Title
Head Start Birth to Five Monthly Report - October - Districts 1, 3, 4, 5, 7 & 8
Description
This report provides the Community Services and Education Subcommittee, which serves as the City of Phoenix Head Start Birth to Five Governing Board, with an updated summary of the Head Start Birth to Five Program's financial and programmatic status.
THIS ITEM IS FOR INFORMATION ONLY.
Report
Summary
The Improving Head Start for School Readiness Act of 2007 requires each Head Start Grantee to share monthly information with the Governing Board and Policy Council on program planning, policies, and operations. In compliance with the Act, the Head Start program provides a monthly report on the following areas:
- Fiscal expenditures.
- Enrollment reports.
- School attendance.
- Medical/dental exams.
- Program information summaries.
- Nutrition.
- Child Incident Reports.
- Program Instructions or Information Memorandums.
Fiscal Expenditures
Attachment A shows year-to-date expenditures for the Fiscal Year (FY) 2025-26. The report includes a breakdown of each Education Service Provider, Child Care Partnership, Policy Council, and the administrative support budget.
Enrollment Reports
The Office of Head Start requires programs to report the total number of children enrolled on the last day of each month. At the end of October, the total program enrollment was 2,185 out of 2,209 available slots, which is 98 percent.
Enrollment at the end of September for the Preschool Education Service Providers was 1,946 out of 1,957 slots filled, which is 99 percent.
The Early Head Start program, which includes home-based and center-based year-round programming, ended the month with 239 slots filled out of 252, representing 94 percent capacity. The home-based program ended the month with 43 slots filled out of 44 available slots, equating to 97 percent. The center-based program filled 196 out of 208 slots, which is 94 percent. Greater Phoenix Urban League opened their last two classrooms at Cartwright Early Childhood Center this month. The Booker T. Washington Early Child Development Center is waiting on licensing approval to open one classroom, but is conducting home visits for children enrolled in the unopened classroom.
Federal Impact on Head Start
Congress extended Federal FY 2024-25 funding levels through FY 2025-26. However, this extension will not include a cost-of-living adjustment.
Full Enrollment Initiative
Early Head Start continues to participate in the initiative because enrollment has been below 97 percent in previous months. In October, Early Head Start did not meet the minimum enrollment requirement of 97 percent. If EHS maintains less than 97 percent of funded enrollment for four consecutive months, the Office of Head Start has the authority to designate the program as Chronically Under-Enrolled and take action as authorized under Section 641A(h)(5). These actions may include recapturing, withholding, or reducing the annual funding and funded enrollment. EHS staff continue to actively recruit children for the program.
School Attendance
The Office of Head Start sets an annual target for attendance of 85 percent. Attachment B indicates the year-to-date average attendance through the end of October. Head Start Preschool was 84 percent, and the Early Head Start Center-Based program was 74 percent.
Medical/Dental Exams
Head Start regulations require all children to have medical and dental exams annually. At the end of October, 2,182 medical and 1,753 dental exams were completed, totaling 3,935 exams. This is illustrated in Attachment C. The low numbers are due to the fact that preschool programs were not in session during the month of July. The target goals have been updated to reflect the new enrollment number.
Program Information Summaries
Please see Attachment D.
Child Incident Reports
The Head Start Program Performance Standards require programs to submit reports related to any significant incidents affecting program participant health and safety. This includes injuries requiring hospitalization, emergency room treatment, or a doctor's visit. Additionally, significant incidents include inappropriate discipline, potential child abuse or maltreatment, lack of supervision, or unauthorized release of a child. No Child Incident Reports were submitted to the Office of Head Start in October.
Department of Child Safety Reports
All Head Start and Early Head Start staff are required to report suspected child abuse and neglect to protect children and help children and families connect to services. During the month of October, there were no reports made to the Department of Child Safety.
Program Instructions or Information Memorandums
Periodically, the Office of Head Start needs to provide information or programmatic updates to all Head Start Grantees. This is done through Program Instructions (PIs) and Information Memorandums (IMs). PIs provide information or recommendations from the United States Department of Health and Human Services Administration for Children and Families to States, Tribes, grantees, and others. This includes various issues of child welfare that usually result in guidance or policy changes. IMs provide up-to-date information but do not establish requirements or supersede existing laws or official guidance. In October, no PIs or IM's were released.
Locations
Alhambra Elementary School District, 4510 N. 37th Avenue
Cartwright Elementary School District, 5220 W. Indian School Road
Deer Valley Unified School District, 20402 N. 15th Avenue
Fowler Elementary School District, 1617 S. 67th Avenue
Isaac School District, 3348 W. McDowell Road
Laveen Elementary School District, 5601 W. Dobbins Road
Murphy Elementary School District, 3140 W. Buckeye Road
Pendergast Elementary School District, 3802 N. 91st Avenue
Phoenix Elementary School District, 1817 N. 7th Street
Riverside Elementary School District, 1414 S. 51st Avenue
Roosevelt Elementary School District, 6000 S. 7th Street
Skyrise School of Black Canyon, 10653 N. 25th Avenue
Skyrise School of Laveen, 755 S. 51st Avenue
Washington Elementary School District, 4650 W. Sweetwater Avenue
Wilson Elementary School District, 3025 E. Fillmore Street
Council Districts: 1, 3, 4, 5, 7 and 8
Department
Responsible Department
This item is submitted by Deputy City Manager Gina Montes and the Human Services Department.