The following reports summarize the results of different types of monitoring reviews. They provide grant recipients with information regarding their performance and compliance with requirements governing Head Start and Early Head Start programs. This includes those regulations specified in the Head Start Act and all applicable Head Start Program Performance Standards.
The Office of Head Start (OHS) also delivers reports to Congress that highlight enhancements made to the monitoring review system and summarizes grant recipient review outcomes, as well as findings at a national level.
Explore the type of reviews that result in a formal report to the grant recipient:
CLASS® Review
The Classroom Assessment Scoring System (CLASS®) is an observation tool that assesses the quality of teacher-child interactions in center-based preschool classrooms. It is used as part of the monitoring review process. Read more about the use of CLASS® in Head Start.
National CLASS® statistics are also available.
OHS will conduct CLASS® reviews during the 2022-23 program year but will not use the scores to make competitive determinations under the Designation Renewal System.
Focus Area One Review
Focus Area One, which is conducted offsite, offers grant recipients a chance to share the information they used to inform their program design. Through Focus Area One, OHS hopes to learn about the following topics:
- Strengths and needs of children and families in the community
- Staffing structure and program design that meets the needs of children and families
- Approaches to education and child development, health, and family and community engagement services
- Fiscal infrastructure and capacity
- Program governance and accountability
Focus Area Two Review
In Focus Area Two, OHS is looking for grant recipients to demonstrate their ability to track and assess their program’s progress and performance, use data to drive results, and make adjustments and corrections as needed. The review team will be looking systematically and holistically across program services and functions to include:
- Health services
- Management systems
- Education and child development services
- Parent, family, and community engagement services
- Financial and administrative services
The Focus Area Two review is conducted by a review team on-site and off-site with the grant recipient. The length of the review and the number of members on the review team will depend on the size of the grant recipient. Typically, OHS anticipates two reviewers onsite and two reviewers off-site for five days. One of the members of the review team will be a fiscal reviewer while the others will have significant expertise in early childhood education, Head Start, and program administration.
Follow-up Review
A follow-up review is conducted to ensure programs with findings have corrected non-compliances or deficiencies.
Other Reviews
Additional reviews may be initiated if issues with a grant recipient's performance are brought to the attention of OHS. They are conducted on an as-needed basis and focus on the issue identified as a concern.
The Agency Service Profile provides national and grant recipient-level information on reported demographics, services, and federal monitoring of Head Start and Early Head Start programs.
For more information, please contact us at OHSMonitoring at dlhcorp dot com.
Last Updated: October 6, 2022