASURING PROGRESS.—Progress in meeting such measurable objectives shall not be measured primarily or solely by 

the results of assessments. 

* * * * * * * 

ø(c)(1) In the administration of the provisions of this section 

(subject to paragraph (2)), the Secretary shall, in consultation with 

the chief executive officer of the State involved if such State expends non-Federal funds to carry out Head Start programs, give 

priority in the designation of Head Start agencies to any local public or private nonprofit or for-profit agency which is receiving funds 

under any Head Start program on the date of the enactment of this 

Act unless the Secretary determines that the agency involved fails 

to meet program and financial management requirements, performance standards described in section 641A(a)(1), results-based performance measures developed by the Secretary under section 

641A(b), or other requirements established by the Secretary. 

ø(2) If there is no agency of the type referred to in paragraph (1) 

because of any change in the assistance furnished to programs for 

economically disadvantaged persons, the Secretary shall, in consultation with the chief executive officer of the State if such State 

expends non-Federal funds to carry out Head Start programs, give 

109 

priority in the designation of Head Start agencies to any successor 

agency that is operating a Head Start program in substantially the 

same manner as the predecessor agency that did receive funds in 

the fiscal year preceding the fiscal year for which the determination is made. 

ø(3) Notwithstanding any other provision of this subsection, the 

Secretary shall not give such priority to any agency with respect 

to which financial assistance has been terminated, or an application for refunding has been denied, under this subchapter by the 

Secretary after affording such agency reasonable notice and opportunity for a full and fair hearing in accordance with section 

646(a)(3). 

ø(d) If no entity in a community is entitled to the priority specified in subsection (c), then the Secretary may designate a Head 

Start agency from among qualified applicants in such community. 

In selecting from among qualified applicants for designation as a 

Head Start agency, the Secretary shall give priority to any qualified agency that functioned as a Head Start delegate agency in the 

community and carried out a Head Start program that the Secretary determines met or exceeded such performance standards 

and such results-based performance measures. In selecting from 

among qualified applicants for designation as a Head Start agency, 

the Secretary shall consider the effectiveness of each such applicant to provide Head Start services, based on— 

ø(1) any past performance of such applicant in providing 

services comparable to Head Start services, including how effectively such applicant provided such comparable services; 

ø(2) the plan of such applicant to provide comprehensive 

health, nutritional, educational, social, and other services needed to aid participating children in attaining their full potential; 

ø(3) the plan of such applicant to coordinate the Head Start 

program it proposes to carry out, with other preschool programs, including Even Start programs under part B of chapter 

1 of title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 

1965 (20 U.S.C. 2741 et seq.) and programs under part C and 

section 619 of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act 

(20 U.S.C. 1431–1444, 1419), and with the educational programs such children will enter at the age of compulsory school 

attendance; 

ø(4) the plan of such applicant— 

ø(A) to seek the involvement of parents of participating 

children in activities (at home and in the center involved 

where practicable) designed to help such parents become 

full partners in the education of their children; 

ø(B) to afford such parents the opportunity to participate 

in the development, conduct, and overall performance of 

the program at the local level; 

ø(C) to offer (directly or through referral to local entities, 

such as entities carrying out Even Start programs under 

part B of chapter 1 of title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 2741 et seq.), 

public and school libraries, and family support programs) 

to such parents— 

ø(i) family literacy services; and 

ø(ii) parenting skills training; 

110 

ø(D) to offer to parents of participating children substance abuse counseling (either directly or through referral 

to local entities), including information on drug-exposed infants and fetal alcohol syndrome; 

ø(E) at the option of such applicant, to offer (directly or 

through referral to local entities) to such parents— 

ø(i) training in basic child development; 

ø(ii) assistance in developing communication skills; 

ø(iii) opportunities for parents to share experiences 

with other parents; or 

ø(iv) any other activity designed to help such parents become full partners in the education of their 

children; and 

ø(F) to provide, with respect to each participating family, 

a family needs assessment that includes consultation with 

such parents about the benefits of parent involvement and 

about the activities described in subparagraphs (C) (D), 

and (E) in which such parents may choose to become involved (taking into consideration their specific family 

needs, work schedules, and other responsibilities); 

ø(5) the ability of such applicant to carry out the plans described in paragraphs (2), (3), and (4); 

ø(6) other factors related to the requirements of this subchapter; 

ø(7) the plan of such applicant to meet the needs of nonEnglish background children and their families, including 

needs related to the acquisition of the English language; 

ø(8) the plan of such applicant to meet the needs of children 

with disabilities; 

ø(9) the plan of such applicant who chooses to assist younger 

siblings of children who will participate in the proposed Head 

Start program to obtain health services from other sources; 

and 

ø(10) the plan of such applicant to collaborate with other entities carrying out early childhood education and child care 

programs in the community.¿ 

(c) CONSULTATION.—In the administration of this section, the Secretary shall, in consultation with the chief executive officer of the 

State involved, give priority in the designation of Head Start agencies to Head Start agencies that— 

(1) are receiving assistance under this subchapter on the effective date of this subsection; 

(2) meet or exceed program and financial management requirements, standards described in section 641A(a); 

(3) meet or exceed the education standards and requirements 

described in section 641A(a)(1)(B); 

(4) have no unresolved area of noncompliance; 

(5) have not been deemed deficient since the then most recent 

designation; 

(6) employ qualified staff (including in center-based programs, a teaching staff of whom at least 50 percent have an associate, baccalaureate, or advanced degree in early child education or a related field), except that the Secretary may waive 

the application of this paragraph, for a period not to exceed 3 

years, for Head Start programs operating in rural areas, for 

111 

migrant and seasonal Head Start programs, and for Indian 

Head Start programs, on a case-by-case basis, if the program 

demonstrates progress in increasing the qualifications of teaching staff and demonstrates adequate instructional supervision 

by qualified staff; 

(7) were not deemed by the Secretary as chronically under-enrolled since the then most recent designation; 

(8) utilize curricula based on scientifically based research, 

that are aligned with challenging State developed academic 

content standards and the Head Start Child Outcomes Framework developed by the Secretary; 

(9) demonstrate active partnerships with local educational 

agencies serving the same communities to facilitate smooth 

transitions to kindergarten; 

(10) actively implement a memorandum of understanding described in section 642B(a) and additional collaborative partnerships with organizations that enhance the delivery of services to 

children; 

(11) demonstrate success in improving child outcomes across 

all domains of development, including measurable progress in 

language skills, prereading knowledge, and premathematics 

knowledge; 

(12) maintain classroom environments constructive to early 

learning and future school success; 

(13) demonstrate strong parental involvement and activities 

to develop parent skills to support their children’s educational 

development and ability to participate effectively in decisions relating to the education of their children; 

(14) are overseen by a board described in section 642(b) that 

provides direction and actively oversees all program activities; 

(15) document strong fiscal controls, including— 

(A) the employment of well-qualified fiscal staff with a 

history of successful management of a public or private organization; 

(B) having no reportable material weaknesses with applicable laws and regulations on all annual financial audits 

performed since the most recent designation; 

(C) meeting or exceeding annual requirements for financial support under section 640(b); and 

(D) maintaining total administrative costs at or below 15 

percent of total program costs; 

(16) are licensed to operate in accordance with all applicable 

State child care regulations; 

(17) conduct outreach activities to ensure that services are 

provided to the most at-risk families in the community; 

(18) have developed strong community partnerships with public and private organizations, such as businesses, health, and 

social service providers; and 

(19) provide opportunities for ongoing professional development. 

(d) DESIGNATION WHEN NO ENTITY HAS PRIORITY.— 

(1) IN GENERAL.—If no entity in a community is entitled to 

the priority specified in subsection (c), the Secretary shall, after 

conducting an open competition, designate for a 5-year period 

112 

a Head Start agency from among qualified applicants in such 

community. 

(2) CONSIDERATIONS IN DESIGNATION.—In selecting from 

among qualified applicants for designation as a Head Start 

agency, the Secretary shall consider the effectiveness of each 

such applicant to provide Head Start services, based on— 

(A) any past performance of such applicant in providing 

services comparable to Head Start services, including how 

effectively such applicant provided such comparable services; 

(B) the plan of such applicant to provide comprehensive 

health (including mental and behavioral health), educational, nutritional, social, and other services needed to 

prepare children to succeed in school; 

(C) the capacity of such applicant to serve eligible children with curriculum and teaching practices based on scientifically based research that promote the school readiness 

of children participating in the program; 

(D) the plan of such applicant to meet standards set forth 

in section 641A(a)(1), with particular attention to the 

standards set forth in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of such 

section; 

(E) the proposed budget and plan of such applicant to 

maintain strong fiscal controls and cost effective fiscal 

management; 

(F) the plan of such applicant to coordinate the Head 

Start program the applicant proposes to carry out with 

other educational programs for young children, including— 

(i) the Early Reading First and Even Start programs 

under subparts 2 and 3 of part B of title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 

U.S.C. 6371 et seq., 6381 et seq.); 

(ii) programs under section 619 and part C of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 

1419, 1431 et seq.); 

(iii) State prekindergarten programs; 

(iv) child care programs; 

(v) the educational programs that the children participating in the Head Start program involved will 

enter at the age of compulsory school attendance; and 

(vi) reading readiness programs such as those conducted by public and school libraries; 

(G) the plan of such applicant to coordinate the Head 

Start program that the applicant proposes to carry out, 

with public and private entities that are willing to commit 

resources to assist the Head Start –program in meeting its 

program needs; 

(H) the plan of such applicant— 

(i) to seek the involvement of parents (including 

grandparents and kinship caregivers, as appropriate) 

of children participating in the proposed Head Start 

program, in activities (at home and, if practicable, at 

the location of the Head Start program) designed to 

help such parents become full partners in the education 

of their children; 

113 

(ii) to afford such parents the opportunity to participate in the development and overall conduct of the program at the local level; 

(iii) to offer (directly or through referral to local entities, such as entities carrying out Even Start programs 

under subpart 3 of part B of title I of the Elementary 

and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6381 

et seq.), public and school libraries, and entities carrying out family support programs) to such parents— 

(I) family literacy services; and 

(II) parenting skills training; 

(iv) to offer to parents of participating children, substance abuse counseling (either directly or through referral to local entities), including information on the effect of drug exposure on infants and fetal alcohol syndrome; 

(v) at the option of such applicant, to offer (directly 

or through referral to local entities) to such parents— 

(I) training in basic child development (including cognitive development); 

(II) assistance in developing literacy and communication skills; 

(III) opportunities to share experiences with 

other parents (including parent mentor relationships); 

(IV) regular in-home visitation; 

(V) mental and behavioral health services; or 

(VI) any other activity designed to help such parents become full partners in the education of their 

children; 

(vi) to provide, with respect to each participating 

family, a family needs assessment that includes consultation with such parents about the benefits of parent 

involvement and about the activities described in subparagraph (H) in which such parents may choose to become involved (taking into consideration their specific 

family needs, work schedules, and other responsibilities); and 

(vii) to extend outreach to fathers, in appropriate 

cases, in order to strengthen the role of fathers in families, in the education of their young children, and in 

the Head Start program, by working directly with fathers and father figures through activities such as— 

(I) in appropriate cases, including fathers in 

home visits and providing opportunities for direct 

father-child interactions; and 

(II) targeting increased male participation in the 

conduct of the program; 

(I) the ability of such applicant to carry out the plans described in paragraphs (2), (4), and (5); 

(J) the plan of such applicant to meet the needs of limited 

English proficient children and their families, including 

procedures to identify such children, plans to provide 

trained personnel, and plans to provide services to assist 

the children in making progress toward the acquisition of 

114 

the English language, while making meaningful progress 

in attaining the knowledge, skills, abilities, and development described in section 641A(a)(1)(B); 

(K) the plan of such applicant to meet the diverse cultural needs of the population served; 

(L) the plan of such applicant to meet the needs of children with disabilities; 

(M) the plan of such applicant who chooses to assist 

younger siblings of children who will participate in the 

Head Start program, to obtain health services from other 

sources; 

(N) the plan of such applicant to collaborate with other 

entities carrying out early childhood education and child 

care programs in the community; 

(O) the plan of such applicant to meet the needs of homeless children, including transportation needs, and children 

in foster care; 

(P) the plan of such applicant to maintain a qualified 

staff, including a teaching staff qualified to implement research-based educational curricula aligned with challenging State-developed academic content standards, the 

Head Start Child Outcomes Framework developed by the 

Secretary, and the State early learning standards in States 

in which such standards are developed; 

(Q) the plan of such applicant to enter into memoranda 

of understanding with local educational agencies, child 

care providers, and other entities within the service area; 

and 

(R) other factors related to the requirements of this subchapter. 

* * * * * * * 

ø(g) If the Secretary determines that a nonprofit agency and a 

for-profit agency have submitted applications for designation of 

equivalent quality under subsection (d), the Secretary may give priority to the nonprofit agency. In selecting from among qualified applicants for designation as a Head Start agency under subsection 

(d), the Secretary shall give priority to applicants that have demonstrated capacity in providing comprehensive early childhood 

services to children and their families.¿ 

(g) ISSUANCE OF RULES.—Not later than 180 days after the enactment of the School Readiness Act of 2005, the Secretary shall issue 

rules to carry out this section. 

SEC. 641A. QUALITY STANDARDS; MONITORING OF HEAD START AGENCIES AND PROGRAMS. 

(a) QUALITY STANDARDS.— 

(1) ESTABLISHMENT OF STANDARDS.—The Secretary shall establish by regulation standards, including minimum levels of 

overall accomplishment, applicable to Head Start agencies, programs, and projects under this subchapter, including— 

(A) * * * 

(B)(i) education performance standards based on sound 

scientific evidence to ensure the school readiness and sustained academic gains of children participating in a Head 

115 

Start program, on completion of the Head Start program 

and prior to entering school; and 

ø(ii) additional education performance standards to ensure that the children participating in the program, at a 

minimum— 

ø(I) develop phonemic, print, and numeracy awareness; 

ø(II) understand and use language to communicate 

for various purposes; 

ø(III) understand and use increasingly complex and 

varied vocabulary; 

ø(IV) develop and demonstrate an appreciation of 

books; and 

ø(V) in the case of non-English background children, 

progress toward acquisition of the English language.¿ 

(ii) additional scientifically-based education standards to 

ensure that the children participating in the program, at a 

minimum develop and demonstrate— 

(I) language knowledge and skills, including oral 

language and listening comprehension; 

(II) prereading knowledge and skills that prepare 

children for early literacy in schools, including phonological awareness, print awareness and print skills, 

and alphabetic knowledge; 

(III) premathematics knowledge and skills, including 

aspects of classification, seriation, number, spatial relations, and time; 

(IV) cognitive abilities related to academic achievement and child development; 

(V) social and emotional development related to early 

learning, school success, and sustained academic 

gains; and 

(VI) in the case of limited-English proficient children, progress toward acquisition of the English language while making meaningful progress in attaining 

the knowledge, skills, abilities, and development described in subclauses (I) through (IV); 

(2) CONSIDERATIONS IN DEVELOPING STANDARDS.—In developing the regulations required under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall— 

(A) consult with experts in the fields of child development, early childhood education, child health care, family 

services (including linguistically and culturally appropriate 

services to ønon-English language background¿ limited 

English proficient children and their families), administration, and financial management, and with persons with experience in the operation of Head Start programs; 

ø(B) take into consideration— 

ø(i) past experience with use of the standards in effect under this subchapter on the date of enactment of 

this section; 

ø(ii) changes over the period since the date of enactment of this Act in the circumstances and problems 

typically facing children and families served by Head 

Start agencies; 

116 

ø(iii) developments concerning best practices with 

respect to early childhood education and development, 

children with disabilities, family services, program administration, and financial management; 

ø(iv) projected needs of an expanding Head Start 

program; 

ø(v) guidelines and standards currently in effect or 

under consideration that promote child health services, and projected needs of expanding Head Start programs; 

ø(vi) changes in the population of children who are 

eligible to participate in Head Start programs, including the language background and family structure of 

such children; and 

ø(vii) the need for, and state-of-the-art developments 

relating to, local policies and activities designed to ensure that children participating in Head Start programs make a successful transition to public schools; 

and¿ 

(B) take into consideration— 

(i) past experience with use of the standards in effect 

under this subchapter on October 27, 1998; 

(ii) changes over the period since October 27, 1998, 

in the circumstances and problems typically facing 

children and families served by Head Start agencies; 

(iii) developments concerning research based practices with respect to early childhood education and development, children with disabilities, family services, 

program administration, and financial management; 

(iv) projected needs of an expanding Head Start program; 

(v) guidelines and standards currently in effect or 

under consideration that promote child health services 

and physical development, including outdoor activity 

that supports children’s motor development and overall 

health and nutrition; 

(vi) changes in the population of children who are eligible to participate in Head Start programs, including 

the language background and family structure of such 

children; 

(vii) scientifically based research to ensure that children participating in Head Start programs make a 

successful transition to schools that the children will be 

attending; and 

(viii) the unique challenges faced by individual programs, including those that are seasonal or short term, 

and those that serve rural populations; and 

(C)(i) * * * 

(ii) ensure that any such revisions in the performance 

standards will not result in the elimination of or any reduction in the scope or types of health, education, parental 

involvement, nutritional, social, or other services required 

to be provided under such standards as in effect on øthe 

117 

date of enactment of the Coats Human Services Reauthorization Act of 1998¿ October 27, 1998. 

* * * * * * * 

(4) EVALUATIONS AND CORRECTIVE ACTIONS FOR DELEGATE

AGENCIES.— 

(A) PROCEDURES.—The Head Start agency shall establish 

procedures relating to its delegate agencies, including— 

(i) procedures for evaluating delegate agencies; 

(ii) procedures for defunding delegate agencies; and 

(iii) procedures for appealing a defunding decision 

relating to a delegate agency. 

(B) EVALUATIONS.—Each Head Start agency— 

(i) shall evaluate its delegate agencies using the procedures established pursuant to this section, including 

subparagraph (A); and 

(ii) shall inform the delegate agencies of the deficiencies identified through the evaluation that shall be 

corrected. 

(C) REMEDIES TO ENSURE CORRECTIVE ACTIONS.—If the 

Head Start agency identifies a deficiency for a delegate 

agency through the evaluation, the Head Start agency 

may— 

(i) initiate procedures to terminate the designation of 

the agency unless the agency corrects the deficiency; 

(ii) conduct monthly monitoring visits to such delegate agency until all deficiencies are corrected or the 

Head Start agency decides to defund such delegate 

agency; and 

(iii) release funds to such delegate agency only as reimbursements until all deficiencies are corrected or the 

Head Start agency decides to defund such delegate 

agency. 

(D) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this paragraph 

shall be construed to impact or obviate the responsibilities 

of the Secretary with respect to Head Start agencies or delegate agencies receiving funding under this subchapter. 

(b) RESULTS-BASED PERFORMANCE MEASURES.— 

(1) * * * 

ø(2) CHARACTERISTICS OF MEASURES.—The performance 

measures developed under this subsection shall— 

ø(A) be used to assess the impact of the various services 

provided by Head Start programs and, to the extent the 

Secretary finds appropriate, administrative and financial 

management practices of such programs; 

ø(B) be adaptable for use in self-assessment, peer review, and program evaluation of individual Head Start 

agencies and programs, not later than July 1, 1999; and 

ø(C) be developed for other program purposes as determined by the Secretary. 

The performance measures shall include the performance 

standards described in subsection (a)(1)(B)(ii). 

ø(3) USE OF MEASURES.—The Secretary shall use the performance measures developed pursuant to this subsection— 

118 

ø(A) to identify strengths and weaknesses in the operation of Head Start programs nationally, regionally, and 

locally; and 

ø(B) to identify problem areas that may require additional training and technical assistance resources. 

ø(4) EDUCATIONAL PERFORMANCE MEASURES.—Such resultsbased performance measures shall include educational performance measures that ensure that children participating in 

Head Start programs— 

ø(A) know that letters of the alphabet are a special category of visual graphics that can be individually named; 

ø(B) recognize a word as a unit of print; 

ø(C) identify at least 10 letters of the alphabet; and 

ø(D) associate sounds with written words.¿ 

(2) CHARACTERISTICS OF MEASURES.—The performance measures developed under this subsection shall— 

(A) be used to assess the impact of the various services 

provided by Head Start programs and, to the extent the 

Secretary finds appropriate, administrative and financial 

management practices of such programs; 

(B) be adaptable for use in self-assessment, peer review, 

and program evaluation of individual Head Start agencies 

and programs; 

(C) be developed for other program purposes as determined by the Secretary; 

(D) be appropriate for the population served; and 

(E) be reviewed no less than every 4 years, based on advances in the science of early childhood development. 

The performance measures shall include the performance standards described in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of subsection 

(a)(1). 

(3) USE OF MEASURES.— 

(A) The Secretary shall use the performance measures 

pursuant to this subsection to identify— 

(i) strengths and weaknesses in the operation of 

Head Start programs nationally, regionally, and locally; and 

(ii) program areas that may require additional training and technical assistance resources. 

(B) The Secretary shall provide a detailed justification to 

the Congress regarding the planned uses of the data collected by the National Reporting System developed by the 

Secretary and shall demonstrate its scientific validity and 

reliability for such purposes, including its scientific validity 

and reliability with children with limited English proficiency for such purposes; 

(C) The Secretary shall not use the National Reporting 

System assessment results either as the primary method for 

assessing program effectiveness or as the primary method 

for making grantee funding determinations. 

(D) The Secretary shall develop a process to ensure that 

the National Reporting System shall not be used to exclude 

children from Head Start programs. 

(4) EDUCATIONAL MEASURES.—Results based measures shall 

be designed for the purpose of promoting the competencies of 

119 

children participating in Head Start programs specified in subsection (a)(1)(B)(ii), with an emphasis on measuring those competencies that have a strong scientifically-based predictability of 

a child’s school readiness and later performance in school. 

* * * * * * * 

(c) MONITORING OF LOCAL AGENCIES AND PROGRAMS.— 

(1) IN GENERAL.—In order to determine whether Head Start 

agencies meet standards established under this subchapter and 

results-based performance measures developed by the Secretary under subsection (b) with respect to program, administrative, financial management, and other requirements, the 

Secretary shall develop and utilize a risk-based assessment system to conduct the following reviews of designated Head Start 

agencies, and of the Head Start programs operated by such 

agencies: 

(A) * * * 

* * * * * * * 

ø(C) Followup reviews including prompt return visits to 

agencies and programs that fail to meet the standards. 

ø(D) Other reviews as appropriate. 

ø(2) CONDUCT OF REVIEWS.—The Secretary shall ensure that 

reviews described in subparagraphs (A) through (C) of paragraph (1)— 

ø(A) are performed, to the maximum extent practicable, 

by employees of the Department of Health and Human 

Services who are knowledgeable about Head Start programs; 

ø(B) are supervised by such an employee at the site of 

such Head Start agency; 

ø(C) are conducted by review teams that shall include 

individuals who are knowledgeable about Head Start programs and, to the maximum extent practicable, the diverse 

(including linguistic and cultural) needs of eligible children 

(including children with disabilities) and their families; 

ø(D) include as part of the reviews of the programs, a review and assessment of program effectiveness, as measured in accordance with the results-based performance 

measures developed by the Secretary pursuant to subsection (b) and with the performance standards established 

pursuant to subparagraphs (A) and (B) of subsection (a)(1); 

and 

ø(E) seek information from the communities and the 

States involved about the performance of the programs 

and the efforts of the Head Start agencies to collaborate 

with other entities carrying out early childhood education 

and child care programs in the community.¿ 

(C) Followup reviews, including unannounced reviews as 

appropriate, of programs with 1 or more findings of deficiencies not later than 6 months after the date of such finding. 

(D) Unannounced site inspections of Head Start centers 

and other reviews, as appropriate. 

120 

(2) CONDUCT OF REVIEWS.—The Secretary shall ensure that 

reviews described in subparagraphs (A) through (C) of paragraph (1)— 

(A) that incorporate a monitoring visit, may be done 

without prior notice of the visit to the local agency or program; 

(B) are conducted by review teams composed of individuals who are knowledgeable about the program areas they 

are reviewing and, to the maximum extent practicable, the 

diverse (including linguistic and cultural) needs of eligible 

children (including children with disabilities) and limitedEnglish proficient children and their families; 

(C) include as part of the reviews of the programs, a review and assessment of program effectiveness, including 

strengths and areas for improvement, as measured in accordance with the results-based performance measures developed by the Secretary pursuant to subsection (b) and 

with the standards established pursuant to subparagraphs 

(A) and (B) of subsection (a)(1); 

(D) seek information from the communities and the 

States involved about the performance of the programs and 

the efforts of the Head Start agencies to collaborate with 

other entities carrying out early childhood education and 

child care programs in the community; 

(E) seek information from the communities where Head 

Start programs exist about innovative or effective collaborative efforts, barriers to collaboration, and the efforts of 

the Head Start agencies and programs to collaborate with 

the entities carrying out early childhood education and 

child care programs in the community; 

(F) include as part of the reviews of the programs, a review and assessment of whether a program is in conformity 

with the income eligibility requirements, as defined in section 645 and regulations promulgated thereunder; 

(G) include as part of the reviews of the programs, a review and assessment of whether programs have adequately 

addressed the population and community needs (including 

populations of children with a limited English proficiency 

and children of migrant and seasonal farm-working families); 

(H) include as part of the review the extent to which the 

program addresses the community needs and strategic plan 

identified in section 640(g)(2)(C); and 

(I) are conducted in a manner that evaluates program 

performance, quality, and overall operations with consistency and objectivity, and based on a transparent and reliable system of review. 

(d) CORRECTIVE ACTION; TERMINATION.— 

ø(1) DETERMINATION.—If the Secretary determines, on the 

basis of a review pursuant to subsection (c), that a Head Start 

agency designated pursuant to section 641 fails to meet the 

standards described in subsection (a) or results-based performance measures developed by the Secretary under subsection 

(b), the Secretary shall—¿ 

121 

(1) DETERMINATION.—If the Secretary determines, on the 

basis of a review pursuant to subsection (c), that a Head Start 

agency designated pursuant to section 641 fails to meet the 

standards described in subsection (a) or results-based performance measures developed by the Secretary under subsection (b), 

or fails to adequately address the community needs and strategic plan identified in 640(g)(2)(C), the Secretary shall— 

(A) * * * 

* * * * * * * 

ø(2) QUALITY IMPROVEMENT PLAN.— ø(A) AGENCY RESPONSIBILITIES.—In order to retain a 

designation as a Head Start agency under this subchapter, 

a Head Start agency that is the subject of a determination 

described in paragraph (1) (other than an agency required 

to correct a deficiency immediately or during a 90-day period under clause (i) or (ii) of paragraph (1)(B)) shall— 

ø(i) develop in a timely manner, obtain the approval 

of the Secretary regarding, and implement a quality 

improvement plan that specifies— 

ø(I) the deficiencies to be corrected; 

ø(II) the actions to be taken to correct such deficiencies; and 

ø(III) the timetable for accomplishment of the 

corrective actions specified; and 

ø(ii) eliminate each deficiency identified, not later 

than the date for elimination of such deficiency specified in such plan (which shall not be later than 1 year 

after the date the agency received notice of the determination and of the specific deficiency to be corrected). 

ø(B) SECRETARIAL RESPONSIBILITY.—Not later than 30 

days after receiving from a Head Start agency a proposed 

quality improvement plan pursuant to subparagraph (A), 

the Secretary shall either approve such proposed plan or 

specify the reasons why the proposed plan cannot be approved.¿ 

(2) QUALITY IMPROVEMENT PLAN.— 

(A) AGENCY AND PROGRAM RESPONSIBILITIES.—In order 

to retain a designation as a Head Start agency under this 

subchapter, or in the case of a Head Start program, in 

order to continue to receive funds from such agency, a Head 

Start agency, or Head Start program that is the subject of 

a determination described in paragraph (1) (other than an 

agency or program required to correct a deficiency immediately or during a 90-day period under clause (i) or (ii) of 

paragraph (1)(B)) shall— 

(i) develop in a timely manner, a quality improvement plan that shall be subject to the approval of the 

Secretary, or in the case of a program, the sponsoring 

agency, and which shall specify— 

(I) the deficiencies to be corrected; 

(II) the actions to be taken to correct such deficiencies; and 

(III) the timetable for accomplishment of the corrective actions specified; and 

122 

(ii) eliminate each deficiency identified, not later 

than the date for elimination of such deficiency specified in such plan (which shall not be later than 1 year 

after the date the agency or program received notice of 

the determination and of the specific deficiency to be 

corrected). 

(B) SECRETARIAL RESPONSIBILITY.—Not later than 30 

days after receiving from a Head Start agency a proposed 

quality improvement plan pursuant to subparagraph (A), 

the Secretary shall either approve such proposed plan or 

specify the reasons why the proposed plan cannot be approved. 

(C) AGENCY RESPONSIBILITY FOR PROGRAM IMPROVEMENT.—Not later than 30 days after receiving from a Head 

Start program, a proposed quality improvement plan pursuant to subparagraph (A), the sponsoring agency shall either approve such proposed plan or specify the reasons why 

the proposed plan cannot be approved. 

(3) TRAINING AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—The Secretary 

shall provide training and technical assistance to Head Start 

agencies and programs with respect to the development or implementation of such quality improvement plans to the extent 

the Secretary finds such provision to be feasible and appropriate given available funding and other statutory responsibilities. 

ø(e) SUMMARIES OF MONITORING OUTCOMES.—Not later than 120 

days after the end of each fiscal year, the Secretary shall publish 

a summary report on the findings of reviews conducted under subsection (c) and on the outcomes of quality improvement plans implemented under subsection (d), during such fiscal year. Such report shall be widely disseminated and available for public review 

in both written and electronic formats.¿ 

(e) SUMMARIES OF MONITORING OUTCOMES.—Not later than 120 

days after the end of each fiscal year, the Secretary shall publish 

a summary report on the findings of reviews conducted under subsection (c) and on the outcomes of quality improvement plans implemented under subsection (d), during such fiscal year. Such information shall be made available to all parents with children receiving 

assistance under this subchapter in an understandable and uniform 

format, and to the extent practicable, provided in a language that 

the parents can understand, and in addition, make the information 

widely available through public means such as distribution through 

public agencies, and at a minimum posting such information on the 

Internet immediately upon publication. 

(f) REDUCTION OF GRANTS AND REDISTRIBUTION OF FUNDS IN

CASES OF UNDER-ENROLLMENT.— 

(1) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 

(A) ACTUAL ENROLLMENT.—The term ‘‘actual enrollment’’ 

means, with respect to the program of a Head Start agency, 

the actual number of children enrolled in such program 

and reported by the agency (as required in paragraph (2)) 

in a given month. 

(B) BASE GRANT.—The term ‘‘base grant’’ means, with respect to a Head Start agency for a fiscal year, that portion 

of the grant derived— 

123 

(i) from amounts reserved for use in accordance with 

section 640(a)(2)(A), for a Head Start agency administering an Indian Head Start program or migrant and 

seasonal Head Start program; 

(ii) from amounts reserved for payments under section 640(a)(2)(B); or 

(iii) from amounts available under section 

640(a)(2)(D) or allotted among States under section 

640(a)(4). 

(C) FUNDED ENROLLMENT.—The term ‘‘funded enrollment’’ means, with respect to the program of a Head Start 

agency in a fiscal year, the number of children that the 

agency is funded to serve through a grant for the program 

during such fiscal year, as indicated in the grant agreement. 

(2) ENROLLMENT REPORTING REQUIREMENT FOR CURRENT FISCAL YEAR.—Each entity carrying out a Head Start program 

shall report on a monthly basis to the Secretary and the relevant Head Start agency— 

(A) the actual enrollment in such program; and 

(B) if such actual enrollment is less than the funded enrollment, any apparent reason for such enrollment shortfall. 

(3) SECRETARIAL REVIEW AND PLAN.—The Secretary shall— 

(A) on a semiannual basis, determine which Head Start 

agencies are operating with an actual enrollment that is 

less than the funded enrollment based on not less than the 

average of 4 consecutive months of data; 

(B) for each such Head Start agency operating a program 

with an actual enrollment that is less than 95 percent of its 

funded enrollment, as determined under subparagraph (A), 

develop, in collaboration with such agency, a plan and 

timetable for reducing or eliminating under-enrollment taking into consideration— 

(i) the quality and extent of the outreach, recruitment, and community needs assessment conducted by 

such agency; 

(ii) changing demographics, mobility of populations, 

and the identification of new underserved low-income 

populations; 

(iii) facilities-related issues that may impact enrollment; 

(iv) the ability to provide full-day programs, where 

needed, through Head Start funds or through collaboration with entities carrying out other preschool or 

child care programs, or programs with other funding 

sources (where available); 

(v) the availability and use by families of other preschool and child care options (including parental care) 

in the local catchment area; and 

(vi) agency management procedures that may impact 

enrollment; and 

(C) provide timely and ongoing technical assistance to 

each agency described in subparagraph (B) for the purpose 

of implementing the plan described in such subparagraph. 

124 

(4) IMPLEMENTATION.—Upon receipt of the technical assistance described in paragraph (3)(C), a Head Start agency shall 

immediately implement the plan described in paragraph (3)(B). 

(5) SECRETARIAL ACTION FOR CONVERSION TO SERVE YOUNGER

CHILDREN.—If, after implementing the plan described in paragraph (3)(B), the grantee continues to operate a program at less 

than full enrollment, the grantee may, upon approval by the 

Secretary, be permitted to use a portion of the base grant equal 

to the percentage difference between funded enrollment and actual enrollment for the most then recent year, to serve persons 

described in section 645A(c) if such agency currently operates a 

grant described in section 645A and submits an application 

containing— 

(A) evidence of community need for such services; 

(B) a description of how the needs of pregnant women, infants, and toddlers will be addressed in accordance with 

section 645A(b) and with regulations prescribed by the Secretary pursuant to section 641A in areas including— 

(i) the approach to childhood development and 

health services; and 

(ii) the approach to family and community partnerships; and approach to program design and management; 

(C) assurances that the agency will participate in technical assistance activities for newly funded and existing 

grantees under section 654A; and 

(D) evidence that the agency meets the eligibility criteria 

as grantees under section 645A. 

Any grantee permitted to serve children under this paragraph 

shall be subject to the rules, regulations, and conditions under 

section 645A. 

(6) SECRETARIAL ACTION FOR CONTINUED UNDER-ENROLLMENT.—If, 1 year after the date of implementation of the plan 

described in paragraph (3)(B), the Head Start agency continues 

to operate a program at less than full enrollment, the Secretary 

shall, where determined appropriate, continue to provide technical assistance to such agency. 

(7) SECRETARIAL REVIEW AND ADJUSTMENT FOR CHRONIC

UNDER-ENROLLMENT.— 

(A) IN GENERAL.—If, after receiving technical assistance 

and developing and implementing a plan to the extent described in paragraphs (3), (4), and (5) for 6 months, a Head 

Start agency is still operating a program with an actual 

enrollment that is less than 95 percent of its funded enrollment, the Secretary may— 

(i) designate such agency as chronically under-enrolled; and 

(ii) recapture, withhold, or reduce the base grant for 

the program by, a percentage equal to the percentage 

difference between funded enrollment and actual enrollment for the program for the most recent year in 

which the agency is determined to be under-enrolled 

under paragraph (2)(B). 

125 

(B) WAIVER OR LIMITATION OF REDUCTIONS.—If the Secretary, after the implementation of the plan described in 

paragraph (3)(B), finds that— 

(i) the shortfall can reasonably be expected to be temporary; or 

(ii) the number of slots allotted to the agency is small 

enough that under-enrollment does not constitute a significant shortfall, 

the Secretary may, as appropriate, waive or reduce the percentage recapturing, withholding, or reduction otherwise required by subparagraph (A). 

(C) PROCEDURAL REQUIREMENTS; EFFECTIVE DATE.—The 

actions taken by the Secretary under this paragraph with 

respect to a Head Start agency shall take effect 1 day after 

the date on which— 

(i) the time allowed for appeal under section 646(a) 

expires without an appeal by the agency; or 

(ii) the action is upheld in an administrative hearing 

under section 646. 

(8) REDISTRIBUTION OF FUNDS.— 

(A) IN GENERAL.—Funds held by the Secretary as a result 

of recapturing, withholding, or reducing a base grant in accordance with paragraph (6) in a fiscal year shall be redistributed in such fiscal year as follows: 

(i) If such funds are attributable to the portion of a 

base grant derived from amounts specified in paragraph (1)(B)(i) payable, but for the operation of this 

paragraph, to carry out an Indian Head Start program, then such funds shall be redistributed to increase enrollment in such fiscal year in 1 or more Indian Head Start programs. 

(ii) If such funds are attributable to the portion of a 

base grant derived from amounts specified in paragraph (1)(B)(i) payable, but for the operation of this 

paragraph, to carry out a migrant and seasonal Head 

Start program, then such funds shall be redistributed 

to increase enrollment in such fiscal year in 1 or more 

migrant and seasonal Head Start programs. 

(iii) If such funds are attributable to the portion of 

a base grant derived from amounts specified in clause 

(ii) or (iii) of paragraph (1)(B) payable, but for the operation of this paragraph, to carry out a Head Start 

program (excluding Indian Head Start programs, and 

migrant and seasonal Head Start programs) in a 

State, then such funds shall be redistributed to increase enrollment in such fiscal year in 1 or more— 

(I) other Head Start programs (excluding Indian 

Head Start programs and migrant and seasonal 

Head Start programs) that are carried out in such 

State; or 

(II) if the Secretary determines that children eligible under section 641 are being adequately 

served within such State, 1 or more Early Head 

Start programs (excluding Indian Head Start programs and migrant and seasonal Head Start proVerDate Aug 04 2004 03:39 Jun 18, 2005 Jkt 039006 PO 00000 Frm 00125 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6603 E:\HR\OC\HR136.XXX HR136
126 

grams) or 1 or more Head Start programs for the 

purpose of becoming a grantee pursuant to section 

645A. 

(B) ADJUSTMENT TO FUNDED ENROLLMENT.—The Secretary shall adjust as necessary the requirements relating 

to funded enrollment indicated in the grant agreement of a 

Head Start agency receiving funds redistributed under this 

paragraph. 

POWERS AND FUNCTIONS OF HEAD START AGENCIES

SEC. 642. (a) * * * 

ø(b) In order to be so designated, a Head Start agency shall 

also— 

ø(1) establish effective procedures by which parents and area 

residents concerned will be enabled to directly participate in 

decisions that influence the character of programs affecting 

their interests; 

ø(2) provide for their regular participation in the implementation of such programs; 

ø(3) provide technical and other support needed to enable 

parents and area residents to secure on their own behalf available assistance from public and private sources; 

ø(4) seek the involvement of parents of participating children 

in activities designed to help such parents become full partners 

in the education of their children, and to afford such parents 

the opportunity to participate in the development, conduct, and 

overall performance of the program at the local level; 

ø(5) offer (directly or through referral to local entities, such 

as entities carrying out Even Start programs under part B of 

chapter 1 of title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education 

Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 2741 et seq.)), to parents of participating children, family literacy services and parenting skills 

training; 

ø(6) offer to parents of participating children substance 

abuse counseling (either directly or through referral to local 

entities), including information on drug-exposed infants and 

fetal alcohol syndrome; 

ø(7) at the option of such agency, offer (directly or through 

referral to local entities), to such parents— 

ø(A) training in basic child development; 

ø(B) assistance in developing communication skills; 

ø(C) opportunities to share experiences with other parents; 

ø(D) regular in-home visitation; or 

ø(E) any other activity designed to help such parents become full partners in the education of their children; 

ø(8) provide, with respect to each participating family, a family needs assessment that includes consultation with such parents about the benefits of parent involvement and about the 

activities described in paragraphs (4) through (7) in which such 

parents may choose to be involved (taking into consideration 

their specific family needs, work schedules, and other responsibilities); 

127 

ø(9) consider providing services to assist younger siblings of 

children participating in its Head Start program to obtain 

health services from other sources; 

ø(10) perform community outreach to encourage individuals 

previously unaffiliated with Head Start programs to participate in its Head Start program as volunteers; and 

ø(11)(A) inform custodial parents in single-parent families 

that participate in programs, activities, or services carried out 

or provided under this subchapter about the availability of 

child support services for purposes of establishing paternity 

and acquiring child support; and 

ø(B) refer eligible parents to the child support offices of State 

and local governments. 

ø(c) The head of each Head Start agency shall coordinate and collaborate with the State agency responsible for administering the 

State program carried out under the Child Care and Development 

Block Grant Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 9858 et seq.), and other early 

childhood education and development programs, including Even 

Start programs under part B of chapter 1 of title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 2741 et seq.) 

and programs under part C and section 619 of the Individuals with 

Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C 1431–1444, 1419), serving the 

children and families served by the Head Start agency to carry out 

the provisions of this subchapter.¿ 

(b) In order to be so designated, a Head Start agency shall do all 

of the following:— 

(1) Establish a program with standards set forth in section 

641A(a)(1), with particular attention to the standards set forth 

in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of such section. 

(2) Demonstrate capacity to serve eligible children with scientifically-based curricula and other interventions that help 

promote the school readiness of children participating in the 

program. 

(3) Establish effective procedures by which parents and area 

residents concerned will be enabled to directly participate in decisions that influence the character of programs affecting their 

interests. 

(4) Establish an independent board of directors selected from 

among eligible individuals who shall serve on the board (or 

may designate an existing entity whose members are eligible individuals, that shall be such board) for a period not to exceed 

5 years, except that board members who oversee a public entity 

and who are selected by election (or members of a board of a 

local educational agency or a local council, appointed by an 

elected official or an official of a general purpose local government), may serve for such period as may be determined by the 

electing or appointing authority, as the case may be. An individual who has a conflict of interest is ineligible to serve as a 

member of the board. Members of the board of all nonpublic entities shall include representatives of the local community (including at least 1 member with significant financial management or accounting experience and the chair of the council described in section 642(b)(4)(B)(ii)). Additional members shall be 

selected for their expertise in education, business administration, community affairs, government, legal affairs, and such 

128 

other areas of expertise as may contribute to effective governance of the Head Start agency. All members of the board shall 

receive training in the management responsibilities and obligations, ethics, and financial literacy and management, and shall 

adopt practices that assure active, independent and informed 

governance of the Head Start agency, including independent 

oversight of the financial and management practices of such 

agency. The board shall provide direction to the executive director of the Head Start agency and shall operate as an entity 

independent of staff employed by the Head start agency, entity, 

or applicant and have the following duties and responsibilities: 

(A) To provide independent oversight to ensure that the 

Head Start agency under the direction of the executive director is delivering high quality services to children and 

families in compliance with all applicable standards in effect under this subchapter and with the applicable performance measures established by the Secretary under section 

644. 

(B) To establish 2 or more standing committees to facilitate governance of the Head Start agency which shall include both of the following: 

(i) An audit and finance committee whose primary 

responsibility shall be— 

(I) to approve annually the operating budget of 

the Head Start agency; 

(II) to review and recommend to the board the 

selection of independent auditors who shall report 

all critical accounting policies and practices to the 

finance and audit committee; 

(III) to review and recommend to the board the 

termination or extension of the existing audit firm 

at least once every 5 years; 

(IV) to review and advise the board of the audit 

management letter provided pursuant to the chapter 75 of title 31 of the United States Code, and of 

any audit findings; and 

(V) to monitor agency actions to correct any such 

audit findings or other actions necessary to comply 

with applicable laws (including regulations) governing financial statements and accounting practices. 

(ii) A policy council, a majority of whose representatives shall be parents of children participating in a 

Head Start program or in an Early Head Start program, or of children who participated in a Head Start 

program or in an Early Head Start program in the 

then most recent 5-year period preceding the selection 

of the particular representative involved, and whose 

primary responsibility shall be to serve as a link between parents and the board of directors and to make 

and submit recommendations on the following activities to the Board: 

(I) The strategic direction of the program, including long and short-term planning goals and 

objectives. 

129 

(II) Program operation policies, including standards of conduct for program staff and volunteers. 

(III) Activities to support the active involvement 

of parents in supporting program operations. 

(IV) classroom activities and staffing; 

(V) program responsiveness to community and 

parent needs; and 

(VI) other areas the committee identifies as necessary to improve program operations. 

(C) To approve the selection and dismissal of the Head 

Start director, and to review annually the human resources 

available to ensure the effective operation of the Head Start 

agency. 

(D) To consult, on a regular basis, with the policy committee and to take actions on recommendations submitted 

by such committee. 

(E) To review and approve the major operational policies 

of the Head Start agency, including policies addressing accounting, financial management, procurement, record confidentiality, and personnel (including specific standards 

governing salaries, salary adjustments, travel and per diem 

allowances, and other employee benefits). 

(F) To ensure that the Head Start agency is operated in 

compliance with applicable Federal, State, and local laws 

(including regulations), and to monitor agency implementation of any corrective action necessary to comply with applicable laws (including regulations); 

(G) To oversee the program planning of the Head Start 

agency, including adoption of the Head Start agency philosophy and mission statement, adoption of policies for determining community needs, setting long- and short-range 

goals and objectives, establishment of criteria for selecting 

families in Head Start programs or Early Head Start programs, and to oversee and approve the agency’s applications to receive funds made available under this subchapter; and 

(H) To establish, to adopt, and to periodically update 

written standards of conduct that establish standards and 

formal procedures for disclosing, addressing, and resolving— 

(i) any conflict of interest, and any appearance of a 

conflict of interest, by board members, officers, employees, consultants, and agents who provide services or 

furnish goods to the Head Start agency; and 

(ii) complaints, including investigations, when appropriate. 

(5) To seek the involvement of parents, area residents, and 

local business in the design and implementation of the program. 

(6) To provide technical and other support needed to enable 

parents and area residents to secure on their own behalf available assistance from public and private sources. 

(7) To establish effective procedures to facilitate the involvement of parents of participating children in activities designed 

to help such parents become full partners in the education of 

130 

their children, and to afford such parents the opportunity to 

participate in the development and overall conduct of the program at the local level, including a process through which parents of children currently participating in a Head Start program or an Early Head Start program select the parent representatives to serve on the council under section 

642(b)(4)(B)(ii). 

(8) To conduct outreach to schools in which children participating in Head Start programs enroll, local educational agencies, the local business community, community-based organizations, faith-based organizations, museums, and libraries to generate support and leverage the resources of the entire local community in order to improve school readiness. 

(9) To offer (directly or through referral to local entities, such 

as entities carrying out Even Start programs under subpart 3 

of part B of title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education 

Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 2741 et seq.)), to parents of participating 

children, family literacy services and parenting skills training. 

(10) To offer to parents of participating children substance 

abuse counseling (either directly or through referral to local entities), including information on drug-exposed infants and fetal 

alcohol syndrome. 

(11) At the option of such agency, to offer (directly or through 

referral to local entities), to such parents— 

(A) training in basic child development (including cognitive development); 

(B) assistance in developing literacy and communication 

skills; 

(C) opportunities to share experiences with other parents 

(including parent-mentor relationships); 

(D) mental and behavioral health services; 

(E) regular in-home visitation; or 

(F) any other activity designed to help such parents become full partners in the education of their children. 

(12) To provide, with respect to each participating family, a 

family needs assessment that includes consultation with such 

parents about the benefits of parent involvement and about the 

activities described in paragraphs (5) through (8) in which such 

parents may choose to be involved (taking into consideration 

their specific family needs, work schedules, and other responsibilities). 

(13) To consider providing services to assist younger siblings 

of children participating in its Head Start program to obtain 

health services from other sources. 

(14) To perform community outreach to encourage individuals 

previously unaffiliated with Head Start programs to participate 

in its Head Start program as volunteers. 

(15)(A) To inform custodial parents in single-parent families 

that participate in programs, activities, or services carried out 

or provided under this subchapter about the availability of 

child support services for purposes of establishing paternity and 

acquiring child support; and 

(B) refer eligible parents to the child support offices of State 

and local governments. 

131 

(16) provide parents of limited English proficient children 

outreach and services under this subchapter, in an understandable and uniform format and, to the extent practicable, in a 

language that such parents can understand. 

(c) The head of each Head Start agency shall coordinate and collaborate with the State agency responsible for administering the 

State program carried out under the Child Care and Development 

Block Grant Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 9858 et seq.), and other early 

childhood education and development programs, including programs under subtitle B of title VII of the McKinney-Vento Homeless 

Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11431–11435), Even Start programs 

under subpart 3 of part B of title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 2741 et seq.), and programs under Part C and section 619 of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1431–1445, 1419), and the Child 

Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (42 U.S.C. 5106a), serving the 

children and families served by the Head Start agency to carry out 

the provisions of this subchapter. 

(d)(1) * * * 

(2) COORDINATION.— 

(A) LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY.—In communities where 

both public prekindergarten programs and Head Start programs operate, a Head Start agency shall collaborate and 

coordinate activities with the local educational agency or 

other public agency responsible for the operation of the prekindergarten program and providers of prekindergarten, 

including outreach activities to identify eligible children. 

(B) ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS.—Head Start staff shall, with 

the permission of the parents of children enrolled in Head 

Start programs, regularly communicate with the elementary schools such children will be attending— 

(i) to share information about such children; 

(ii) to receive advice and support from the teachers in 

such elementary schools participating in Early Reading 

First programs funded under subpart 1 of part B of 

title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act 

of 1965 regarding scientifically based teaching strategies and options; and 

(iii) to ensure a smooth transition to elementary 

school for such children. 

(C) OTHER EARLY EDUCATION AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT

PROGRAMS.—The head of each Head Start agency shall coordinate activities and collaborate with the State agency responsible for administering the State program carried out 

under the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 

1990 (42 U.S.C. 9858 et seq.), and other entities carrying 

out early childhood education and development programs, 

programs under subtitle B of title VII of the McKinneyVento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11431–11435), 

Even Start programs under subpart 3 of part B of title I 

of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 

(20 U.S.C. 6381 et seq.), and programs under section 619 

and part C of the Individuals with Disabilities Education 

Act (20 U.S.C 1419, 1431 et seq.), serving the children and 

families served by the Head Start agency. 

132 

(D) OTHER PROGRAMS.—Each Head Start agency shall 

collaborate, as appropriate, with providers of social and 

community services available to children and families participating in Head Start programs, and may support such 

partnerships with financial agreements, when applicable, 

for the provision of such services. 

(3) COLLABORATION.—A Head Start agency shall take steps to 

coordinate activities with the local educational agency serving 

the community involved and with schools in which children 

participating in a Head Start program operated by such agency 

will enroll following such program, including— 

(A) collaborating on the shared use of transportation and 

facilities; 

(B) collaborating to enhance the efficiency of services 

while increasing the program participation of underserved 

populations of eligible children; and 

(C) exchanging information on the provision of noneducational services to such children. 

(4) PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT.—In order to promote the continued involvement of the parents (including grandparents and 

kinship caregivers, as appropriate) of children that participate 

in Head Start programs in the education of their children upon 

transition to school, the Head Start agency shall work with the 

local educational agency— 

(A) to provide training to the parents— 

(i) to inform the parents about their rights and responsibilities concerning the education of their children; and 

(ii) to enable the parents— 

(I) to understand and work with schools in order 

to communicate with teachers and other school 

personnel; 

(II) to support the schoolwork of their children; 

and 

(III) to participate as appropriate in decisions relating to the education of their children; and 

(B) to take other actions, as appropriate and feasible, to 

support the active involvement of the parents with schools, 

school personnel, and school-related organizations. 

ø(2) A¿ (5) Each Head Start agency ømay¿ shall take steps to coordinate with the local educational agency serving the community 

involved and with schools in which children participating in a Head 

Start program operated by such agency will enroll following such 

program, including— 

(A) collaborating on the shared use of transportation and facilities; øand¿ 

(B) collaborating to increase the program participation of underserved populations of eligible children; and 

ø(B)¿ (C) exchanging information on the provision of noneducational services to such children. 

ø(3)¿ (6) In order to promote the continued involvement of the 

parents of children that participate in Head Start programs in the 

education of their children upon transition to school, the Head 

Start agency shall— 

133 

(A) * * * 

* * * * * * * 

ø(4)¿ (7) The Secretary, in cooperation with the Secretary of Education, shall— 

(A) * * * 

* * * * * * * 

(8) Head Start agencies shall implement a research-based early 

childhood curricula that promotes young children’s school readiness 

in the areas of language and cognitive development, early reading 

and premathematics skills, socio-emotional skills, physical development, and approaches to learning. Such curricula shall be— 

(A) based on scientifically based research and have standardized training procedures and published curriculum materials to 

support implementation; and 

(B) comprehensive, outcomes based, and linked to ongoing assessment with instructional goals and measurable objectives. 

(9) Head Start agencies shall use ongoing, research-based assessment methods that are developmentally appropriate, culturally and 

linguistically responsive, and tied to children’s daily activities in 

order to support the educational instruction of children in the program, including language skills, prereading knowledge and 

premathematics knowledge. Assessment instruments shall be those 

designed and validated for making decisions about teaching and 

learning and aligned with the program’s curricula and Section 

641A(a)(1). 

(10) For the purpose of meeting the performance standards, Head 

Start agencies shall use high-quality research-based developmental 

screening tools that have been demonstrated to be standardized, reliable, valid, and accurate for children from a range of racial, ethnic, linguistic, and cultural backgrounds. 

ø(e) Head Start agencies shall adopt, in consultation with experts 

in child development and with classroom teachers, an assessment 

to be used when hiring or evaluating any classroom teacher in a 

center-based Head Start program. Such assessment shall measure 

whether such teacher has mastered the functions described in section 648A(a)(1).¿ 

(e) ASSESSMENT.—Each Head Start agency shall adopt, in consultation with experts in child development and with classroom 

teachers, an assessment to be used when hiring or evaluating any 

classroom teacher in a center-based Head Start program. Such assessment shall measure whether such teacher has mastered the 

functions described in section 648A(a)(1) and attained a level of literacy appropriate to implement Head Start curricula. 

(f) FUNDED ENROLLMENT; WAITING LIST.—Each Head Start agency shall enroll 100 percent of its funded enrollment and maintain 

an active waiting list at all times with ongoing outreach to the community and activities to identify underserved populations. 

øSEC. 642A. HEAD START TRANSITION.¿ 

SEC. 642A. HEAD START ALIGNMENT WITH K–12 EDUCATION. 

Each Head Start agency shall take steps to coordinate with the 

local educational agency serving the community involved and with 

schools in which children participating in a Head Start program 

134 

operated by such agency will enroll following such program, including— 

(1) * * * 

(2) establishing ongoing channels of communication between 

Head Start staff and their counterparts in the schools (including teachers, social workers, McKinney-Vento liaisons as established under section 722(g)(1)(J)(ii) of the McKinney-Vento 

Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11432(g)(1)(J)(ii)), and 

health staff) to facilitate coordination of programs; 

(3) developing continuity of developmentally appropriate curricula between Head Start and local educational agencies to ensure an effective transition and appropriate shared expectations 

for children’s learning and development as they make such 

transition to school; 

(4) organizing and participating in joint training, including 

transition-related training for school staff and Head Start staff; 

ø(3)¿ (5) conducting meetings involving parents, kindergarten or elementary school teachers, and Head Start program 

teachers to discuss the educational, developmental, and other 

needs of individual children; 

ø(4)¿ (6) organizing and participating in joint transition-related training of school staff and Head Start staff; 

ø(5) developing and implementing a family outreach and 

support program in cooperation with entities carrying out parental involvement efforts under title I of the Elementary and 

Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6301 et seq.);¿ 

(7) developing and implementing a family outreach and support program in cooperation with entities carrying out parental 

involvement efforts under title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 and family outreach and support 

efforts under subtitle B of title VII of the McKinney-Vento 

Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11431–11435); 

ø(6)¿ (8) assisting families, administrators, and teachers in 

enhancing educational and developmental continuity and continuity in parental involvement activities between Head Start 

services and elementary school classes; øand¿ 

ø(7) linking the services provided in such Head Start program with the education services provided by such local educational agency.¿ 

(9) linking the services provided in such Head Start program 

with the education services, including services relating to language, literacy, and numeracy, provided by such local educational agency; 

(10) helping parents (including grandparents and kinship 

caregivers, as appropriate) to understand the importance of parental involvement in a child’s academic success while teaching 

them strategies for maintaining parental involvement as their 

child moves from Head Start to elementary school; 

(11) developing and implementing a system to increase program participation of underserved populations of eligible children; and 

(12) coordinating activities and collaborating to ensure that 

curricula used in the Head Start program is aligned with— 

(A) State early learning standards with regard to cognitive, social, emotional, and physical competencies that 

135 

children entering kindergarten are expected to demonstrate; 

and 

(B) the Head Start Child Outcomes Framework developed by the Secretary. 

SEC. 642B. LOCAL AND STATE INTEGRATION OF EARLY CHILDHOOD 

EDUCATION. 

(a) LOCAL INTEGRATION.—In general, Head Start agencies shall 

enter into ongoing partnerships with local educational agencies, 

State-funded preschool and other early childhood programs. Head 

Start agencies shall operate in a manner consistent with the goal 

of creating and expanding an efficient and effective system of early 

childhood and school readiness services in each State and community, while maintaining compliance with Standards under section 

641A(a). 

(1) MEMORANDA OF UNDERSTANDING.—Each Head Start 

agency shall enter into a memorandum of understanding with 

any local educational agencies or local councils, responsible for 

managing publicly funded prekindergarten programs in the 

service area of the Head Start agency (or if such agencies and 

such councils are not applicable in the service area, with the 

largest provider of publicly funded prekindergarten in the service area), that shall include plans to coordinate the following 

activities: 

(A) Educational activities, curricula, and instruction 

aligned to challenging State developed educational activities, curricula, and instruction aligned to challenging State 

developed academic content standards. 

(B) Public information dissemination and access to programs for families contacting any of the early childhood 

programs. 

(C) Selection priorities for eligible children to be served 

by programs. 

(D) Service delivery areas. 

(E) Staff training, including opportunities for joint staff 

training on topics such as academic content standards and 

instructional methods. 

(F) Program technical assistance. 

(G) Provision of additional services to meet the child care 

needs of working parents. 

(H) Planning and parent education for smooth transitions to kindergarten as required in section 642A(3) and 

642A(6). 

(I) Provision and use of facilities, transportation, and 

other program elements, and 

(J) Other elements mutually agreed to by the parties to 

such memorandum. 

(2) TIMING OF MEMORANDA.—Each Head Start agency shall 

enter into a memorandum of understanding under paragraph 

(1) not later than 1 year after the effective date of this section. 

(3) SECRETARIAL REVIEW.—Each memorandum of understanding entered into under paragraph (1) shall be submitted 

to the Secretary not later than 30 days after entering into such 

memorandum. 

(A) If a Head Start agency is unable to comply with the 

requirement in (1) the Head Start agency shall notify the 

136 

Secretary and the chief executive officer of the State not 

later than 30 days after determining that they are unable 

to enter into such memorandum. The Secretary, in cooperation with the State Early Learning Council and the State 

Director of Head Start Collaboration, shall evaluate the 

causes of failure to enter into a memorandum of understanding under paragraph (1). With the assistance of the 

State Early Learning Council and the State Director of 

Head Start Collaboration, all parties shall again attempt 

to enter into a memorandum of understanding under paragraph (1). Then if no such memorandum of understanding 

is entered into, the Secretary shall make 1 of the following 

determinations: 

(i) The local educational agency, local council, or 

other appropriate entity is unable or unwilling to enter 

into such a memorandum despite reasonable efforts on 

the part of the Head Start agency; or 

(ii) The Head Start agency has not engaged in reasonable efforts to successfully negotiate and enter into 

a memorandum of understanding pursuant to paragraph (1). 

(iii) There is an absence of publicly funded prekindergarten in the service area of the Head Start 

agency. 

(B) If the Secretary determines the Head Start agency is 

not making reasonable efforts to enter into a memorandum 

of understanding pursuant to paragraph (1), the Head 

Start agency shall be found deficient and shall be considered by the Secretary in the same manner as other deficiency findings. 

(C) If the Secretary concludes that the local educational 

agency, local council, or other appropriate entity is not 

making reasonable efforts to reach such a memorandum of 

understanding, the Head Start agency shall not be found 

out of compliance with paragraph (1). 

(4) REVISION OF MEMORANDA.—Each memorandum of understanding shall be revised and renewed annually by the parties 

to such memorandum, in alignment with the beginning of the 

school year. 

(5) ABSENCE OF PREKINDERGARTEN.—In the absence of publicly funded prekindergarten in the service area of a Head Start 

agency, the Head Start agency shall submit notice to the Secretary and the chief executive officer of the State, and shall 

work with the State Early Learning Council and the State Director of Head Start Collaboration to improve coordination in 

their service area. 

(b) STATEWIDE INTEGRATION.—From the amounts reserved under 

section 640(a)(2)(C)(ii), the Secretary shall award an early learning 

collaboration grant to each State for the purposes of supporting a 

State Early Learning Council responsible for advancing the development of a coordinated early childhood services delivery system in 

the State. A State that receives a grant under this subparagraph 

shall— 

(1) establish a State Early Learning Council, which shall include the State Director of Head Start Collaboration, representVerDate Aug 04 2004 03:39 Jun 18, 2005 Jkt 039006 PO 00000 Frm 00136 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6603 E:\HR\OC\HR136.XXX HR136
137 

atives from the State preschool programs, representatives of 

local educational agencies, the State official who oversees child 

care programs, the State official who oversees section 619 and 

part C of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 

U.S.C. 1419, 1431 et seq.), the State official who oversees the 

State educational agency, and representatives from Head Start 

agencies located in the State, including migrant and seasonal 

Head Start programs and Indian Head Start programs. The 

chief executive officer of the State may designate an existing entity to serve as the Early Learning Council if such entity includes representatives described in this paragraph; 

(2) ensure that allotted funds distributed to a State for a fiscal year to carry out this subsection may be used by the State 

to pay not more than 30 percent of the cost of carrying out this 

subsection; 

(3) direct the Early Learning Council— 

(A) to increase coordination and collaboration among 

State preschool, Head Start programs, child care programs, 

early childhood special education, and other early childhood programs, including in the areas of outcomes and 

standards, technical assistance, coordination of services, 

cross-sector professional development and training, community outreach, communication, and better serving the needs 

of working families through provision of full-day and fullyear early education services; 

(B) to work with State agencies responsible for education, 

child care, and early intervention to provide leadership and 

assistance to local Head Start programs, school districts, 

and State and locally funded preschool and child care programs to increase integration among early childhood programs through adoption of local memoranda of understanding described in subparagraph (A) and other means; 

(C) to work with State agencies responsible for education, 

child care, and early intervention to provide leadership and 

assistance to develop a coherent sequence of standards for 

children age 3 through the early elementary grades to effect 

a smooth transition to and success in the early elementary 

grades; 

(D) to conduct periodic statewide needs assessments concerning early care and education programs for children 

from birth to school entry; 

(E) to work to identify and address barriers to and opportunities for integration between entities carrying out 

Federal and State child development, child care, and early 

childhood education programs; 

(F) to develop recommendations regarding means of establishing a unified data collection system for early care 

and education programs operating throughout the State; 

(G) to address coordination of early learning programs 

with health care (including mental and behavioral health 

care), welfare, family literacy and services for homeless 

children; 

(H) to support a State system of early childhood education, and training and technical assistance that improves 

the quality of early learning programs and the capacity of 

138 

such programs to deliver services pursuant to section 

648(b); and 

(I) to develop a plan for increasing the participation of 

children underrepresented in State early childhood education and child care programs, including Head Start, 

State preschool programs, and programs carried out under 

the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990 

(42 U.S.C. 9858 et seq.). 

(4) Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to provide 

the Early Learning Council with authority to alter the provisions of this Act. 

(5) Funds made available under this section shall be used to 

supplement, and not supplant, other Federal, State, and local 

funds that would otherwise be expended to carry out the purposes of this section. 

* * * * * * * 

ADMINISTRATIVE REQUIREMENTS AND STANDARDS

SEC. 644. (a)(1) STANDARDS.—Each Head Start agency shall observe standards of organization, management, and administration 

which will assure, so far as reasonably possible, that all program 

activities are conducted in a manner consistent with the purposes 

of this subchapter and the objective of providing assistance effectively, efficiently, and free of any taint of partisan political bias or 

personal or family favoritism. Each such agency shall establish or 

adopt rules to carry out this section, which shall include rules to 

assure full staff accountability in matters governed by law, regulations, or agency policy. Each agency shall also provide for reasonable public access to information, including public hearings at the 

request of appropriate community groups and reasonable public access to books and records of the agency or other agencies engaged 

in program activities or operations involving the use of authority 

or funds for which it is responsible. 

(2) ANNUAL REPORT.—Each Head Start agency shall make available to the public a report published at least once in each fiscal year 

that discloses the following information from the then most recently 

concluded fiscal year, except that reporting such information shall 

not reveal personally identifiable information about an individual 

child: 

(A) The total amount of public and private funds received 

and the amount from each source. 

(B) An explanation of budgetary expenditures and proposed 

budget for the following fiscal year. 

(C) The total number of children and families served and percent of average monthly enrollment, including the percent of eligible children served. 

(D) The results of the most recent review by the Secretary and 

the financial audit. 

(E) The percentage of enrolled children that received medical 

and dental exams. 

(F) Information about parent involvement activities. 

(G) The agency’s efforts to prepare children for kindergarten. 

(H) Any other information that describes the activities of the 

agency. 

139 

(3) PROCEDURAL CONDUCT.—Each such agency shall adopt for 

itself and other agencies using funds or exercising authority for 

which it is responsible, rules designed to (1) establish specific 

standards governing salaries, salary increases, travel and per diem 

allowances, and other employee benefits; (2) assure that only persons capable of discharging their duties with competence and integrity are employed and that employees are promoted or advanced 

under impartial procedures calculated to improve agency performance and effectiveness; (3) guard against personal or financial conflicts of interest; (4) define employee duties in an appropriate manner which will in any case preclude employees from participating, 

in connection with the performance of their duties, in any form of 

picketing, protest, or other direct action which is in violation of 

law. 

* * * * * * * 

(f)(1) * * * 

(2) Financial assistance provided under this subchapter may not 

be used by a Head Start agency to purchase a facility (including 

paying the cost of amortizing the principal, and paying interest on, 

loans) to be used to carry out a Head Start program unless the Secretary approves a request that is submitted by such agency and 

contains— 

(A) a description of the consultation conducted by the Head 

Start agency with the providers in the community demonstrating capacity and capability to provide services under 

this subchapter, and of the potential for collaboration with such 

providers and the cost effectiveness of such collaboration as opposed to the cost effectiveness of the purchase of a facility; 

ø(A)¿ (B) a description of the site of the facility proposed to 

be purchased or that was previously purchased; 

ø(B)¿ (C) the plans and specifications of such facility; 

ø(C)¿ (D) information demonstrating that— 

(i) * * * 

* * * * * * * 

ø(D)¿ (E) in the case of a request regarding a previously purchased facility, information demonstrating that the facility will 

be used principally as a Head Start center, or a direct support 

facility for a Head Start program; and 

ø(E)¿ (F) such other information and assurances as the Secretary may require. 

* * * * * * * 

PARTICIPATION IN HEAD START PROGRAMS

SEC. 645. (a)(1) The Secretary shall by regulation prescribe eligibility for the participation of persons in Head Start programs assisted under this subchapter. Except as provided in paragraph (2), 

such criteria may provide— 

(A) * * * 

(B) pursuant to such regulations as the Secretary shall prescribe, that— 

(i) programs assisted under this subchapter may include, 

øto a reasonable extent¿ not to exceed 10 percent of the 

total enrollment, participation of children in the area 

140 

served who would øbenefit from such programs¿ benefit 

from such programs, including children referred by child 

welfare services, but whose families do not meet the lowincome criteria prescribed pursuant to subparagraph (A) (a 

homeless child shall be deemed to meet the low-income criteria); and 

* * * * * * * 

(3) The amount of a basic allowance provided under section 403 

of title 37, United States Code, on behalf of an individual who is 

a member of the uniformed services for housing that is acquired or 

constructed under the authority of subchapter IV of chapter 169 of 

title 10, United States Code, or any other related provision of law, 

shall not be considered to be income for purposes of determining the 

eligibility of a child of the individual for programs assisted under 

this subchapter. 

* * * * * * * 

SEC. 645A. EARLY HEAD START PROGRAMS FOR FAMILIES WITH INFANTS AND TODDLERS. 

(a) * * * 

(b) SCOPE AND DESIGN OF PROGRAMS.—In carrying out a program 

described in subsection (a), an entity receiving assistance under 

this section shall— 

(1) * * * 

* * * * * * * 

ø(4) provide services to parents to support their role as parents and to help the families move toward self-sufficiency (including educational and employment services as appropriate); 

ø(5) coordinate services with services provided by programs 

in the State and programs in the community (including programs for infants and toddlers with disabilities) to ensure a 

comprehensive array of services (such as health and mental 

health services);¿ 

(4) provide services to parents to support their role as parents 

(including parenting skills training and training in basic child 

development) and to help the families move toward self-sufficiency (including educational and employment services as appropriate); 

(5) coordinate services with services (including home-based 

services) provided by programs in the State and programs in 

the community (including programs for infants and toddlers 

with disabilities and programs for homeless infants and toddlers) to ensure a comprehensive array of services (such as 

health and mental health services, and family support services); 

* * * * * * * 

ø(8) ensure formal linkages with the agencies and entities 

described in section 644(b) of the Individuals with Disabilities 

Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1444(b)) and providers of early intervention services for infants and toddlers with disabilities under 

the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1400 

et seq.); and¿ 

(8) ensure formal linkages with the agencies and entities described in section 644(b) of the Individuals with Disabilities 

Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1444(b)) and providers of early interVerDate Aug 04 2004 03:39 Jun 18, 2005 Jkt 039006 PO 00000 Frm 00140 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6603 E:\HR\OC\HR136.XXX HR136
141 

vention services for infants and toddlers with disabilities under 

the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1400 

et seq.) and the agency responsible for administering section 

106 of the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (42 

U.S.C. 5106a); 

(9) develop and implement a systematic procedure for 

transitioning children and parents from an Early Head Start 

program into a Head Start program or another local early 

childhood education program; 

(10) establish channels of communication between staff of 

Early Head Start programs and staff of Head Start programs 

or other local early childhood education programs, to facilitate 

the coordination of programs; and 

ø(9)¿ (11) meet such other requirements concerning design 

and operation of the program described in subsection (a) as the 

Secretary may establish. 

* * * * * * * 

(d) ELIGIBLE SERVICE PROVIDERS.—To be eligible to receive assistance under this section, an entity shall submit an application 

to the Secretary at such time, in such manner, and containing such 

information as the Secretary may require. Entities that may apply 

to carry out activities under this section include— 

ø(1) entities operating Head Start programs under this subchapter; and¿ 

(1) entities operating Head Start programs under this subpart, including migrant and seasonal Head Start programs; 

and 

(2) other public entities, and nonprofit or for-profit private 

entities, including community- and faith-based organizations, 

capable of providing child and family services that meet the 

standards for participation in programs under this subchapter 

and meet such other appropriate requirements relating to the 

activities under this section as the Secretary may establish. 

* * * * * * * 

(g) MONITORING, TRAINING, TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE, AND EVALUATION.— 

(1) * * * 

(2) TRAINING AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE ACCOUNT.— 

(A) * * * 

(B) ACTIVITIES.—Funds in the account may be used by 

the Secretary for purposes including— 

(i) * * * 

* * * * * * * 

(iii) providing ongoing training and technical assistance for existing recipients (as of the date of such 

training or assistance) of grants under subsection (a) 

and support and program planning and implementation assistance for new recipients of such grants; 

øand¿ 

(iv) providing professional development and personnel enhancement activities, including the provision 

of funds to recipients of grants under subsection (a) for 

the recruitment and retention of qualified staff with 

142 

an appropriate level of education and experienceø.¿; 

and 

(v) providing professional development designed to 

increase program participation for underserved populations of eligible children. 

(h) CENTER-BASED STAFF.—The Secretary shall ensure that, not 

later than September 30, 2008, all teachers providing direct services 

to children and families participating in Early Head Start programs located in Early Head Start centers have a minimum of a 

child development associate credential or an associate degree, and 

have been trained (or have equivalent course work) in early childhood development. 

SEC. 645B. PARENTAL CONSENT REQUIREMENT FOR NONEMERGENCY 

INTRUSIVE PHYSICAL EXAMINATIONS. 

(a) DEFINITION.—The term ‘‘nonemergency intrusive physical examination’’ means, with respect to a child, a physical examination 

that— 

(1) is not immediately necessary to protect the health or safety 

of such child, or the health or safety of another individual; and 

(2) includes incision or is otherwise invasive, or includes exposure of private body parts. 

(b) REQUIREMENT.—Before administering any health care service 

(including any nonemergency intrusive physical examination) to a 

child (or referring such child to obtain such service) in connection 

with participation in a program under this subchapter, a Head 

Start agency and an entity that receives assistance under section 

645A shall obtain the written consent of a parent of such child. 

(c) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this section shall be 

construed to prohibit a Head Start agency or an entity that receives 

assistance under section 645A from using established methods, for 

handling cases of suspected or known child abuse and neglect, that 

are in compliance with applicable Federal, State, or tribal law. 

APPEALS, NOTICE, AND HEARING

SEC. 646. (a) The Secretary shall prescribe procedures to assure 

that— 

(1) * * * 

* * * * * * * 

ø(3) financial assistance under this subchapter shall not be 

terminated or reduced, an application for refunding shall not 

be denied, and a suspension of financial assistance shall not be 

continued for longer than 30 days, unless the recipient has 

been afforded reasonable notice and opportunity for a full and 

fair hearing; and¿ 

(3) if financial assistance under this subchapter is terminated 

or reduced, an application for a noncompeting continuation 

award is denied based on a previous failure to comply with 

terms applicable to financial assistance previously provided this 

subchapter, or suspension of financial assistance is continued 

for more than 30 days, the recipient with respect to whom such 

action is taken shall have the opportunity to appeal such action 

in accordance with such procedures, except that no funds made 

available under this subchapter may be used to reimburse any 

143 

such recipient for legal fees and other costs incurred in pursuing such an appeal; 

* * * * * * * 

RECORDS AND AUDITS

SEC. 647. (a) * * * 

* * * * * * * 

(c)(1) Not later than 180 days after the end of each fiscal year, 

each Head Start agency, and each entity that receives assistance 

under section 645A, shall submit to the Secretary an independent 

financial audit of the Head Start program carried out with financial assistance provided under this subchapter. Such audit shall be 

carried out by a certified public accountant selected through a competitive process from among qualified certified accountants by the 

local oversight board established in accordance with section 

642(b)(4) by such agency, except that no accountant may perform 

audits of such program for a period exceeding 5 consecutive fiscal 

years. 

(2) Not later than 60 days after receiving such audit, the Secretary shall provide to such agency or such entity, and to the chief 

executive officer of the State in which such program is operated, a 

notice identifying the actions such agency or such entity is required 

to take to correct all deficiencies identified in such audit. 

(d) Each recipient of financial assistance under this subchapter 

shall— 

(1) maintain, and annually submit to the Secretary, a complete accounting of its administrative expenses (including a detailed statement identifying the amount of financial assistance 

provided under this subchapter used to pay expenses for salaries and compensation and the amount (if any) of other funds 

used to pay such expenses); and 

(2) provide such additional documentation as the Secretary 

may require. 

TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE AND TRAINING

SEC. 648. (a) * * * 

* * * * * * * 

(c) In allocating resources for technical assistance and training 

under this section, the Secretary shall— 

(1) * * * 

(2) supplement amounts provided under section 

640(a)(3)(C)(ii) in order to address the training and career development needs of classroom staff (including instruction for 

providing services to children with disabilities and for activities 

described in section 1221(b)(3) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965) and nonclassroom staff, including home visitors and other staff working directly with families, including training relating to increasing parent involvement and services designed to increase family literacy and improve parenting skills; 

* * * * * * * 

144 

(5) assist Head Start agencies and programs in conducting 

and participating in communitywide strategic planning and 

needs assessment, including the needs of homeless children 

and their families; 

* * * * * * * 

(10) assist Head Start agencies in developing innovative program models, including mobile and home-based programs; 

øand¿ 

(11) provide support for Head Start agencies (including policy councils and policy committees, as defined in regulation) 

that meet the standards described in section 641A(a) but that 

have, as documented by the Secretary through reviews conducted pursuant to section 641A(c), significant programmatic, 

quality, and fiscal issues to addressø.¿; 

(12) assist Head Start agencies and programs in increasing 

program participation of homeless children; and 

(13) assist Head Start agencies and Head Start programs in 

improving outreach to, and the quality of services available to, 

limited English proficient children and their families, particularly in communities that have experienced a large percentage 

increase in the population of limited English proficient individuals, as measured by the Bureau of the Census. 

(d) The Secretary may provide, either directly or through grants 

to public or private nonprofit entities, including community- and 

faith-based organizations, training for Head Start personnel in the 

use of the performing and visual arts and interactive programs 

using electronic media to enhance the learning experience of Head 

Start children. Special consideration shall be given to entities that 

have demonstrated effectiveness in educational programming for 

preschool children that includes components for parental involvement, care provider training, and developmentally appropriate related activities. 

ø(e) The Secretary shall provide, either directly or through 

grants or other arrangements, funds from programs authorized 

under this subchapter to support an organization to administer a 

centralized child development and national assessment program 

leading to recognized credentials for personnel working in early 

childhood development and child care programs, training for personnel providing services to non-English language background children (including services to promote the acquisition of the English 

language), training for personnel in helping children cope with 

community violence, and resource access projects for personnel 

working with disabled children.¿ 

(e) The Secretary shall provide, either directly or through grants 

or other arrangements, funds from programs authorized under this 

subchapter to support an organization to administer a centralized 

child development and national assessment program leading to recognized credentials for personnel working in early childhood development and child care programs, training for personnel providing 

services to limited English proficient children (including services to 

promote the acquisition of the English language), training for personnel providing services to children determined to be abused or neglected, training for personnel providing services to children referred by or receiving child welfare services, training for personnel 

145 

in helping children cope with community violence, and resource access projects for personnel working with disabled children. 

(f) The Secretary shall provide, either directly or through grants, 

or other arrangements, funds for training of Head Start personnel 

in addressing the unique needs of migrant and seasonal working 

families, families with a limited English proficiency, and homeless 

families. 

(g) More than 50 percent of funds expended under this section 

shall be used to provide high quality, sustained, intensive, and 

classroom-focused training and technical assistance in order to have 

a positive and lasting impact on classroom instruction. Funds shall 

be used to carry out activities related to any or all of the following: 

(1) Education and early childhood development. 

(2) Child health, nutrition, and safety. 

(3) Family and community partnerships. 

(4) Other areas that impact the quality or overall effectiveness 

of Head Start programs. 

(h) Funds under this subchapter used for training shall be used 

for needs identified annually by a grant applicant or delegate agency in their program improvement plan, except that funds shall not 

be used for long-distance travel expenses for training activities 

available locally or regionally or for training activities substantially 

similar to locally or regionally available training activities. 

(i)(1) The Secretary shall work in collaboration with the Head 

Start agencies that carry out migrant and seasonal Head Start programs, State Directors of Head Start Collaboration, the migrant 

and seasonal Head Start collatoration director, and other appropriate entities— 

(A) to accurately determine the number of children nationwide who are eligible to participate in migrant and seasonal 

Head Start programs each year; 

(B) to document how many of these children are receiving 

Head Start services each year; and 

(C) to the extent practicable, to ensure that access to migrant 

and seasonal Head Start programs for eligible children is comparable to access to other Head Start programs for other eligible children; 

(2) In carrying out paragraph (1)(A), the Secretary shall consult 

with the Secretary of Education about the Department of Education’s systems for collecting and reporting data about, and maintaining records on, students from migrant and seasonal farmworker 

families. 

(3) Not later than 9 months after the effective date of this subsection, the Secretary shall publish in the Federal Register a notice 

of how the Secretary plans to carry out paragraph (1) and shall provide a period for public comment. To the extent practicable, the Secretary shall consider comments received before submitting a report 

to the Congress. 

(4) Not later than 1 year after the effective date of this subsection, 

the Secretary shall submit a report to the Committee on Education 

and the Workforce of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate, detailing how the Department of Health and Human Services plans 

to carry out paragraph (1). 

146 

(5) The Secretary shall submit annually a report to the Congress 

detailing the number of children of migrant and seasonal farmworkers, who are eligible to participate in Head Start programs and 

the number of such children who are enrolled in Head Start programs. 

(6) The Secretary shall take appropriate action, consistent with 

section 444 of the General Education Provisions Act, to ensure the 

protection of the confidentiality of any personally identifiable data, 

information, and records collected or maintained by the Secretary, 

by Head Start agencies that carry out migrant and seasonal Head 

Start programs, by State Directors of Head Start Collaboration, by 

the Migrant and Seasonal Farmworker Collaboration Project Director, and by other appropriate entities pursuant to this subsection. 

(7) Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to authorize the 

development of a nationwide database of personally identifiable information on individuals involved in studies or other collections of 

data under this subsection. 

(j) For purposes of this section, the term ‘‘eligible entities’’ means 

an institution of higher education or other entity with expertise in 

delivering training in early childhood development, family support, 

and other assistance designed to improve the delivery of Head Start 

services. 

SEC. 648A. STAFF QUALIFICATIONS AND DEVELOPMENT. 

(a) CLASSROOM TEACHERS.— (1) * * * 

ø(2) DEGREE REQUIREMENTS.— ø(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall ensure that not 

later than September 30, 2003, at least 50 percent of all 

Head Start teachers nationwide in center-based programs 

have— 

ø(i) an associate, baccalaureate, or advanced degree 

in early childhood education; or 

ø(ii) an associate, baccalaureate, or advanced degree 

in a field related to early childhood education, with experience in teaching preschool children. 

ø(B) PROGRESS.—The Secretary shall require Head Start 

agencies to demonstrate continuing progress each year to 

reach the result described in subparagraph (A).¿ 

(2) DEGREE REQUIREMENTS.— (A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall ensure that not 

later than September 30, 2011, at least 50 percent of all 

Head Start teachers nationwide in center-based programs 

have— 

(i) a baccalaureate or advanced degree in early childhood education; or 

(ii) a baccalaureate or advanced degree in a field related to early childhood education, with experience in 

teaching preschool children. 

(B) PROGRESS.—Each Head Start agency shall provide to 

the Secretary a report indicating the number and percentage of classroom instructors with child development associate credentials and associate, baccalaureate, or advanced 

degrees. The Secretary shall compile all program reports 

and make them available to the Committee on Education 

and the Workforce of the United States House of RepresentVerDate Aug 04 2004 03:39 Jun 18, 2005 Jkt 039006 PO 00000 Frm 00146 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6603 E:\HR\OC\HR136.XXX HR136
147 

atives and the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, 

and Pensions of the United States Senate. 

(C) REQUIREMENT FOR NEW HEAD START TEACHERS.— Within 3 years after the effective date of this subparagraph, 

the Secretary shall require that all Head Start teachers nationwide in center-based programs hired following the effective date of this subparagraph— 

(i) have an associate, baccalaureate, or advanced degree in early childhood education or a related field; or 

(ii) be currently enrolled in a program of study leading to an associate degree in early childhood education 

and agree to complete degree requirements within 3 

years from the date of hire. 

(D) SERVICE REQUIREMENTS.—The Secretary shall establish requirements to ensure that individuals who receive financial assistance under this subchapter in order to comply 

with the requirements under section 648A(a)(2) shall subsequently teach in a Head Start center for a period of time 

equivalent to the period for which they received assistance 

or repay the amount of the funds. 

(E) LIMITATION.—The Secretary shall require that any 

Federal funds provided directly or indirectly to comply with 

subparagraph (A) shall be used toward degrees awarded by 

an institution of higher education, as defined by sections 

101 or 102 of the Higher Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1001– 

1002). 

* * * * * * * 

(f) PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT PLANS.—Each Head Start agency and program shall create, in consultation with an employee, a 

professional development plan for all full-time employees who provide direct services to children. 

SEC. 649. RESEARCH, DEMONSTRATIONS, AND EVALUATION. 

(a) IN GENERAL.— (1) REQUIREMENT; GENERAL PURPOSES.—The Secretary shall 

carry out a continuing program of research, demonstration, 

and evaluation activities, in order to— 

(A) * * * 

ø(B) use the Head Start programs to develop, test, and 

disseminate new ideas and approaches for addressing the 

needs of low-income preschool children (including children 

with disabilities) and their families and communities (including demonstrations of innovative noncenter-based program models such as home-based and mobile programs), 

and otherwise to further the purposes of this subchapter.¿ 

(B) use the Head Start programs to develop, test, and disseminate new ideas and approaches based on existing scientifically based research, for addressing the needs of lowincome preschool children (including children with disabilities and children determined to be abused or neglected) 

and their families and communities (including demonstrations of innovative non-center based program models such 

as home-based and mobile programs), and otherwise to further the purposes of this subchapter. 

* * * * * * * 

148 

(d) SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES.—The research, demonstration, and 

evaluation activities under this subchapter shall include components designed to— 

(1) * * * 

* * * * * * * 

(7) provide for disseminating and promoting the use of the 

findings from such research, demonstration, and evaluation activities; and 

(8) promote exploration of areas in which knowledge is insufficient, and that will otherwise contribute to fulfilling the purposes of this subchapterø;¿. ø(9) study the experiences of small, medium, and large 

States with Head Start programs in order to permit comparisons of children participating in the programs with eligible 

children who did not participate in the programs, which 

study— 

ø(A) may include the use of a data set that existed prior 

to the initiation of the study; and 

ø(B) shall compare the educational achievement, social 

adaptation, and health status of the participating children 

and the eligible nonparticipating children; and 

The Secretary shall ensure that an appropriate entity carries out 

a study described in paragraph (9), and prepares and submits to 

the appropriate committees of Congress a report containing the results of the study, not later than September 30, 2002.¿ 

* * * * * * * 

(g) NATIONAL HEAD START IMPACT RESEARCH.— (1) EXPERT PANEL.— (A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall appoint an independent panel consisting of experts in program evaluation 

and research, education, and early childhood programs— 

ø(i) to review, and make recommendations on, the 

design and plan for the research (whether conducted 

as a single assessment or as a series of assessments) 

described in paragraph (2), within 1 year after the 

date of enactment of the Coats Human Services Reauthorization Act of 1998;¿ 

ø(ii)¿ (i) to maintain and advise the Secretary regarding the progress of the research; and 

ø(iii)¿ (ii) to comment, if the panel so desires, on the 

interim and final research reports submitted under 

paragraph (7). 

* * * * * * * 

(7) REPORTS.— 

(A) * * * 

* * * * * * * 

(C) TRANSMITTAL OF REPORTS TO CONGRESS.— 

ø(i) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall transmit, to 

the committees described in clause (ii), the first interim report by September 30, 1999, the second interim report by September 30, 2001, and the final report by September 30, 2003.¿ 

149 

(i) Not later than September 30, 2007, the Secretary 

shall transmit to the committees specified in clause (ii) 

the final report. 

* * * * * * * 

ø(h) QUALITY IMPROVEMENT STUDY.— ø(1) STUDY.—The Secretary shall conduct a study regarding 

the use and effects of use of the quality improvement funds 

made available under section 640(a)(3) since fiscal year 1991. 

ø(2) REPORT.—The Secretary shall prepare and submit to 

Congress not later than September 2000 a report containing 

the results of the study, including information on— 

ø(A) the types of activities funded with the quality improvement funds; 

ø(B) the extent to which the use of the quality improvement funds has accomplished the goals of section 

640(a)(3)(B); 

ø(C) the effect of use of the quality improvement funds 

on teacher training, salaries, benefits, recruitment, and retention; and 

ø(D) the effect of use of the quality improvement funds 

on the development of children receiving services under 

this subchapter.¿ 

(h) NAS STUDY.— (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall use funds allocated in 

section 640(a)(2)(C)(iii) to contract with the National Academy 

of Sciences for the Board on Children, Youth, and Families of 

the National Research Council to establish an independent 

panel of experts to review and synthesize research, theory and 

applications in the social, behavioral and biological sciences 

and to make recommendations on early childhood pedagogy 

with regard to each of the following: 

(A) Age and developmentally appropriate Head Start academic requirements and outcomes, including the domains 

in 641A(a)(B). 

(B) Differences in the type, length, mix and intensity of 

services necessary to ensure that children from challenging 

family and social backgrounds including: low-income children, children of color, children with special needs, and 

children with limited English proficiency enter kindergarten ready to succeed. 

(C) Appropriate assessments of young children (including 

systematic observation assessment in a child’s natural environment, and parent and provider interviews) for purposes 

of improving instruction, services, and program quality, 

and accommodations for children with disabilities and appropriate assessments for children with special needs (including needs related to the acquisition of the English language). 

(D) An evaluation of the current and appropriate uses of 

the National Reporting System developed by the Secretary. 

(2) COMPOSITION.—The panel shall consist of multiple experts 

in each of the following areas: 

(A) Child development and education, including cognitive, social, emotional, physical, approaches to learning, 

and other domains of child development and learning. 

150 

(B) Professional development, including teacher preparation, to individuals who teach young children in programs. 

(C) Assessment of young children, including screening, 

diagnostic and classroom-based instructional assessment; 

children with special needs, including children with disabilities and limited English proficient children. 

(3) TIMING.—The National Academy of Sciences and the 

Board shall establish the panel not later than 90 days after the 

date of the enactment of the School Readiness Act of 2005. The 

panel shall complete its recommendations within 18 months of 

its convening. 

(4) APPLICATION OF PANEL RECOMMENDATIONS.—The recommendations of the panel shall be used as guidelines by the 

Secretary to develop, inform and revise, where appropriate, the 

Head Start education performance measures and standards 

and the assessments utilized in the Head Start program. 

(i) LIMITED ENGLISH PROFICIENT CHILDREN.— 

(1) STUDY.— Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment 

of the School Readiness Act of 2005, the Secretary shall conduct 

a study on the status of limited English proficient children and 

their families in Head Start programs and Early Head Start 

programs. 

(2) REPORT.—The Secretary shall prepare and submit to Congress, not later than September 2008, a report containing the 

results of such study, including information on— 

(A)(i) the demographics of limited English proficient children less than 5 years of age and the geographical distribution of such children; and 

(ii) the number of such children receiving Head Start 

services and the number of such children receiving Early 

Head Start services, and the geographical distribution of 

such children receiving such services; 

(B) the nature of the Head Start services and of the Early 

Head Start services provided to limited English proficient 

children and their families, including the types, content, 

duration, intensity, and costs of family services, language 

assistance, and educational services; 

(C) procedures in Head Start programs for assessing language needs and for making the transition of limited 

English proficient children to kindergarten, including the 

extent to which Head Start programs meet the requirements 

of section 642A for limited English proficient children; 

(D) the qualifications and training provided to Head 

Start teachers and Early Head Start teachers who serve 

limited English proficient children and their families; 

(E) the rate of progress made by limited English proficient children and their families in Head Start programs 

and in Early Head Start programs, including— 

(i) the rate of progress made by limited English proficient children toward meeting the additional educational standards described in section 

641A(a)(1)(B)(ii) while enrolled in Head Start programs; 

(ii) the correlation between such progress and the 

type and quality of instruction and educational proVerDate Aug 04 2004 03:39 Jun 18, 2005 Jkt 039006 PO 00000 Frm 00150 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6603 E:\HR\OC\HR136.XXX HR136
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grams provided to limited English proficient children; 

and 

(iii) the correlation between such progress and the 

health and family services provided by Head Start programs to limited English proficient children and their 

families; and 

(F) the extent to which Head Start programs make use of 

funds under section 640(a)(3) to improve the quality of 

Head Start services provided to limited English proficient 

children and their families. 

SEC. 650. REPORTS. 

(a) STATUS OF CHILDREN.—øAt least once during every 2-year period, the Secretary shall prepare and submit, to the Committee on 

Education and the Workforce of the House of Representatives and 

the Committee on Labor and Human Resources of the Senate, a report concerning the status of children (including disabled and nonEnglish language background children) in Head Start programs, including the number of children and the services being provided to 

such children.¿ At least once during every 2-year period, the Secretary shall prepare and submit, to the Committee on Education 

and the Workforce of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions of the Senate, a 

report concerning the status of children (including disabled, homeless, and limited English proficient children) in Head Start programs, including the number of children and the services being provided to such children. Such report shall include— 

(1) * * * 

* * * * * * * 

(8) information concerning children participating in programs that receive Head Start funding, including information 

on family income, racial and ethnic background, homelessness, 

disability, and receipt of benefits under part A of title IV of the 

Social Security Act; 

* * * * * * * 

(c) NATIONAL REPORTING SYSTEM.—The Secretary shall submit 

annually to the Committee on Education and the Workforce of the 

House of Representatives and the Committee on Health, Education, 

Labor, and Pensions of the Senate, a report on the status of the National Reporting System developed by the Secretary. Such report 

shall include— 

(1) information on all contracts, grants, and expenses relating 

to the development and implementation of the National Reporting System; 

(2) information described in section 641A(b)(3)(B); and 

(3) a description of the recommendations made by the Technical Working Group, including issues of the technical adequacy, purpose, and administration of the System, and an explanation of how the Secretary plans to address these recommendations. 

* * * * * * * 

øCOMPARABILITY OF WAGES

øSEC. 653. The¿ 

152 

SEC. 653. WAGES AND COMPENSATION. 

(a) COMPARABILITY OF WAGES.—The Secretary shall take such action as may be necessary to assure that persons employed in carrying out programs financed under this subchapter shall not receive compensation at a rate which is (1) in excess of the average 

rate of compensation paid in the area where the program is carried 

out to a substantial number of the persons providing substantially 

comparable services, or in excess of the average rate of compensation paid to a substantial number of the persons providing substantially comparable services in the area of the person’s immediately 

preceding employment, whichever is higher; or (2) less than the 

minimum wage rate prescribed in section 6(a)(1) of the Fair Labor 

Standards Act of 1938. The Secretary shall encourage Head Start 

agencies to provide compensation according to salary scales that 

are based on training and experience. 

(b) FEDERAL RATE LIMITATION.—Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no Federal funds shall be used to pay all or any part 

of the compensation of an individual employed by a Head Start 

agency in carrying out programs under this subchapter, either as 

direct or indirect costs or any proration thereof, at a rate in excess 

of the rate then payable for level II of the Executive Schedule under 

section 5316 of title 5, United States Code. 

* * * * * * * 

SEC. 656A. LIMITATION ON CERTAIN USES OF FUNDS. 

No funds made available to carry out this subchapter may be 

used— 

(1) for publicity or propaganda purposes not heretofore authorized by the Congress; or 

(2) unless authorized by law in effect on the effective date of 

this section, to produce any prepackaged news story intended 

for broadcast or distribution unless such story includes a clear 

notification contained within the text or audio of such story 

stating that the prepackaged news story was prepared or funded by the Department of Health and Human Services. 

* * * * * * * 

(153) 

ADDITIONAL DEMOCRATIC VIEWS 

Head Start is the premiere early education program in this country. Started in 1965 under President Johnson, it is a highly successful, research-based, comprehensive child development and early 

education program for low-income children, ages birth to five years 

old, and their families. It has played a very important role in improving the lives of over 20 million children and their families in 

its long history. Its goal is to help disadvantaged children be better 

prepared to succeed in school and in life by addressing the needs 

of the whole child and providing comprehensive services such as 

health and nutrition in addition to education—the approach child 

development experts believe is the most effective. Moreover, parental involvement has always been a cornerstone in Head Start because the experts believe parents are children’s most important 

and influential teachers; and, to have long-term success, the program should consider the family as well as the child. These important principles remain central to the program today. 

Poverty is one of the strongest predictors of lower school success: 

an ‘‘achievement’’ gap between low income children and their more 

affluent peers begins before kindergarten and continues through elementary and secondary education. After nearly a decade of decline 

in national child poverty, the rate of child poverty began to rise in 

2002. Today, more than 12 million children in America live in poverty, including approximately 20% of children under age 6. Poverty 

rates are substantially higher for ethnic and racial minorities. A 

large income gap exists between White, African American and Hispanic families: in 2002, the median income for White families with 

children under 18 was twice as high as that of African American 

and Hispanic families. In 2003, 38.5% of African American, 32.1 % 

of Hispanic, and 16.5% of White children under age 6 lived in poverty. In addition, more than 8 million children and teenagers do 

not have health insurance. Research finds that experiencing poverty as a child leads to more health and mental problems throughout one’s life, less academic success, and less stable employment as 

an adult. Head Start must be one part of a multi-faceted approach 

to reducing the impact of poverty and eliminating the achievement 

gap. As we re-examine and reauthorize Head Start, we must also 

recognize the basic inequities in this country and do much more to 

eliminate poverty. 

Head Start is one of the most evaluated federal programs, and 

research concludes that Head Start works. Research finds that children who attend Head Start enter school better prepared than lowincome children who do not attend the program, and that children 

who attend Head Start make significant gains relative to national 

norms in vocabulary, early writing, letter recognition and social behavior. Head Start students show IQ gains, are less likely to need 

154 

special education services, repeat a grade, or commit crimes in adolescence and are more likely to graduate from high school. 

The most recent and highest quality research also shows that 

Head Start helps children make gains in cognitive development 

and narrows the achievement gap. In June 2005, HHS released a 

report on the first year findings from the Impact Study—a congressionally mandated study that required the Department of Health 

and Human Services to determine the impact of Head Start on the 

children and families it serves. This longitudinal, randomized control group design study will follow children through the end of first 

grade and evaluate the effect of Head Start over this period. The 

findings from the first year—which tracks 3 and 4-year olds, half 

of whom are in Head Start and the remainder in other settings, including parental care, child care and pre-kindergarten were very 

encouraging. Head Start was found to have a positive impact on 

children’s pre-reading skills, pre-writing skills, vocabulary and parent-reported literacy skills. The study also found that after less 

than one school year, Head Start narrowed the achievement gap by 

45% in the area of pre-reading and by 28% in pre-writing. The 

study also found Head Start had the effect of changing parenting 

practices, including increasing the frequency parents read to their 

child and improving some discipline strategies. In addition, Head 

Start decreased hyperactivity in 3-year olds. Significant effects 

were not found in the areas of oral comprehension and phonological 

awareness and early math and many areas of socio-emotional development—suggesting key areas for program improvement. 

Research from the high-quality longitudinal FACES study also 

found that children who attend Head Start make great strides in 

closing the achievement gap. FACES found that children made 

modest but significant gains in areas of cognitive development during the Head Start year and made even greater gains over the kindergarten year so that by the end of kindergarten, the Head Start 

graduates were ‘‘essentially at national norms in early reading and 

writing, and about one third of a standard deviation below national 

norms in vocabulary, general knowledge and early math.’’ These 

findings suggest that not only do children in Head Start learn key 

skills in the program, but it also prepares children to better benefit 

from teaching when they get to elementary school. 

We are encouraged to see that research concludes Head Start is 

doing what we expect and demand that it should do—better prepare children to succeed in school. But it also indicates that we 

must build on the program’s success so that we can provide these 

children with an even better head start. Dr. Ed Zigler, the distinguished expert in child development from Yale University and the 

‘‘father of Head Start’’, frequently comments that ‘‘the moment 

Head Start stands pat, it is dead.’’ We fully agree and support H.R. 

2123 because it completely abandons the misguided and destructive 

block grant proposal the Majority pushed, and we adamantly opposed, in 2003, and it contains many Democratic priorities that will 

move the program forward and improve services for children and 

their families. H.R. 2123 improves academic content and requirements by integrating new science on early child development and 

evidence-based practices into the program; promotes better coordination at the local level between Head Start and prekindergarten, 

155 

which should help to better meet the needs of working parents and 

increase the quality of both state pre-k and Head Start; requires 

the Secretary to more efficiently use discretionary funding in order 

to increase the funding to Migrant and Seasonal and Indian Head 

Start programs without decreasing the funding to regional Head 

Start; strengthens accountability by integrating GAO’s recommendation to use a risk-based assessment strategy for monitoring fiscal management of the program and by increasing on-site 

monitoring; provides incentives for states to develop strategies for 

more effective and efficient delivery of early education services and 

to find ways to improve service to underserved populations; improves program quality by requiring the Secretary to better integrate the Training/Technical Assistance (‘‘T/TA’’) and monitoring 

systems, a process that seems oddly lacking; and corrects current 

inconsistencies in existing statute to allow the Secretary to more 

quickly replace inadequate programs that are often funded for one 

or more years after the Secretary moves to terminate funding. 

We were pleased that many Democratic priorities were integrated into the bill through bipartisan negotiations, but we also 

urge the Secretary to approach two areas in the bill with restraint. 

H.R. 2123 adds extensive language clarifying the Secretary’s existing authority to re-compete poorly performing programs. Though 

we agree with current statute and GAO’s recommendations that focusing recompetition on the most poorly performing programs will 

improve the overall quality of Head Start, we believe it is critical 

the Secretary not interpret the provisions in this bill in an overly 

broad manner. Placing good Head Start programs under the uncertainty of recompetition will undermine program quality and service 

delivery. A sense of stability and continuity within Head Start is 

the most effective and cost efficient way to deliver Head Start services and best meet the needs of children and families. Therefore, 

we strongly urge the Secretary to use recompetition as intended in 

this bill—only for the most poorly performing programs. Furthermore, we encourage the Secretary to improve the targeting and implementation of T/TA to minimize the programs that need to be recompeted so that effectiveness and efficiency are maximized. Finally, we remind the Secretary that research repeatedly demonstrates that parental well-being and parental involvement in 

their children’s education are some of the strongest predictors of 

positive child development and school success. Therefore, we 

strongly recommend the Secretary ensure parent involvement and 

parent empowerment remain central tenets of the Head Start program. Furthermore, we urge the Secretary to require the meaningful and active participation of the parent Policy Council in program 

governance. 

Finally, we believe there are some important components to program quality that are not adequately addressed in H.R. 2123, such 

as program expansion and teacher quality. These concerns are addressed below, as well as our concerns about the Majority’s stated 

intent to add language to this bill that would allow religious discrimination. 

156 

PROGRAM EXPANSION

There are two main ways to narrow the achievement gap between low income children and their more affluent peers—one is to 

increase program effectiveness, the other is to increase program enrollment. They are equally necessary and we need to do everything 

we can to ensure that every eligible child receives Head Start services, as well as to substantially expand Early Head Start. If we 

truly believe that no child should be left behind, funding Head 

Start and other high quality early education programs must be one 

of our top domestic priorities. 

Unfortunately, we are headed in the wrong direction. Head Start 

currently serves less than one-half of eligible preschoolers, Early 

Head Start serves approximately 3% of its eligible population, and 

Migrant and Seasonal Head Start serves approximately 19% of its 

eligible children. After the first three fiscal years under the Bush 

Administration and Congressional Republican budget priorities, the 

percent of eligible children served by Head Start decreased. Funding for Head Start under the Republican budgets has not even been 

sufficient to keep up with inflation costs, resulting in a decrease in 

the number of children served in each of the last two years as well 

as reported cuts in the types and quality of services delivered. H.R. 

2123 and the recent bill voted out of the Appropriations Committee 

signal continuation of this bad precedent—they provide insufficient 

funds to cover inflation, meaning that teachers will not get adequate raises and programs will again be forced to either reduce the 

number of children they serve or reduce the quality of services they 

provide. The necessary resources are available if the Republicans 

in charge chose to make this the priority it should be. Democrats 

offered an amendment to substantially increase the authorization 

level for Head Start and expand Early Head Start. Unfortunately, 

Republicans defeated this amendment with all Republicans voting 

against increasing funding for the program and all Democrats voting for program expansion. 

TEACHER QUALITY

The Democratic Members of this Committee strongly support improving teacher quality in Head Start because it is critical to increasing overall program quality and helping more children reach 

kindergarten better prepared to succeed. As such, we support the 

requirement in H.R. 2123 that half of Head Start teachers nationwide have at least a B.A. in child development or a related field 

by 2011, and also the requirement that all new teachers have at 

least an associate’s degree, or be emolled in a program to achieve 

an associate degree, beginning three years after enactment of the 

bill. These goals and requirements are consistent with research 

findings that teacher education is related to better outcomes in 

children’s cognitive, social and emotional development. Setting a 

high bar for teachers is one of the best ways to continue to improve 

Head Start. 

However, this bill provides no funding to support the implementation of its important teacher quality provisions. On average, 

Head Start teachers with B.A.’s make just $25,000 annually, while 

kindergarten teachers with similar training make over $41,000. In 

157 

order to attract and retain highly qualified teachers, Head Start 

must improve teacher salaries and access to early education scholarships. The Trust for Early Education has estimated that the cost 

of compensating half of all Head Start lead teachers, at a rate comparable to what they could earn teaching in public school kindergarten, will cost an additional $2 billion dollars over 5 years. Yet 

this bill does not even provide funding for appropriate cost of living 

raises for existing teachers. Improving teacher quality is very important, but without providing the means to support the provision, 

the initiative is severely undercut. Democrats offered amendments 

in Committee to address this substantial failing in the bill but were 

defeated with all Republicans voting against and all Democrats voting for funds for teacher quality. 

RELIGIOUS DISCRIMINATION

Section 654(a) of the Head Start Act, titled ‘‘Nondiscrimination 

Provisions’’, states: 

The Secretary shall not provide financial assistance for 

any program, project, or activity under this subchapter unless the grant or contract with respect thereto specifically 

provides that no person with responsibilities in the operation thereof will discriminate with respect to any such 

program, project, or activity because of race, creed, color, 

national origin, sex, political affiliation, or beliefs. 

Since 1972, the Head Start statute has included the above provision to protect the rights of those who participate in the Head Start 

program—children, parents, teachers, employees and volunteers— 

to be free from discrimination in any form. As a critical component 

of America’s civil rights platform, Head Start has endeavored to 

provide all children in need with the opportunities of education and 

an environment to assist in their healthy development that would 

enable them to arrive at school ready to succeed. Committee Democrats recognize that Section 654(a) of the Head Start Act is key to 

this effort and actively fought to protect its integrity during consideration of Head Start in the 108th Congress. 

H.R. 2123 as reported from the full committee maintains Section 

654(a), ensuring that the civil rights of students, parents and 

teachers are protected in federally-funded Head Start programs. 

We applaud the bipartisan nature of the bill that has resulted in 

this outcome. Unfortunately, the Chairman of the Full Committee, 

in preparation for consideration of H.R. 2123, publicly stated his 

intention to offer an amendment on the floor of the House that will 

give faith-based organizations providing Head Start services the 

right to discriminate with federal funds against employees who are 

of different faiths. The proposed Boehner Amendment severely disrupts the bipartisanship that has surrounded H.R. 2123 and deserves defeat. 

The Majority claims that the proposed Amendment will make 

Head Start consistent with Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. 

We disagree with this claim. By maintaining current law in Section 

654(a) of the Head Start Act, the Committee affirms a civil right 

standard that has coexisted with Title VII since 1972. Section 

654(a) allows, that with regard to funding of faith-based organizaVerDate Aug 04 2004 06:07 Jun 18, 2005 Jkt 039006 PO 00000 Frm 00157 Fmt 6604 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\HR136.XXX HR136
158 

tions, government funds, collected from all taxpayers, should not be 

used to support discrimination. Section 654(a) does not, and the 

Head Start program never has—as asserted by the Majority—prohibited faith-based organizations from receiving Head Start funds. 

The Head Start program is a model for demonstrating that a prohibition on religious employment discrimination with federal funds 

is fully compatible with federal assistance to faith-based charities. 

Faith-based organizations can and do fully participate in federally 

funded programs without discriminating in hiring with those same 

federal funds. Faith-based charities have taken good advantage of 

these federally funded programs to advance their charitable work 

in a manner which the President finds worthy of expansion—and, 

in fact, we have heard no suggestion that the faith-based charities 

involved with Head Start or numerous other social service programs have seen their own faith communities erode. The Committee has never received any testimony from faith-based organizations stating that the Boehner Amendment is needed for their continued or expanded participation in running federally-funded programs. 

We strongly support and appreciate the valued role faith-based 

organizations have played in operating Head Start programs and 

the right of religious institutions to preserve the integrity of their 

own religious character when it comes to religious activities. Consistent with Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and prevailing 

federal court decisions, faith-based organizations may discriminate 

in employment on the basis of religion with private funds but are 

precluded from doing so when the position under consideration is 

funded with taxpayer dollars. 

We disagree that it is healthy for American society or that it is 

in conformance with basic American principles of fairness and 

equal treatment under the law, for the federal government to provide funds for secular purposes to any organization, which would 

then use these funds in a discriminatory fashion on religious 

grounds. In fact, in a poll conducted in 2001 by the Pew Research 

Center and the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life on President Bush’s faith-based initiative, 78% of those polled shared our 

concerns about proposals to use federal funds to deny someone a 

job based on their religious views and practices. And, we agree 

with the American people—a Head Start teacher should not be 

fired because he or she is the ‘‘wrong’’ religion. The Boehner 

Amendment, however, goes against public opinion and core American principles and would allow this form of federally funded discrimination. 

We are greatly concerned that the provision to remove civil 

rights protections for employees could have a negative impact on 

the children and families who participate in these programs. Tens 

of thousands of at-risk 3- and 4-year old children currently in Head 

Start, could lose their teachers—who often are the most important 

adults to whom they have bonded, other than their parents—not 

because those teachers are doing a bad job, but because of their religion. 

Committee Democrats understand that Head Start is a unique 

program that enables parents to climb the economic ladder by moving from Head Start volunteer to teacher status, an aspect of the 

159 

Head Start program that benefits families. As a result of the 

Boehner Amendment, countless parents could be blocked from 

climbing the ladder out of poverty that has already taken thousands of parents from being a parent volunteer to being a trained 

and paid Head Start staff—simply because the parents do not 

share the federally-funded employer’s religious beliefs. 

While the Committee did not consider this Amendment during 

its consideration of H.R. 2123, Representatives Miller, Woolsey, 

Scott and Grijalva spoke out in opposition to such a proposal during full Committee deliberation. They were joined by numerous 

faith-based organizations that recognize the importance of maintaining civil rights protections in Head Start. The American Jewish 

Committee wrote that, 

If so amended, H.R. 2123 would compromise an extremely successful program that provides essential services 

to nearly one million at-risk children nationwide. While 

many of the religious organizations that deliver the program would, no doubt, continue to hire employees for Head 

Start programs without regard to religion, H.R. 2123 could 

jeopardize the jobs of many thousands of current and potential teachers, staff, and parent volunteers for belonging 

to the ‘‘wrong’’ religion, as well as jeopardize children for 

whom a stable and trusting relationship between teacher 

and child is so important. 

For these reasons, we strongly urge you to oppose any 

attempts to roll back the vital civil rights protections of 

H.R. 2123, the School Readiness Act.—(Emphasis added). 

African American Ministers in Action, an organization of leaders 

and pastors of predominantly African American congregations, 

commented, 

We agree that religious organizations participating in 

the Head Start program make an invaluable contribution 

to the education of thousands of students in minority communities in particular, but do not agree that discriminating against persons based upon their religion is necessary or desirable in order to provide these much needed 

services. 

The Coalition Against Religious Discrimination, an organization 

comprised of religious, civil rights, labor, and education organizations noted in their May 18, 2005 letter to Members of the Committee that ‘‘allowing discrimination based on religion would significantly impede the important goals of Head Start, sending a 

damaging message to Head Start students....’’. The National Head 

Start Association, whose members include Head Start agencies, regional and state associations, non-profit and for-profit organizations, has also stated its opposition to the proposed Amendment. 

The Chairman’s stated intention that he will seek to amend the 

Head Start Act with language allowing faith-based organizations to 

discriminate in employment based on religion is not welcomed. If 

the Amendment is passed, it will jettison the strong bipartisan support that H.R. 2123 currently enjoys. The proposed Boehner 

Amendment is misguided in its application, reflects poor political 

160 

judgment and would have a longstanding discriminatory impact on 

Head Start children, parents and teachers. We will oppose all efforts to eliminate these civil rights protections in current law. 

Some of the many groups that oppose the proposed Boehner 

Amendment include: African American Ministers in Action; American Jewish Committee; Anti-Defamation League; Baptist Joint 

Committee for Religious Liberty; Central Conference of American 

Rabbis; Disciples Justice Action Network (Disciples of Christ); Disciples Advocacy Washington Network; Christian Justice Action; 

United Church of Christ; Protestant Justice Action; Equal Partners 

in Faith; Hadassah, the Women’s Zionist Organization of America; 

Jewish Council for Public Affairs; National Council of Jewish 

Women; Presbyterian Church (USA), Washington Office; Texas 

Faith Network; The General Board of Church and Society of The 

United Methodist Church; The Interfaith Alliance/Foundation; 

Union for Refonn Judaism; Unitarian Universalist Association of 

Congregations; United Church of Christ Justice & Witness Ministries; American Association of University Women; American Civil 

Liberties Union; American Federation of State; County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), AFL–CIO; American Humanist Association; Americans for Religious Liberty; Americans United for Separation of Church and State; Human Rights Campaign; Leadership 

Conference on Civil Rights; National Association of Social Workers; 

National Education Association; National Head Start Association; 

National Organization for Women; OMB Watch; People For the 

American Way; Service Employees International Union (SEIU), 

AFL–CIO, CLC; Texas Freedom Network; The Secular Coalition for 

America; United Auto Workers, AFL–CIO. 

AMENDMENTS

Though H.R. 2123 makes important progress in some areas of 

the Head Start program, Democrats believe other important priorities were not included. Democratic Members offered the following 

amendments during Committee consideration of the bill to try and 

address these concerns: 

Mr. Davis offered an amendment to provide funding for improving teacher professional development and compensation. As noted 

previously, improving teacher quality should be one of our top priorities during reauthorization. However, though this bill increases 

teacher requirements, it provides no additional funding to implement these requirements and thus undermines this critical quality 

provision. This amendment was defeated with all Republicans voting against improving teacher compensation and all Democrats voting for these increases. 

Mr. Grijalva offered two amendments. In one amendment, which 

was accepted by Committee on a voice vote, language was added 

to the underlying bill that would require the Early Learning Council to develop ways to identify children who are underrepresented 

in early childhood education programs, examine barriers to their 

participation, and plan for ways in which enhanced coordination 

among early childhood education services can increase access for all 

children. Data from the National Center for Education Statistics 

finds that Hispanic children are less likely than White or African 

American children to arrive at kindergarten having attended a cenVerDate Aug 04 2004 06:07 Jun 18, 2005 Jkt 039006 PO 00000 Frm 00160 Fmt 6604 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\HR136.XXX HR136
161 

ter-based early childhood education program. We believe states 

should take into account the needs of children who currently underutilize services and ensure that the additional resources that 

are leveraged in states via improved coordination are used to improve access for children who are not benefiting from the current 

structure. Mr. Grijalva offered a second amendment that would 

have provided grants for bringing bilingual teachers to rural areas. 

This amendment was withdrawn with plans to further address the 

issue during consideration of the Higher Education Act. 

Mr. Kind offered an amendment to suspend the National Reporting System pending the results of the study requested of the National Academy of Sciences in the bill. The Administration is completing its second full year of implementing a countrywide testing 

system for Head Start children that has cost $25 million dollars so 

far, despite strong concerns voiced by early child education experts 

who believe the system is heavily flawed and inappropriate. This 

amendment would suspend the NRS, pending a study by experts 

convened by the National Academy of Sciences, and would require 

the Secretary to use the resulting report as a guideline for developing an appropriate method of using assessments to improve child 

outcomes and program quality. The amendment was offered and 

withdrawn with an agreement by the Chairman to continue to examine the Issue. 

Mr. Kucinich offered an amendment that would change the way 

the poverty line is calculated for Head Start eligibility, by tying it 

to growth in wages rather than growth in prices. This amendment 

addresses some of the major flaws in the formula for calculating 

the poverty threshold, and if passed, would make more children eligible for Head Start. 

Ms. McCollum offered an amendment to require faith-based organizations applying for Head Start grants to obtain a 501(c)(3) separate and distinct from that which they may already have obtained 

as a pervasively sectarian organization. With this amendment, the 

religious entity (i.e., church, mosque, or synagogue), separate from 

the Head Start grantee, would have legal protections and retain a 

right to privacy if the Head Start grantee acted inappropriately as 

a federally-funded grantee. The McCollum Amendment would have 

ensured that federal dollars would therefore be separate and distinct from private dollars that support religious activities. The 

amendment was defeated 18–29. 

Ms. McCollum and Mr. Van Hollen offered an amendment to provide grantees with funding to meet the Head Start transportation 

safety regulations. Congress previously passed a mandate regarding the safety requirements of bus transportation for Head Start 

children, but no money was provided to help programs implement 

the provision. The Secretary has granted waivers to some programs, but the Committee is concerned that they have not developed an adequate long-term solution for ensuring the safe transportation of children. We have heard first hand reports of Head Start 

grantees scaling back or eliminating transportation services because the high cost of meeting the regulations was untenable. 

Other programs that are meeting the regulations are having to use 

20% or more of their budget toward transportation costs. Such high 

costs mean a decrease in other program services. For example, one 

162 

agency reported offsetting transportation costs by taking funds 

from their family support program, resulting in an increased the 

caseload for family advocates from the recommended 35 to 100. We 

believe most programs are doing everything they can to meet these 

regulations but in many cases we are requiring programs to make 

unacceptable choices, whether it be limiting transportation services, reducing the number of children served, or cutting other services, in order to offset costs. Moreover, although waivers are currently permitted, and would continue to be allowed under HR 2123, 

we have heard reports that the Administration is providing inconsistent, and at times, conflicting guidance regarding the granting 

of waivers. This amendment helps programs retain their enrollment levels, keeps them from decreasing their services, and ensures the safety of children by providing funding for Head Start 

programs to meet the federal requirement regarding safety modifications of buses used for transportation. The amendment was 

withdrawn with an agreement by the Chairman to continue discussing avenues to address the problem. 

Mr. Tierney offered an amendment providing grants of up to 

$10,000 in loan forgiveness for Head Start teachers. As previously 

noted, attracting and retaining high quality teaching staff should 

be one of our top priorities for Head Start, but H.R. 2123 provides 

no funding to meet this goal. This amendment would have substantially helped implement the new teacher requirements under H.R. 

2123 by providing a proven method of attracting and retaining 

qualified teachers. This amendment was defeated by voice vote but 

the Chairman agreed to try and address the issue during consideration of the Higher Education Act, expected later this year. 

Ms. Woolsey and Mr. Van Hollen offered an amendment to provide full funding for preschoolers in Head Start and double the percentage of infants and toddlers receiving Early Head Start over the 

next 6 years. Currently, only about half of eligible preschool children receive Head Start and only 3% of infants and toddlers receive Early Head Start because of inadequate funding. The authorization level in this bill does nothing to improve this situation, as 

it does not even cover the cost of inflation. This important amendment was defeated on a party-line vote with all Republicans voting 

against authorizing funds to serve more eligible children. 

REFERENCES

Abbott-Shim, M., Lambert, R., & McCarty, F. (2003). A Comparison of School 

Readiness Outcomes for Children Randomly Assigned to a Head Start Program and 

the Program’s Wait List. Journal of Education for Students Placed At Risk, 8(2), 

191–214. 

Broaddus, Matthew & Arloc Sherman (May 2005). Poverty, Income, and Health 

Insurance Coverage Tables, Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. 

Currie, J., & Thomas, D. (1995). Does Head Start Make a Difference? The American Economic Review, Vol. 85(3),341–364. 

Duncan, G.J. & Brooks-Gunn, J., Eds. (1997). Consequences of Growing Up Poor. 

Russell Sage Foundation. 

McLanahan, S, Haskins, R., Paxson, C., Rouse, C., & Sawhill, I. (Eds.), (2005). 

School Readiness: Closing Racial and Ethnic Gaps. The Future of Children, Volume 

15(1). Princeton University and Brookings Institution Press. 

U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, (2001). 

National Household Education Surveys, Program, Parent Interviews. Washington, 

D.C. 

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U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (2005). Trends in the Well-Being 

of America’s Children & Youth: 2003. Washington, D.C. 

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and 

Families (May 2005). Head Start Impact Study: First Year Findings. Washington, 

D.C. 

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and 

Families (2005). Promoting Positive Development in Young Children: Designing 

Strategies That Work, Summary of Conference Proceedings. Head Start’s 7th National Research Conference, June 28–July 1, 2004. Washington, D.C. 

U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, Administration for Children & 

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GEORGE MILLER. CHRIS VAN HOLLEN. ROBERT ANDREWS. JOHN F. TIERNEY. 

DANNY K. DAVIS. 

RUSH HOLT. 

BOBBY SCOTT. 

MAJOR R. OWENS. 

TIMOTHY H. BISHOP. 

CAROLYN MCCARTHY. 

LYNN WOOLSEY. 

RON KIND. 

DONALD M. PAYNE. 

PAUL M. GRIJALVA. 

BETTY MCCOLLUM. 

RUBEN HINOJOSA. 

DAVID WU. 

DALE E. KILDEE. 

TIM RYAN. 

DENNIS J. KUCINICH. 

Æ