Cohort 5 - Head Start Grantees Required to Compete for Continued Funding is Released
by Andrea Abbott on 06/21/16
On May 26th, the Fifth Cohort of Head Start grantees designated to compete for funding was released (click here to view). This list included 12 programs, which is significantly fewer than in past years. The programs are from 10 states as follows: California (1); Colorado (1); Illinois (1); Kansas (2); Maryland (1); Michigan (1); Oklahoma (1); Pennsylvania (1); Texas (1); and Virginia (1)
This release follows an earlier
list of 10 service areas that were posted during the months of March, April and
May. According to our analysis, most of
the programs included in Cohort five have CLASS scores that are in the lowest
10% of all grantees or scores that do not meet the threshold for 2015. While several
programs have also met specified conditions that trigger their entry into
recompetition we continue to be concerned that CLASS plays such as large role
in programs’ entry into DRS. The following reasons underscore our opinion on
this issue:
- CLASS is a valid measure but the way the OHS is using it is not reliable. In order for the CLASS to be scientifically reliable for identifying the lowest quality programs in the country OHS would need to observe all programs
every year using the same federal review process. This activity would produce data necessary to
determine which programs are truly in the lowest 10% in the nation in
regard to their CLASS scores. The way the current system is implemented the scores could skew based on the random sample of programs that are
monitored during the federal review process. For example, if the programs reviewed in a given year were all
high performing it would skew the CLASS scores higher, thus increasing the
minimum threshold for all programs. If a program does not meet this
threshold it does not necessarily mean that the program has the lowest
quality among all programs.
- There is no guarantee that new Head Start grantees have higher
CLASS scores or more experience than programs that lose their grant due to
recompetition. In many cases, programs that enter the designation renewal
system have lost their grants to programs with less experience. This is
becoming more and more frequent. One trend to watch is the degree to which
new grants are awarded to child care partners associated with the Early
Head Start - Child Care Partnerships program as the Early Head Start –
Child Care Partnerships program is expanding the Head Start program into
new communities and new types of entities. This is increasing the number
of agencies that have experience with the Head Start program which can
earn you valuable scoring points on the recompetition grant narrative.
- Other early intervention preschool programs are not held to this
standard. Let me qualify this point by saying that, yes Head Start is
the “gold standard” of early
education programs and should be held to a higher level of accountability due
to the vulnerable nature of the children served and the level of federal
investment in Head Start. However, the field has not defined the “essential
elements” of high quality preschool programs in a manner that has been
scientifically validated. We do know about key features of effective
interventions, but we do not know “what works, under what conditions, for
which children”. Using CLASS to recapture funding is putting the cart
before the horse.
