§ 9837a — Head Start Transition And Alignment With K–12 Education

(a) Each Head Start agency shall take steps to coordinate with the local educational agency serving the community involved and with schools in which children participating in a Head Start program operated by such agency will enroll following such program to promote continuity of services and effective transitions, including— (1) developing and implementing a systematic procedure for transferring, with parental consent, Head Start program records for each participating child to the school in which such child will enroll; (2) establishing ongoing channels of communication between Head Start staff and their counterparts in the schools (including teachers, social workers, local educational agency liaisons designated under section 722(g)(1)(J)(ii) of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11432(g)(1)(J)(ii)), and health staff) to facilitate coordination of programs; (3) establishing ongoing communications between the Head Start agency and local educational agency for developing continuity of developmentally appropriate curricular objectives (which for the purpose of the Head Start program shall be aligned with the Head Start Child Outcomes Framework and, as appropriate, State early learning standards) and for shared expectations for children’s learning and development as the children transition to school; (4) organizing and participating in joint training, including transition-related training for school staff and Head Start staff; (5) establishing comprehensive transition policies and procedures that support children transitioning to school, including by engaging the local educational agency in the establishment of such policies; (6) conducting outreach to parents and elementary school (such as kindergarten) teachers to discuss the educational, developmental, and other needs of individual children; (7) helping parents of limited English proficient children understand— (A) the instructional and other services provided by the school in which such child will enroll after participation in Head Start; and (B) 1965 [20 U.S.C. 6312(e)(3)]; (8) developing and implementing a family outreach and support program, in cooperation with entities carrying out parent and family engagement efforts under title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 [20 U.S.C. 6301 et seq.], and family outreach and support efforts under subtitle B of title VII of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11431 et seq.), taking into consideration the language needs of parents of limited English proficient children; (9) assisting families, administrators, and teachers in enhancing educational and developmental continuity and continuity of parental involvement in activities between Head Start services and elementary school classes; (10) linking the services provided in such Head Start program with educational services, including services relating to language, literacy, and numeracy, provided by such local educational agency; (11) helping parents (including grandparents and kinship caregivers, as appropriate) to understand the importance of parental involvement in a child’s academic success while teaching them strategies for maintaining parental involvement as their child moves from Head Start to elementary school; (12) helping parents understand the instructional and other services provided by the school in which their child will enroll after participation in the Head Start program; (13) developing and implementing a system to increase program participation of underserved populations of eligible children; and (14) coordinating activities and collaborating to ensure that curricula used in the Head Start program are aligned with— (A) the Head Start Child Outcomes Framework, as developed by the Secretary; and (B) State early learning standards, as appropriate, with regard to cognitive, social, emotional, and physical competencies that children entering kindergarten are expected to demonstrate. (b) In this section, a reference to a Head Start agency, or its program, services, facility, or personnel, shall not be construed to be a reference to an Early Head Start agency, or its program, services, facility, or personnel. (c) The Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary of Education, shall— (1) disseminate to Head Start agencies information on effective policies and activities relating to the transition of children from Head Start programs to public schools; and (2) provide technical assistance to such agencies to promote and assist such agencies to adopt and implement such effective policies and activities.