6. Who is eligible for Head Start?

Based on Performance Standard 1302.12 Determining, verifying, and documenting eligibility. Of the Head Start Performance Standards, Children from birth to agefivewho are from families with incomes below the poverty guidelines are eligible for Head Start and Early Head Start services. Children from homeless families, and families receiving public assistance such as TANF or SSI are also eligible. True _____ False _____

7. What role do parents play in Head Start?

"Parent Involvement Parents are the most important influence on a child 's development. An essential part of every Head Start program is the involvement of parents in parent education, program planning, and operating activities. Many serve as members of Policy Councils and Communities and have a voice in administrative and managerial decisions". True _____False_____

8. What is the overall goal of including parents in the Head Start Program?

"To help achieve the goal of giving families a voice, Head Start legislation called for the "maximum feasible participation" of parents. Programs would form Parent Policy Councils. Parents on the councils would have executive responsibilities, including engagement in planning the center environment and curriculum, obtaining jobs as classroom assistants, participating in the hiring process, and learning empowerment strategies to become catalysts for community action efforts". (Hinitz 2014) True _____False_____

9. What is Early Head Start and when was it established?

"Early Head Start began in 1998 under the sponsorship of the Advisory Committee on Services for Families With Infants and Toddlers, established by Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Donna Shalala. It is currently operated by the Office of Head Start, with training and technical assistance provided by the Early Head Start Resource Center at Zero to Three," (Hinitz 2014). This also includes children with disabilities and homeless children. Programs in the various states and communities develop criteria to determine which eligible children are to be enrolled based on their needs. True_____False_____

10.What are the Head Start Performance Standards and when were they established?

In 1975 the standards for parent involvement were codified into the national Head Start Performance Standards, Section 70.2, which mandated that parents of children in the program constitute a majority on the policy board and described the ways in which that board must have input and decision-making power in different areas of operation.

These standards set Head Start apart from other social service programs and the public schools by providing for specific, active roles for families in such areas as curriculum, finance, staff hiring and firing, and policy. "These parent roles, though perhaps without as radical a potential as community control could have had, do give parents significant official control of programs" (Hinitz 2014) True _____False_____

11. Are children with exceptionalities/disabilities eligible for Head Start?

A disabled child can often learn more readily in a group with other children than in a separate group for the disabled, Head Start has successfully carried out a 1972 Congressional mandate requiring that at least 10 percent of its enrollment in each State be available for disabled children.

Disabled children and their families receive the full range of Head Start developmental services. In addition, Head Start staff members work closely with community agencies to provide services to meet the special needs of the disabled child. (DHHS, ACF B of HS) (nd). True _____ False_____

12. Children whose family incomes are over the income criteria are not eligible for Head Start and cannot attend any program. True______ False_______

13. Head Start Programs are allowed to enroll children who are 5 years of age if they missed kindergarten due to the cut off dates of eligibility. True_____ False_____