Early Head Start positively impacts these strategy goals:
SUMMARY
Early Head Start is an effective state strategy to impact:
Early Head Start (EHS) improves aspects of parents’ ability to work, parental health and emotional wellbeing, nurturing child-parent relationships, and optimal child health and development, although evidence within these goals is somewhat mixed. EHS also supports participation in high-quality early care and education. States currently support EHS by providing supplemental state funding, leveraging federal funding, and creating state-specific programs with similar structures and quality standards as EHS. However, the current evidence base does not provide clear guidance for the optimal level of funding or best method for states to support Early Head Start.
Early Head Start (EHS) is a program serving pregnant women with low incomes, infants, toddlers, and their families by providing child development and family support services in home-based, center-based, and family child care settings. By providing children with individualized services and high-quality early care and learning environments and building parents’ skills and community connections, EHS can directly and indirectly support children’s wellbeing and development. Although EHS is primarily a federal-to-local program, states vary in how they financially support EHS, either by investing state funding directly to EHS providers in the state, by acting as a state EHS or Early Head Start–Child Care Partnership grantee, or by creating a state-specific program with similar structures and quality standards as EHS. The current evidence base does not provide clear guidance for how states can best support EHS, either through supplemental funding or other mechanisms.
Download the Complete Evidence Review
Early Head Start Evidence Review (PDF)
Download the 2-Page Summary
Summary of the Rigorous Research on Early Head Start (PDF)
Recommended Citation:
Prenatal-to-3 Policy Impact Center. (2024). Prenatal-to-3 policy clearinghouse evidence review: Early Head Start. Peabody College of Education and Human Development, Vanderbilt University. https://pn3policy.org/policy-clearinghouse/early-head-start
Updated October 2024
