Little is known about how Head Start programs coordinate and tailor family services to meet individual needs.

Head Start has a long-standing commitment to a whole-family approach that supports children’s development and family well-being. Programs provide early care and education, nutrition, health, and social supports for children, alongside parenting, self-sufficiency, and health and mental health services for parents. The Head Start Program Performance Standards emphasize integrated, family-responsive services but allow programs flexibility in how they coordinate them. 

Existing research describes the range of services offered but provides limited insight into how coordination occurs in practice, such as how programs assess and respond to family needs, and whether those efforts succeed. Research is also limited on what enables or hinders effective coordination, including organizational supports for frontline staff and the role of community partnerships.

NORC and its partners combined in-depth case studies and nationally representative surveys to examine service coordination across Head Start programs.

NORC, in partnership with MDRC and MEF Associates, conducted a multi-phase conducted a multi-phase study of how Head Start programs coordinate family support services, beginning with a literature review, a conceptual framework, expert consultations, and six in-depth case studies.

Using a multiple-case design, the research team examined service coordination from multiple perspectives, including Head Start staff, families receiving services, and community partners. Through in-depth interviews, the case studies explored strategies, decision-making processes, and implementation challenges. This approach captured variation across program contexts and provided insight into how coordination occurs in practice.

Building on this qualitative foundation, the research team designed and implemented a nationally representative, descriptive study of Head Start center-based programs operated by grantees or delegate agencies. The study included Early Head Start and Head Start programs, as well as Migrant and Seasonal Head Start and American Indian and Alaska Native programs. The study focused on coordination structures, approaches to individualizing services, community partnerships, and workforce characteristics and well-being. In 2022-2023, NORC collected data through surveys of program directors, family and community partnerships managers, and family support services (FSS) staff. MDRC conducted a daily snapshot survey and MEF led focus groups with FSS staff. 

Findings reveal how programs assess family needs, build partnerships, and support the staff who coordinate services.

The study produced new evidence on how Head Start programs assess family needs, build community partnerships, and tailor services to support families. Results underscore the importance of continuous needs assessment, cross-sector partnerships, and responsive service coordination. 

Deliverables—including case study reports, research briefs, and detailed data tables—equip program leaders and policymakers with evidence to strengthen family support systems and improve service uptake. Publicly available case studies and survey data further support ongoing research, learning, and program improvement across the Head Start community.