Community Partnerships

Through community partnerships, Head Start, Early Head Start, and child care programs build collaborative relationships with community organizations that support positive child and family outcomes. These organizations may include libraries, health centers, schools and school districts, sources of economic support, the workforce, higher education, human services agencies, faith-based organizations, businesses, and others.

These organizations can respond to families' interests and needs. They can connect families to outside resources, encourage engagement in children's learning, and use community strengths and needs assessment data to guide collaboration. Partnerships can also promote successful transitions for children and families from one service setting to another over time, or when multiple services are needed during the same time period.

Key Resources

Framework Resources

• Learning in Partnership: Using Data and Reflective Practice in Programs
• Engaging Families in the Transition to Kindergarten

Additional Resources

• Supporting Children through Public Library Partnerships
• Talking Points: Head Start and Refugee Provider Communication Guide [PDF, 190KB]
• Planning for Assessment

• Stebbins, H., and Scott, L. Better Outcomes for All: Promoting Partnerships between Head Start and State Pre-K. Pre-K Now/Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP). 2007. English [PDF, 288KB]
• McAllister, C.L., et al. (2005). "Come and Take a Walk": Listening to Early Head Start Parents on School-Readiness as a Matter of Child, Family, and Community Health. American Journal of Public Health, 95, 617-625
• Building Strategic Partnerships to Foster Community Engagement in Education Webinar
• Community Collaboratives Whitepaper: A Promising Approach to Addressing America’s Biggest Challenges [PDF, 1.4MB]

• Determining community strengths, needs, and resources, 45 CFR § 1302.11 (b), (b)(1), (b)(1)(i), (b)(1)(i)(A)-(C), (b)(1)(ii)-(vi), (b)(2)
• Suspension and expulsion, 45 CFR § 1302.17 (a), (a)(1)-(4), (a)(4)(i)-(iv), (b), (b)(1)-(2), (b)(2)(i)-(ii), (b)(3)
• Home-based option, 45 CFR § 1302.22 (a)-(c), (c)(1), (c)(1)(i)-(ii), (c)(2), (c)(2)(i)-(ii), (c)(3), (c)(3)(i)-(ii), (d)
• Child screenings and assessments, 45 CFR § 1302.33 (a), (a)(3), (a)(3)(i)-(ii), (a)(4)-(5), (a)(5)(i)-(ii), (a)(5)(ii)(A), (b), (b)(3), (c), (c)(2) , (c)(2)(iii), (c)(3)
• Parent and family engagement in education and child development services, 45 CFR § 1302.34 (a)-(b), (b)(1)-(8)
• Education in home-based programs, 45 CFR § 1302.35 (a)-(b), (b)(1)-(4), (c), (c)(1)-(4), (c)(4)(i)-(ii), (c)(5), (d), (d)(1), (d)(1)(i)-(iii), (d)(2)-(3), (d)(3)(i)-(ii), (d)(4), (e), (e)(1)-(2), (e)(2)(i-ii), (e)(3), (f)
• Purpose, 45 CFR § 1302.40 (a)-(b)
• Collaboration and communication with parents, 45 CFR § 1302.41 (a)-(b), (b)(1)-(2)
• Child health status and care, 45 CFR § 1302.42 (b), (b)(1), (b)(1)(i)-(ii), (b)(2)-(4), (c), (c)(1), (c)(3), (d), (d)(1)-(3), (e), (e)(2)
• Oral health practices, 45 CFR § 1302.43
• Child mental health and social and emotional well-being, 45 CFR § 1302.45 (a), (a)(1)-(4), (b), (b)(1)-(6)
• Family support services for health, nutrition, and mental health, 45 CFR § 1302.46 (a)-(b), (b)(1), (b)(1)(i)-(v), (b)(2), (b)(2)(i)-(iii)
• Family engagement, 45 CFR § 1302.50 (a)-(b), (b)(1)-(3)
• Family partnership services, 45 CFR § 1302.52 (a)-(c), (c)(1)-(3), (d)
• Community partnerships and coordination with other early childhood and education programs, 45 CFR § 1302.53 (a), (a)(1)-(2), (a)(2)(i)-(viii)
• Additional services for children, 45 CFR § 1302.61 (a)-(c), (c)(1), (c)(1)(i)-(v), (c)(2), (c)(2)(i)-(ii)
• Additional services for parents, 45 CFR § 1302.62 (a), (a)(1)-(2), (b), (b)(1)-(4)
• Coordination and collaboration with the local agency responsible for implementing IDEA, 45 CFR § 1302.63 (a)-(c), (c)(1)-(2), (d)
• Transitions from Early Head Start, 45 CFR § 1302.70 (c)
• Transitions from Head Start to kindergarten, 45 CFR § 1302.71 (b), (b)(1)-(2), (b)(2)(i)-(iv), (c)
• Enrolled pregnant women, 45 CFR § 1302.80 (c)
• Prenatal and postpartum information, education, and services, 45 CFR § 1302.81
• Family partnership services for enrolled pregnant women, 45 CFR § 1302.82 (a)-(b)
• Management systems, 45 CFR § 1302.101 (a), (a)(4), (b), (b)(1)-(2), (b)(2)(i)-(ii), (b)(3)-(4)
• Achieving program goals, 45 CFR § 1302.102 (a), (a)(1)-(4), (b), (b)(1), (b)(1)(i)-(iv), (b)(2), (b)(2)(i)-(iii)