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Creating Quality Head Start Facilities

By Katie Williams, Head Start and Youth Manager, Region V, Administration for Children and Families, Chicago, IL

The recent amendments to the Head Start Act have greatly increased the options available to Head Start programs to secure quality facilities. The extensive Head Start expansion in the early 1990's further intensified the problem of securing appropriate Head Start facilities within often limited options. Now the options for facilities include purchase (including modulars), construction, and renovation (incidental and major).

The Facilities Workgroup, created by the Head Start Bureau to assess the facilities situation, has developed a framework and strategy for supporting grantee efforts to secure quality facilities. The workgroup has been challenged by the complexity of the facilities issue, and has channeled its efforts in the following areas:

• Developing the Notice of Proposed Rule Making (NPRM) on the purchase of facilities;
  
  
• Developing a Policy Issuance on construction and major renovation;
  
  
• Participating in the development of new performance standards for facilities;
  
  
• Identifying and utilizing facility experts in other Federal agencies;
  
  
• Framing policy issues that will form the basis for a facilities strategy for Head Start;
  
  
• Analyzing information and data from grantee experiences in seeking facilities assistance;
  
  
• Developing a national computerized tracking system to input data from the Regions on purchase, construction, and major renovation by grantees;
  
  
• Issuing Information Memoranda on facilities issues, such as the Davis-Bacon Act and the Head Start Facility Referral and Information Service (FRIS);
  
  
• Assisting the contractor in developing the FRIS and in providing training to the T/TA network and Federal staff;
  
  
• Securing the assistance of the Head Start T/TA network in providing training in the Regions; and
  
  
• Developing checklists and guidance for utilization by Federal staff and grantees in developing and analyzing applications for purchase, major renovation, and construction.

The workgroup still faces many challenges as it continues to identify and seek resolution to numerous policy issues. A major task remains the issuance of final regulations which address purchase, major renovation, and construction.

As the new facilities options increase responsibilities for both grantees and Federal staff, the Bureau wants to be sure legislation is implemented in a way which reflects ethical decisions and the appropriate and efficient use of Federal funds.

--For additional information on Head Start facilities, see the Head Start Bulletin on facilities, No. 59, and the Head Start Facilities Manual.

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Last Modified: 10/31/01