Advocating for Head Start in Minnesota

Head Start is built on a model unlike any other, supporting locally designed programs in communities of all sizes that blend education, healthcare and community services for children and their families — a comprehensive approach that empowers children inside and outside the classroom and provides parents opportunities to focus on their education, careers, and job training. Head Start programs help children and families build the foundational skills needed for lifelong learning, self-reliance, and economic stability, making Head Start a catalyst for growth in rural, urban, and suburban communities throughout the U.S.

Head Start is synonymous with building essential foundations for early childhood learning, giving kids the academic and developmental skills they'll need throughout their lives. But Head Start provides that and so much more. 

In many Minnesota communities, Head Start is the only reliable childcare option, addressing a critical need at a time when access to affordable and high-quality childcare remains challenging.

Additionally, from rural locations to urban neighborhoods, Head Start provides families with wraparound services that no other organization can, including: 

• Early learning and school readiness
• Social-emotional development 
• Nutritious meals and snacks, as well as nutrition education
• Medical, dental, and overall health education and services 
• Family well-being support and parent coaching

Head Start programs benefit Minnesota communities of all shapes and sizes with improved outcomes in virtually every measure for participating children, families and their surrounding communities. At the bottom line, every dollar invested in Head Start delivers a 13% return on investment for Minnesotans each year through the long-term educational, health, economic and community impacts its programs support.

Head Start is a national network with local control. Head Start programs are locally designed and run by nonprofit organizations, schools and community action agencies. Every Head Start program tailors its services to meet the unique needs of the children, families and communities it serves.
Head Start programs provide services to more than a million children every year in every U.S. state and territory, including more than 12,500 Minnesota children and their families.

The Minnesota Head Start Association (MHSA) is an advocate for our state’s children and families, as well as the locally designed and run Head Start programs throughout Minnesota.
Minnesota’s Head Start programs rely on MHSA to gather information about trends and opportunities for local programs and to maintain connections between them to help develop statewide strategies that keep Head Start strong, while identifying any areas for improvement.

There are more than 350 Head Start locations throughout Minnesota, rooted in communities of all shapes and sizes. More than 12,500 Minnesota kids and their families participated in Head Start across the state last year, and over 50% of those children live in rural or Tribal communities where accessible and effective community-strengthening programs like Head Start are most needed.

Early Head Start programs serve pregnant women, infants and toddlers. The families in these programs often go on to our Head Start programs that are designed for children between three and five years old and their families.

Head Start programs are built on decades of research showing that early investment in children and their families leads to lifelong benefits, including greater stability and fewer barriers to workforce participation.
Kids in Head Start are more likely to graduate high school, attend college and secure steady employment. Our Head Start parents are more likely to continue their education or workforce training, maintain employment and create stable, self-sufficient households.

At a time when access to high quality and affordable healthcare continues to diminish in local communities throughout the state – particularly in Greater Minnesota – Head Start programs coordinate medical, dental and nutritional services for participating kids, as well as support for overall wellbeing. This includes delivering educational programs that emphasize healthy eating and preventative care, coordinating professional healthcare when needed, and providing nutritious meals and snacks for kids at every Head Start location.

In 2024, Head Start helped more than 1,300 Minnesota kids receive care for chronic medical conditions, while over 9,000 young Minnesotans were kept up to date on healthcare screenings and nearly 11,000 received preventative dental care through Head Start.

Head Start programs include nutritional education for children and their families, providing guidance on which foods provide essential building blocks for healthy lifestyles and how they can be incorporated into snacks and meals to support overall wellbeing.

We also know that food security can have a significant impact on children and their families. Hunger makes it difficult for children to concentrate, learn and retain information, leading to negative effects on physical and mental health. Head Start makes significant investments to ensure kids are fed healthy food every day by providing nutritious meals on-site for every participating child.

In the recently completed 2024-25 academic year, Head Start served more than 1.2 million healthy meals to Minnesota kids.

Children and families participating in Head Start live and work in local communities that benefit from the improved education and employment outcomes that participating kids and parents typically achieve. Studies show that every dollar invested in Head Start delivers a 13% return on investment through improved graduation rates, increased lifetime earnings and reduced needs for other support services. All of these outcomes benefit our communities overall.
Local communities often see direct economic benefits from having Head Start programming in their area. This is because most program funding is dedicated to paying local staff and partners who raise their families and spend their income in their home communities. Remaining budgets are largely spent on goods and services provided by locally owned and operated businesses that employ folks within their community.

Head Start grants are made directly to local public or private nonprofit agencies through the regional offices of the federal Administration of Children, Youth, and Families. The federal-to-local flow of dollars is key to ensuring children and families receive programming tailored to their community’s unique needs.

The State of Minnesota has also appropriated state general funds for Minnesota Head Start programs, providing critical funding to ensure the nonprofit can continue to serve more than 12,500 children annually at more than 350 sites statewide. 

Head Start programs are designed locally and most of their funding flows into local economies. Most program funding is dedicated to paying local staff and partners who live, raise their families, and spend their income in their home communities. Remaining budgets are largely spent on goods and services provided by locally owned and operated businesses that employ folks from within their community.

Every dollar removed from Head Start’s budget reduces the number of kids, families and local communities Head Start can support. Current funding is stretched as far as it can go to ensure it’s having the greatest possible impact on everyone who benefits from Head Start programming. Significant funding reductions would devastate working families and local economies. Funding reductions would push parents out of the workforce and remove critical support that keeps children healthy and safe while preparing them to succeed in school.

Head Start programs are designed to empower all children, their families and their local communities to achieve more. Critical federal and state funding supported opportunities for more than 12,500 Minnesota children and families to participate in Head Start last year, with more than half living in rural or Tribal communities in Greater Minnesota.
At least 90% of families eligible for Head Start or Early Head Start must have incomes that are at or below federal poverty guidelines. In Minnesota, the need of families exceeds funded capacity – roughly 45,000 Minnesota kids are experiencing poverty; 28% of those kids participated in Head Start programming last year. 
Additionally, families may qualify if they receive Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) support, are experiencing homelessness, have a child with a diagnosed disability, or are experiencing other qualifying circumstances.

Head Start programs are locally designed by staff and parents living within those communities, ensuring maximum impact and relevance for local students and families who participate. Rigorous, in-depth monitoring occurs on a regularly scheduled basis to ensure programs meet nationally set performance standards.
These performance standards are detailed regulations for all areas of Head Start program operations. They are written as a set of outcomes that each program must achieve. However, each program has the freedom to determine how they will reach these outcomes based on their community resources and needs. Regular monitoring ensures consistent accountability for these locally customized programs.