National Head Start Association

Update on the Super Committee and future advocacy plans

Last week, the Joint Select Committee on Deficit reduction (aka the Super Committee) failed to come to an agreement on reducing the federal deficit.  Because of the failure, automatic cuts are set to be imposed January 2013.  This could mean a significant cut to Head Start, however it does appear that Congress is attempting to negotiate an agreement and avoid these cuts.  We are monitoring this closely and as soon as Congress’ next steps become clear we will let you know and keep you updated.  In the meantime, please prepare for a major advocacy push over the next two weeks on Head Start funding for our current fiscal year - which remains in jeopardy.  Click here to read Yasmina Vinci’s letter to the Head Start field regarding the super committee’s failure and the funding debate going on as we speak. 

Submit a Proposal for the Research to Practice Symposium

NHSA's full-day Research to Practice Symposium, held in conjunction with the 39th Annual Conference, brings together leading researchers from a wide variety of human development perspectives. The Symposium will focus on the strategies for excellence employed by the Centers of Excellence announced in fall 2011. NHSA seeks proposals focused on research associated with professional development practices, the understanding and support of dual language learners, development of partnership and shared service delivery, family financial literacy, tribal culture and rural/migrant communities services, social-emotional development of Infants/Toddlers and young parents, goal setting and self-sufficiency. For more information, contact Edward Condon, National Head Start Association at  econdon@nhsa.org/703-739-7568 (Submissions by December 15, 2011!)

Unique Training Opportunity through UCLA and Office of Head Start National Center on Health

The UCLA Health Care Institute (HCI), as part of the Office of Head Start National Center on Health, is pleased to announce a unique training opportunity that will help strengthen the managerial capacity of agencies in order to provide more effective health education and prevention programs to the children and families. The Office of Head Start National Center on Health will provide and fund one training program on April 16-17, 2012, during the NHSA’s 39th Annual Head Start Conference in Nashville, Tennessee.  The Train-the-Trainer session will include skill-building, such as project management, staff and parent motivation, and community relations, for managers.  Additionally, a mock parent health training will demonstrate effective use of health materials to optimize their impact on families.For more information, visit http://www.anderson.ucla.edu/x682.xml.

Upcoming Legal Advisory Service Trainings on HS Monitoring Reviews

The Recompetition Rule - A Late Breaking Head Start Webinar
Fri, 12/02/2011 - 3:00 pm - 5:00 pm eastern time

Join Ted Waters and Zoë Beckerman, the nation’s leading Head Start attorneys, to hear preliminary analysis of the recent Recompetition rule and what it means for your program. With this rule, all Head Start and Early Head Start programs will be moved onto a 5-year grant cycle. Based on current data, ACF has stated that roughly one-third of programs will need to compete for their next grant. On this webinar, we’ll discuss:

• changes made from the draft NPRM to the final rule;
• the seven triggering events for Recompetition; and
• timelines for each.

You’ll have an opportunity to ask questions from noted Head Start lawyers and develop a better understanding of how this new process will affect you.

Who Should Attend: Executive Directors, Head Start/EHS Directors, Compliance Officers, Other Senior Management, and Board Members, but all are welcome.

Eligibility, ERSEA Monitoring, and More (New for the FY 2012 Protocol)
Wed, 12/07/20111 – 3:00 pm to 5:00 pm eastern time

Head Start monitoring results have major legal ramifications for your program.  It's always been important to get things right, but with re-competition on the horizon, it’s more important than ever.  This webinar has a special focus on the ERSEA section of the OHS monitoring protocol. We’ll cover:

• A review of actual ERSEA questions in the new tool;
• Discussion what reviewers might be looking for; and
• Provides ideas about documentation to "prove up" your compliance.

Please note: this webinar covers ERSEA questions. Please see our other Monitoring webinars for other key parts of the Monitoring Protocol.

Who Should Attend: Executive Directors, Head Start Directors, ESREA Staff, but all are welcome.

Governance Boot Camp (2 webinar series; On–Demand)
Every Board and Policy Council meeting is chock full of work to be done — ranging from developing goals, to approving grant renewals and policies, to ensuring fiscal and programmatic oversight.  Despite the time crunch, both bodies still need regular training.  Because we kept hearing from programs across the country how hard it is to fit in governance training into busy Board and Policy Council schedules, we’ve designed our Governance Boot Camp just for you!

This series is designed to ensure that you can provide cutting-edge governance training to both your Board and your Policy Council – in short segments that can fit into their regular meetings.  Each of these two webinars is comprised of discrete, short topics of 20-30 minutes in duration.  So you can show one segment at one Board or Policy Council meeting, and another segment at the next.  The presentations are “on-demand” so that they can be watched at your Board or Policy Council’s convenience.  You can also use the same training segments for both your Board and your Policy Council –so you get multiple trainings for one low price.  And, importantly, you’ll have an extended time (6 months) to use each webinar, comprised of multiple segments.

Segments for Part 1: Governance Essentials

The Head Start Legal Advisory Service, a collaboration between Feldesman Tucker Leifer Fidell LLP and the National Head Start Association, has this topic, as well as other new offerings on topics designed with programs like yours in mind.  To register or see the full list of this season’s trainings, please go to:  http://headstart.peachnewmedia.com/store/provider/provider09.php.