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Head Start

Part of President Lyndon Johnson's War on Poverty, Head Start was a pioneer in early years prevention programs. It is also the most used, having served more than 20 million preschool children since it was introduced in 1965, and now supporting supporting over 900,000. Head Start provides comprehensive education, health, nutrition, and parent involvement services to low-income children and their families. Results of evaluations, experimental and non-experimental, are mixed. The results of recent experimental evaluations, still ongoing, show consistent small to moderate impact in some, but not all areas of children's development. Benefits vary by site and recipient group.