ACYF Administration on Children, Youth and Families	U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES Administration for Children and Families
	1. Log No. ACYF-IM-HS-97-06	2. Issuance Date: 04/18/97
	3. Originating Office: Head Start Bureau
	4. Key Word: Training and Technical Assistance

INFORMATION MEMORANDUM [See Attachment at the bottom]

TO: All Head Start Grantees and Delegate Agencies

SUBJECT: New Training and Technical Assistance System to Support Head Start and Early Head Start Programs Nationwide

INFORMATION: On Tuesday, April 8, 1997, the Head Start Bureau announced the availability of funds to be awarded competitively as cooperative agreement grants to assist qualified institutions and organizations in the provision of training and technical assistance (T/TA) to local Head Start projects nationwide. The cooperative agreements will support Head Start Quality Improvement Centers and Head Start Disability Services Quality Improvement Centers. Public, private nonprofit, and private for-profit organizations are eligible to apply for these cooperative agreements. The closing date for submission of applications is June 9, 1997. Copies of the announcement are being sent to all Head Start Grantees and Delegate Agencies. Additional copies are available upon request to the Head Start Information and Publication Center at 703-683-5769 (fax), or by writing to HSIPC, P.O. Box 26417, Alexandria, VA, 22313-0417.

BACKGROUND:

As we work to expand enrollment and improve the quality of Head Start, there is a concomitant need for assistance from institutions and organizations that can provide effective and responsive training and technical assistance that support the work of the grantee and delegate agencies that directly provide the services to children and their families. In previous years, ACF operated its national Head Start T/TA system through contracts, acquiring the services of qualified providers to meet the training and technical assistance needs of local Head Start programs. The new network of cooperative agreement grants will replace these TASC and RAP contracts.

In this announcement ACF responds to the recommendations of the Secretary's Advisory Committee on Head Start Quality and Expansion to redesign its T/TA system. This new cooperative agreement approach will provide assistance to institutions and organizations with expertise in the field of early childhood development and education to: respond to the needs of grantees and delegate agencies and of communities for flexible technical assistance; expand the influence of Head Start as a national laboratory to other community- and academically-based early childhood programs; and work with grantees and delegate agencies and with communities in achieving continuous quality improvement of their services for children and low-income families.

The Head Start Quality Improvement Centers and Disability Services Quality Improvement Centers created through this announcement will form a regionally-based system, composed of institutions and organizations whose common purpose is to support the continuous improvement of all grantees and delegate agencies as they work to provide high quality and effective services to children and families and address the emerging priorities of child care partnerships, Head Start expansion and welfare reform. The T/TA system reflects a national commitment to quality improvement, local capacity-building and ongoing evaluation.

This revised Head Start T/TA system will promote excellence by supporting a continuous learning environment for Head Start staff. It will foster partnerships among Head Start programs, communities, academic institutions (two or four year colleges and universities) and governments to engage them in helping children, parents, and staff develop their full potential.

The recipients of the cooperative agreement awards are expected to be partners with the Head Start Bureau and the ACF Regional Offices in defining strategies to meet the needs of Head Start grantees and delegate agencies in the service areas. The provision of the T/TA is expected to begin with a strategic planning process that will include a synthesis of needs, T/TA plan development and implementation, and ongoing evaluations. Another new feature of the revised system is the inclusion of a regional or subregional coordinating council which will serve as an information sharing and planning group and support the Quality Improvement Centers in various ways, such as assessing needs, developing a fair allotment of services to grantees, and connecting and coordinating services in the regional or subregional areas. In addition, the Quality Improvement Centers have the opportunity to set up cluster/state sites, which could function as extensions of the Centers by having staff outstationed and closer to the grantees.

The new T/TA system builds upon elements that have worked successfully in the past and in the current system. The new system provides an opportunity for more extensive collaboration and cooperation. We hope that this will lead to reduced fragmentation and expanded services to grantees.

I urge you to review the announcement and to make it available to any qualified party interested in applying so that we help ensure the success of this new initiative.

Attachment:
Federal Register -- April 8, 1997

/S/
Helen H. Taylor
Associate Commissioner
Head Start Bureau