FROM: Steven O’Brien, Head Start
Director
TO: All New Employees
RE: Welcome to MOCA Head Start
Head Start is a
comprehensive child development programs which serve children ages 3 to age 5
years and their families. It is a child-focused program having the overall goal
of increasing the social competence of young children from low-income families.
By “social competence” is meant the child’s everyday effectiveness in dealing
with both his or her present environment and later
responsibilities in school and life. Social competence takes into account the
interrelatedness of social, emotional, cognitive, and physical development.
Head Start services
are also family-centered, following the tenets that children develop in the
context of their family and culture and that parents are respected as the
primary educators and nurturers of their children. Head Start offers family
members opportunities and support for growth and change, believing that people
can identify their own strengths, needs, and interests and are capable of
finding solutions.
To support the
overall goal of improving social competence, Head Start embraces a core set of
values, including commitments to:
• Establish a supportive learning environment for children, parents, and
staff, in which the processes of enhancing awareness, refining skills, and
increasing understanding are valued and promoted;
• Recognize that the members of the Head Start community — children,
families, and staff — have roots in many cultures. Head Start families and
staff, working together as a team, can effectively promote respectful,
sensitive, and proactive approaches to diversity issues;
• Understand that the empowerment of families occurs when program
governance is a responsibility shared by families, governing bodies, and staff,
and when the ideas and opinions of families are heard and respected;
• Respect the importance of fathers in children’s lives and welcome male
involvement into our program as a contribution of an irreplaceable aspect in
the fullness of children’s lives.
• Embrace a comprehensive vision of health for children, families, and
staff, which assures that basic health needs are met, encourages practices that
prevent future illnesses and injuries, and promotes positive, culturally
relevant health behaviors that enhance life-long well-being;
• Respect the importance of all aspects of an individual’s development,
including social, emotional, cognitive, and physical growth;
• Build a community in which each child and adult is treated as an
individual while, at the same time, a sense of belonging to the group is
reinforced;
• Foster relationships with the larger community, so that families and
staff are respected and served by a network of community agencies in
partnership with one another and ;
• Develop a continuum of care, education, and services that allow stable,
uninterrupted support to families and children during and after their Head
Start experience.
The MOCA Head Start
program has a long tradition of delivering comprehensive and high quality
services designed to foster healthy development in low-income children. Head
Start provides a range of individualized services in the areas of education and
early childhood development, medical, dental, and mental health, nutrition, and
parent involvement. In addition, the entire range of Head Start services is
responsive and appropriate to each child and family’s developmental, ethnic,
cultural, and linguistic heritage and experience.
MOCA Head Start
fosters the role of parents as the primary educators and nurturers, of and
advocates for, their children. Therefore, MOCA Head Start works in close
partnership with parents to assist them in developing and utilizing individual
and family strengths in order to successfully meet personal and family
objectives. Parents are encouraged to become involved in all aspects of the
program, from participation in children’s activities to direct involvement in
policy and program decisions.
MOCA Head Start is
committed to cultivating partnerships within the community. Through the
establishment of meaningful links with community organizations and programs
focused upon early childhood development, family support, health, and
education, MOCA Head Start ensures that children and families receive an array
of individualized services, and that community resources are used in an
efficient and effective manner.
MOCA Head Start
strives for excellence in program management that supports the provision of quality
services for children and families. Policy groups, representative of Head Start
parents and the larger community, and strong governing bodies play a critical
role in overseeing the implementation of Head Start legislation, regulations,
and policies. A strong focus on staff training and development helps to ensure
that children and families are served by individuals with the knowledge,
skills, and experience necessary to provide high quality, comprehensive
services.
The Head Start
Program Performance Standards are designed to ensure that the Head Start goals
and objectives are implemented successfully, that the Head Start philosophy
continues to thrive, and that we maintain the highest possible quality in the
provision of Head Start services. MOCA
Head Start Policies and Procedures have been developed to ensure the
appropriate implementation of Head Start Performance Standards.
MOCA Head Start
services for children with disabilities are fully integrated into all areas of
program services. We are committed to
providing the full range of services to all children in our care.
MOCA Head Start
serves more than 543 children and families in Laclede,
Sincerely,
Steven O'Brien
Head Start Director