By Cisa Keller, President & CEO and Nicole Smerillo, Director of Data, Research, and Policy
At Think Small, our mission is to advance quality care and education of children in their crucial early years. We work with families, early educators, and state leaders to ensure that children have access to quality learning opportunities that support healthy development, school readiness, and family needs and that educators have the resources and support they need to provide these quality experiences for young children.
In response to the recent proposed changes to Head Start standards, we think it is important to balance the need for evolution and innovation in our early childhood system with the potential impacts that changes to Head Start, which represents a large part of the early childhood system, or any other changes to early care and education regulations may have on children, families, and educators. Every proposed change, at the state and/or federal level, should be evaluated through a simple question: Will it strengthen quality, support educators, and improve outcomes for children and families?
Proposed Changes Raise Important Questions
Head Start began in 1965 to provide low-income children with quality early care and education, as well as wraparound services to support their development and get them ready for school. Head Start programs have long been a pathway to quality experiences for many children nationwide. The program serves approximately 800,000 children per year and provides opportunities for families to be served in centers, homes, and other locally-designed options.1
Head Start is more than an early learning program for many children and families. It is a source of stability and support during an important period of development. Any changes to the program should be evaluated with that reality in mind.
What’s at Stake for Children and Families?
The proposed changes could impact many of the quality elements that research has shown contribute to positive outcomes for young children, including whole-child approaches that address physical and mental health, as well as individual developmental needs; recruitment and retention of skilled staff; staff qualifications and training; developmentally appropriate teaching practices; safe and supportive learning environments; family engagement; reasonable group sizes and ratios; and sufficient time in programs to meet family needs and allow children to build relationships and learn.
The potential changes could also affect how programs serve children with disabilities, dual language learners, and how they meet the needs of children experiencing homelessness.
Why Quality Matters in Early Childhood
The first years of a child’s life are a critical window of opportunity. Young children experience rapid brain development during this period with more than 1 million connections forming in the brain every second. As a result, their early experiences can be especially impactful. These early brain connections lay the foundation for all future learning, behavior, and health.2 During this time, relationships are one of the most important drivers of brain development, making nurturing relationships with skilled caregivers critically important. Positive experiences in playing, talking, and reading all help to strengthen a young child’s brain growth as well.
Quality in early childhood helps ensure that children are not just attending a program, but that they are engaged in the kinds of interactions and learning environments needed to promote their development and well-being today and in the future. Moreover, it is crucial that children’s access to brain-building, quality early learning opportunities not be determined by zip code, home language, income, or other barriers. Strong Head Start programs help ensure quality early learning remains accessible to the children and families who need it most.
Keeping Quality at the Center
We urge policymakers to keep quality at the center as they consider the proposed changes to Head Start and any other early care and education regulations. Early childhood systems need to evolve and innovate to meet community needs and provide flexibility to reduce administrative burdens. But every change that is considered should either strengthen quality, support educators, or improve outcomes for children and families. Policymakers should also consider whether reducing federal expectations across elements of quality could lead to negative impacts on children’s experiences and outcomes.
Children deserve early experiences that are safe, nurturing, developmentally appropriate, and responsive to their individual needs. Think Small believes any changes made to Head Start standards must strengthen the conditions that make quality early care and education experiences possible so that children, their families, and their early educators can thrive.
1 Office of Head Start – Services Snapshot: NATIONAL ALL PROGRAMS (2023-2024).
2 Brain Architecture: An ongoing process that begins before birth
