Federally-funded head start programs help prepare young children from low-income families, ages birth to five
years old, and their parents for the social and educational challenges that young children face as they
develop. Each head start program focuses on providing comprehensive services designed to enhance a child's
emotional, social, cultural, language, reading, mathematics, science, health and nutrition education.
This head start center locator page contains links to listings of programs offered in the 91 counties in the state of Indiana. Each listings page contains the name, address and contact
information for a specific county's available centers. From that page, use additional links to explore
individual center facts, application instructions and directions.
Our head start center locator features the number of head start centers per county in parentheses ( ) to the
right of the county names. To see a current list of your county's head start centers, click your county's
name.
At Area Five Agency Head Start, we offer a Center based program. All of our Head Start children attend a local classroom for five hours, four days per week. Some, depending on location of home, receive transportation services as well. The children attend class Monday through Thursday beginning at 8:30 AM or 9:30 AM depending on the classroom to which they are assigned. While attending class, the children are fed breakfast and lunch. They also receive five hours of Early Childhood Education.
It's never too early to begin your child's education. By enrolling your child in Head Start, you are giving him or her an advantage when conventional schooling begins. Head Start uses a balance of learning-through-play to ensure your child's development starts out in the best possible way.
Children enter the world eager to learn. The C.A.R.S. Head Start programs help build on this trait. Each child is an individual with unique talents, skills, and needs. Head Start respects each child's individuality and honors his/her cultural, ethnic, and family heritage. C.A.R.S. child-centered curriculum focuses on interests, learning styles, and developmental needs of each child and helps each child to develop self esteem, self-help skills, and socialization skills.
The objective of Education and Early Childhood Development for CFS Head Start is to provide all children with a safe, nurturing, engaging, enjoyable, and secure learning environment, in order to help them gain the awareness, skills, and confidence necessary to succeed in their present environment, and to deal with later responsibilities in school and in life.
Head Start is a free, comprehensive program for children ages 3 years & 3 months to kindergarten eligible whose families meet income guidelines (100% of Poverty). Children with diagnosed disabilities may start at age 3 and are not subject to income guidelines. Funded through the Department of Health and Human Services, Head Start serves 306 children per school year in Wayne County.
Provides preschool services and social services for parents of children ages 3-5 years old. Preschool children receive health, mental health, nutrition, dental, vision, and hearing services.
Community Action of Southern Indiana’s Head Start Program provides services to 290 children (ages birth-5) in Charlestown, Sellersburg, Jeffersonville, and Underwood. Through its Education Department, children develop their intellectual, social, physical and emotional skills. The Family Services Department provides case management to families by identifying their strengths and by developing a family partnership where families set goals and accomplishments for themselves. The Health/Nutrition Department documents and tracks the health information on each and provides nutritionally-balanced meals at each of the four centers daily.
Children between the ages of 3 and 5 years participate in a variety of activities that promote healthy growth and development. Learning opportunities are provided to assist in mental, social, emotional and physical growth. Staff recognizes and supports the philosophy of parents as the first teacher and parents are welcome to participate in classroom and other activities. The Head Start program offers various classroom options to meet family needs.
Head Start is a child and family development program for low-income preschoolers (ages 3-5) and their families. Children receive a high quality early education opportunity through participation in either our center-based preschool or our home-based option (Early Head Start). All children receive a physical, dental, and numerous other health and developmental screenings to assure that the child is healthy and ready to learn. Center-based children attend school four days each week. Transportation is provided to and from the child's home. Home-based children receive 1 1/2 hour home visits in their home each week. These children come together two to three times each month for play groups and field trips.
Head Start was established in 1965 to promote school readiness and provide a comprehensive array of health, nutritional and social services to low-income children and families. Head Start is built upon the understanding that the development of young children is deeply influenced by the family, by their community, by their health, as well as the educational experiences to which they are exposed. The 1975 Head Start Program Performance Standards defined high quality services in early childhood education, parent involvement, social services, and health.