SUBJECT: Determining community strengths and needs

PERFORMANCE OBJECTIVE: ATCAA Head Start uses a tri-annual Community Assessment to select and design program options, which best support, the needs of children, families, and communities in its service area.

1. The Program Director is responsible for collecting and summarizing data on the strengths, needs, and characteristics of the communities Head Start serves. The resulting document is called the Community Assessment.

1. The Community Assessment must include the following information:

1. The demographic make-up of Head Start eligible children and families – their estimated number, geographic location, racial and ethnic composition.
2. Other child development programs in the community that serve Head Start eligible children, including publicly funded state and local pre-school programs and the approximate number of children served by each.
3. The estimated number of children with disabilities who are four years old or younger, their types of disabilities, and the services for them currently provided by community agencies.
4. The education, health, nutrition, and social services needs of Head Start eligible children and their families.
5. Current resources in the community for addressing the needs of Head Start eligible children and their families.

2. The Community Assessment is used to determine the selection and design of Head Start program options for the community, based on these factors:

• Long range and short term objectives
• Services most needed and how to implement them
• Recruitment area to be served
• Appropriate locations for Head Start centers and home base programs
• Defining the selection priorities for recruitment of children and families

1. The Community Assessment is also the basis for developing a three-year strategic plan, a process that involves the Parent Policy Council, the A-TCAA Board of Directors, and all members of the Head Start staff.

3. The Program Director and Service Area Managers review the Community Assessment yearly to determine if it should be updated.

1. If there have been significant changes in the community, the Program Director and Service Area Managers will update the data and information analysis in the Community Assessment, as set forth in this section: A.1 (a-e).

edited 10/17/2007 03:51:45 PM