E-Eligibility R-Recruitment S-Selection E-Enrollment A-Attendance EE

E-Eligibility R-Recruitment S-Selection E-Enrollment A-Attendance EE
Chrys Geddies -Facilitators EE

Training Objectives To give Head Start and Early Head Start Directors, Managers, Coordinators and Supervisors an understanding of the requirements of ERSEA including recent changes as a result of national attention. To discuss components of ERSEA policies and procedures, staff training and monitoring to ensure accountability. To review resources available to answer the “what if’s.”

Eligibility § The only two requirements that must be met for a child to be eligible for Head Start is age and income. Categorical (automatic) Eligibility: For the purpose of eligibility, a child from a family that is homeless, receiving public assistance or a child in foster care is eligible even if the family income exceeds the income guidelines. • Homeless • Foster Children • Families receiving Public Assistance A parent must produce an immunization record because of state requirements. Nothing else, including a physical, has to be in place. You cannot require additional things to be done. PC DOCS #467446

How long is HS eligibility good for?
1305.7(c) If a child has been found income eligible and is participating in a Head Start program, he or she remains income eligible through that enrollment year and the immediately succeeding enrollment year. • (a) Each child enrolled in a HS program, except those enrolled in a migrant program, must be allowed to remain in HS until kindergarten or first grade is available for that child in the child’s community, except that the HS program may choose not to enroll a child when there is a change in the child’s family income and there is a child with a greater need for HS services. Applies to all eligibility categories.

How long is EHS eligibility good for?
OHS – PC – I – 022 Does the family income of children entering Head Start for a third year need to be re‐verified? – Children enrolled in an Early Head Start (EHS) program that were enrolled as "income eligible" children remain eligible throughout their time in EHS, even if they are being provided a third year of service. Family income in this situation does not have to be re‐verified. – Children enrolled as income eligible that are transitioning from EHS to Head Start must have their family’s income re-verified.

Age § To be automatically age eligible for Head Start, a child must be 3 or 4 years of age on Based on your state. If a child will turn 3 after school begins but on or before Based on your state, he is also automatically age eligible and may be enrolled and begin in August even though he will only be 2 years old at that time.

Age § If a child turns 3 after the Based on your state deadline, he can still be age eligible for Head Start in the following two ways: If the child has a disability, he can be enrolled after his 3rd birthday. If the program does not have other children available to enroll, a child without a disability can be enrolled after his 3rd birthday.

Verifying Age § 1305.4 What can be used to verify the age of a child?
Birth Certificate Hospital Certificate Letter from: Community Based Services Health Department Immunization Certificate Possibly Others

Income § 90% of the children that are enrolled in a program must have a total family income that is below the national poverty guideline. Only 10% of the children enrolled can have family incomes above the poverty guideline. We cannot cross the 10% over income line at any time, for any reason. PC DOCS #467446

Family Income § Income means the total cash receipts before taxes from all sources for each member of the child’s family. Does that include: Unemployment checks? Alimony payments? Child Support? Military pay? Income from rental property? Social Security payments? YES to all

Family Income § Does that include: Food Stamps? Tax refunds? Compensation for injury? Sale of property? Gifts? No, not at all What is the definition of a “gift”? Webster’s defines a gift as “something transferred from one person to another without compensation”. PC DOCS #467446

Family Income § What documentation can be used to determine the income of a family member? Individual tax forms such as a 1040 W-2 forms Pay stubs Documentation from the court system (alimony, child support, etc.) Proof of public assistance (TANF, SSI) Letter from employer The last resort for income documentation is a signed statement from the parent.

Eligibility § The Head Start program Performance Standards set a minimum percentage for the number of enrollees with diagnosed disabilities and a maximum percentage for the number of enrollees from over income families. •Ninety percent of enrollees must be income eligible based upon federal guidelines, receiving public assistance, in foster placement or homeless. •No more than ten percent of enrollees may be over income according to federal poverty guidelines, unless categorically eligible.

Eligibility § •No less than ten percent of EHS and HS enrollees must be children with a diagnosed disability and a verified Individualized Family Services Plan (IFSP) or Individualized Education Plan (IEP). •The Head Start Act of 2007 provided that if the annual community assessment were to find the low income families in the area have already been served, programs could request Office of Head Start approval to serve up to 35 percent of its enrolled children be from families up to 130 percent of the federal poverty guidelines, in addition to the ten percent noted as allowable above.

Eligibility § 1305.4 OHS – PC – I – 015
What age must a child be in order to be considered eligible for Head Start? A low‐income child who will turn three by the date used by the local school system to determine kindergarten eligibility is considered to be a Head Start eligible child and may be enrolled as a 3 year old in the local Head Start program. That child would, in most cases, be served in Head Start for two full years, as a 3 year old and then as a 4 year old, before entering kindergarten. In addition, a Head Start program may enroll a child who was not three by the school cut off date but who has since turned three at any time after that child’s 3rd birthday, should the program have a vacancy into which that child can be placed and if such a placement seems appropriate.

Eligibility § 1305.4 Eligible for public assistance →→SSI →→TANF
Categorical Eligibility A child from birth to age five or a pregnant woman is categorically eligible for Head Start (child aged 3-5) or Early Head Start (child aged 0-3, or a pregnant woman) if: Eligible for public assistance →→SSI →→TANF Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) are the only two programs which qualify as public assistance for determining Head Start eligibility. →→ Foster Care →→ Homeless • McKinney‐Vento Act-Discussed later

Eligibility Documentation § 1305.4
What documentation can be used to determine the determine the income of a family member? Individual tax forms such as a 1040 W-2 forms Pay stubs Documentation from the court system (alimony, child support, etc.) Proof of public assistance (TANF, SSI) Letter from employer The last resort for income documentation is a signed statement from the parent. PC DOCS #467446

Determining Income Eligibility § 1305.4
One of the most important things that the interviewer (staff) must know is the Head Start definition of family: Family means all persons living in the same household who are supported by the income of the parent(s) or guardian(s) of the child enrolling or participating in the program, and related to the parent(s) or guardian(s) by blood, marriage or adoption.

Eligibility Scenarios § 1305.4
The following are some examples of possible scenarios an interviewer may be faced with when trying to determine family income:

John & Cathy come to fill out an application for their son Ricky. They tell the interviewer that they have an older son that is married and does not live with them. How many would be in the family? 3 - The older son would not count because he is not living in the household.

A parent comes to fill out an application for her daughter Jennifer. She says that she has another child, Lucy, that lives in the home. Lucy works at McDonalds on nights and weekends. Should Lucy’s wages count in the family income? No, Only the income of the parents would count for family income.

A mother comes to fill out an application for her son Donnie. She says that her and her husband recently divorced and they decided to split up their twin boys, Donnie and Ronnie. Ronnie now lives with her husband in an apartment just across the road from her house. How many should count in Donnie’s family? 2 – The mother and Donnie

A married couple comes to fill out an application for their son. The father states that he worked as a coal miner until 2 months ago when he was fired for stealing. He says that he is currently drawing unemployment wages. The mother states that she works at the airport. Obviously, the mother’s income should be counted. But what should the interviewer use to verify the father’s income and how should it be calculated? Only the unemployment proof for 1 month. It should be multiplied by the number of pay periods for one year. (i.e. Pay stub for 2 week period would be multiplied by 26)

Betty comes to fill out an application for her daughter Linda. She says that she is divorced from Linda’s father and got married again last month to a doctor in Hazard. She also has another child that she adopted two years ago. How many are in the family? 4 – Betty, Linda, the other child and the new husband Should the interviewer calculate only a month of the husband’s income or the previous 12 months? The previous 12 months

Kellie arrives at the center and wants to fill out an application for her two nephews. She provides documentation showing that she receives Kinship Care money for both of them. She says she works part time but does not have any check stubs with her. How many would be in the family? Should the interviewer ask Kellie to bring her check stubs back at another time or should she just write down the amount Kellie tells her? Both children would be families of “1”. Since the children are in Kinship Care, no other income verification is needed

Tina and Rocky live together but are not married. They have one child together, Pete. But Rocky also has two other children that live with them that are from his first marriage. Tina comes to fill out an application for their son Pete. How many are in the family? 5 – Even though Tina and Rocky are not married, he is still a parent to Pete. This means that his other kids would count in the family.

A foster parent named Wanda and her 17 year old foster child, Annie, arrive at the center. The foster parent says that they have come to fill out an application for Annie’s child. Wanda states that Annie and her child live with her (Wanda) and Annie does not work. Whose income should be counted and how many are in the family? 2 – Annie and the child. Since Annie does not work, her income would be “0”.

A father comes to fill out an application for his son. When asked about his income, he tells the interviewer that he has been working at Wal-Mart for the past 3 months. He also says that he worked at Arby’s for the previous 5 years before taking the job at Wal-Mart. How should his income be calculated? It can either be last year’s tax forms or the interviewer can take his Wal-Mart income for 1 month and multiply by 12.

Jill comes to fill out an application for her daughter. She tells the interviewer that she doesn’t work and that her mother pays all of her bills including the rent for her apartment which totals $1,200 per month. Should Jill be asked to fill out a “0” income form? Should the family income be $1,200 or should it be $0.00? Yes, the parent would need to fill out the “0” income form. According to the scenario, she does not have any income because the money she receives is a “gift”.

Child Income § For our purposes, a child only has income in one particular situation. What is it? The only time a child will have income is when he is in Foster or Kinship Care. In this situation, the interviewer does not need to see any other income from the family other than the amount received for this child.

McKinney – Vento Definition of Homeless
The clarified definition of who is considered homeless is addressed. Section 725 (2) and (6) of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Assistance Act state: The term “homeless children and youths’- Means individuals who lack a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence…: and (B) Includes- children and youths who are sharing the housing of other persons due to loss of housing, economic hardship, or a similar reason; are living in motels, hotels, trailer parks, or camping grounds due to the lack of alternative adequate accommodations; are living in emergency or transitional shelters; are abandoned in hospitals; or are awaiting foster care placement; children and youths who have a primary night-time residence that is a public or private place not designed for or ordinarily used as a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings… children and youths who are living in cars, parks, public spaces, abandoned buildings, substandard housing, bus or train stations, or similar settings; and migratory children who qualify as homeless for the purposes of this subtitle because the children are living in circumstances described in clauses (i) through (iii). that definition is how we determine a homeless family. PC DOCS #467446

Indentifying Homeless Families
A mother and her daughter are living in a hotel while their house is being built. The mother tells the interviewer that they sold their trailer and decided to stay in the hotel for the next 6 months until the house is finished. The manager of the hotel is a friend of the family and is giving them a discount on the room. Is the family homeless? No. The family is staying in the hotel by choice and has not been forced there due to economic hardship.

Scenarios A father and mother come in July to fill out an application for their son. During the interview, the father mentions that he hopes the weather cools down soon because their air conditioner stopped working and their trailer gets very hot. Does this make the family homeless? No. Though the air conditioner would definitely make life easier for the family, the fact that they do not have one would not make them homeless.

Scenarios A mother and her child are living with her parents. She tells the interviewer that she and her son lived in an apartment until three months ago when the rent became too expensive. So at that time, they moved back in with her parents and plan on moving into a low income apartment when one becomes available. Is this family homeless? Maybe. It could be looked at as a “homeless” family because economic hardship forced the family to move in with relatives. But the family has been there for three months and if the interviewer feels that it is a stable situation, this may not be a homeless family.

Scenarios A mother comes to fill out an application for her son. When asked her address, the woman tells the interviewer that she and her 3 children are currently staying at a Domestic Violence Shelter and are hiding from her husband. She says that he is staying at their home but that she hopes to be given the house if she divorces him. Is this family homeless? Yes. On the day that she is filling out this application, it appears that the mother does not plan on going home until things are resolved and is currently living in a shelter. This would be a clear cut situation that should be identified as “homeless”.

Scenarios A mother tells the interviewer that she and her daughter were living alone in a house. But last month, her brother lost his job and so his family of 4 (2 adults, 2 kids) were forced to leave their apartment and the mother allowed them to move in with her and her daughter. Does this make the mother and daughter a homeless family? No. The mother has legal rights to the house she is living in and economic hardship has not forced her to seek other living arrangements. Though the living arrangement has changed and possibly became uncomfortable, it happened by the mother’s choice and she could evict her brother’s family at any time.

Scenario During the recent ice storm, a tree fell on a family’s home and damaged the roof. The father tells the interviewer that the damage is significant and the family is staying with relatives until the roof can be fixed. When asked by the interviewer about whether the roof is leaking, he said it is not leaking but his wife was so scared after what happened that she refuses to let the family return to the house until several other nearby trees are cut down to make sure this never happens again. Is this family homeless? No. The house is still there and in livable condition. The reason they are staying with relatives is by choice.

Recruitment § 1305.5 What is recruitment?
Recruitment is the systematic process, through the use and development of recruitment plan, of identifying families in the community with children who are age and income eligible for Head Start and providing them information about the program and how they can apply for enrollment. Head Start also actively recruits families with a child with special needs, an IEP/IFSP or diagnosed disabilities. Children who are enrolled in Head Start must be from the lowest income families in the community. It is our goal to maintain a recruitment process which insures that eligible children are enrolled regardless of race, sex, ethnic background or disability. Recruitment continues all year long. HS Performance Standard Section (b) states that the program “must solicit applications from as many Head Start eligible families within the recruitment area as possible.”

Quick Recruiting Tips § 1305.5
The Head Start recruitment process requires full program enrollment. Grantees and delegate agencies can use this tip sheet to establish their programs’ recruitment efforts. Applications are to be taken from as many Head Start-eligible families living within the recruitment areas as possible throughout the course of the program year. This procedure allows for a waiting list to be established so that as vacancies occur, slots are filled as quickly as possible. Put up notices about your program on Bulletin Boards at grocery stores, hardware stores, office Supplies stores, restaurants and schools. Send out press releases (print) or public service announcements (broadcast) regularly to the media telling them about things you are doing. Talk to all the people you see: gasoline and grocery store cashiers, hairdresser, sales clerks make sure they know about your program. Speak at your church and at other area churches. Speak at seminars, conferences. Promote your speaking engagement with flyers, or a press release to community newspapers or radio stations.

Appear on local community cable shows that have programs geared to the community. Contribute articles to your neighborhood newspapers so they are familiar with your program's activities. Attend community meetings, speak up and let everyone know who you are and what your program is doing! Send out postcards with simple announcements about events at your Head Start program. Take out a small quarter page ad in a popular community newspaper. This works best if you put the same ad in each issue of the publication for several months and have the ad positioned in the same place or same section each time. Attend conferences, festivals, fairs. Network and pass out your program's flyers and cards.

Desktop-publish a program newsletter and distribute it widely. Write letters to the editor about issues that affect your program. Letters that get printed in magazines and newspapers carry a lot of weight. Call in to radio talk shows. Make your comments and identify yourself and what you do. You never know who may be listening. If you see a good promotional idea being used by other programs, try it. Phone-a-thon. Call everyone you know and tell them you are recruiting. Do a poster or flyer for your program. Put it where the foot traffic is. Conduct a survey find out what children services your community wants.

Make sure your program is listed in all the area phone directories. Specialized community directories too! Connect your program with other community campaigns. Help out with the events and share the publicity. Hold an Open House. Invite the community to your program. Give tours when it is convenient. Sponsor an artist. Have a talented artist do a mural on a wall or help the children do a mural. Publicize the event and invite the community to the opening. Frame articles about your program. Keep a notebook of positive press Appear on local community cable shows that have programs geared to the community. Contribute articles to your neighborhood newspapers so they are familiar with your program's activities.

Attend community meetings, speak up and let everyone know who you are and what your program is doing! Send out postcards with simple announcements about events at your Head Start program. Take out a small quarter page ad in a popular community newspaper. This works best if you put the same ad in each issue of the publication for several months and have the ad positioned in the same place or same section each time. Attend conferences, festivals, fairs. Network and pass out your program's flyers and cards. Desktop-publish a program newsletter and distribute it widely. Write letters to the editor about issues that affect your program. Letters that get printed in magazines and newspapers carry a lot of weight. Call in to radio talk shows. Make your comments and identify yourself and what you do. You never know who may be listening. If you see a good promotional idea being used by other programs, try it.

Phone-a-thon. Call everyone you know and tell them you are recruiting. Do a poster or flyer for your program. Put it where the foot traffic is. Conduct a survey find out what children services your community wants. Make sure your program is listed in all the area phone directories. Specialized community directories too! Connect your program with other community campaigns. Help out with the events and share the publicity. Hold an Open House. Invite the community to your program. Give tours when it is convenient. Wear a symbol of your program everywhere, for example, a Head Start button. Create a list of the organizations and businesses that have helped or worked with you in the past. Send each one a note to thank them and to telling them you are recruiting. Sponsor an artist. Have a talented artist do a mural on a wall or help the children do a mural. Publicize the event and invite the community to the opening. Frame articles about your program. Keep a notebook of positive press.

Selection § 1305.6 How do we select children for the program?
Each Head Start program must have a formal process for establishing selection criteria and for selecting children and families that considers all eligible applicants for Head Start services. In selecting the children and families to be served, your criteria must be based on the following: Income of eligible families; family's income must be within the approved Federal poverty guidelines, families receiving public assistance. To be eligible for Head Start services, a child must be at least three years of age by the date used to determine eligibility for public schools, except in cases where the Head Start program’s approved grant to serve younger children (a). Children enrolled in Head Start, except those enrolled in migrant programs must be allowed to remain in Head Start until kindergarten or first grade is available. Children who are in foster care. Extent to which a child or family meets the criteria that each program is required to establish in (d)(6) Children who are still age-eligible considered as a re-enrollee.

Selection § Migrant programs must also give priority to children from families whose pursuit of agricultural work required them to relocate most frequently within the previous two-year period. Children from income-eligible Indian families native to the reservation living in non-reservation areas, approved as part of the Tribe’s service area. At least 10 percent of the total number of enrollment opportunities must be made available to children with disabilities. Head Start programs must develop at the beginning of each enrollment year and maintain during the year a waiting list that ranks children according to the program's selection criteria.

What is a year? Head Start Act p (a)(1)(C) “An entity may consider evidence of family income during the 12 months preceding the month in which the application is submitted, or during the calendar year preceding the calendar year in which the application is submitted, whichever more accurately reflects the needs of the family at the time of application.” Policy Clarification I‐008 If neither the last 12 months or the preceding calendar year now accurately represents the family’s current situation (perhaps, for example, because the parent is now unemployed) then the Head Start program should use its judgment in deciding if it seems likely that the current situation more accurately reflects the family’s likely economic status during the period of the child’s Head Start enrollment.

Enrollment Enrollment means the official acceptance of a family by a Head Start program and the completion of all procedures necessary for a child and family to begin receiving services. Full enrollment must be maintained at all times. However, full classrooms do not. Head Start does not enroll children on a first come, first serve basis. Just because you may lose a child from your classroom does not mean that there is an opening in that classroom. The slot may be filled in another classroom. Children are enrolled based on their points and position on the waiting list regardless of when the application was filled out. A child cannot be excluded for lack of information provided once they have been enrolled. When a child withdraws, he is not given special consideration for reenrollment at a future time. PC DOCS #467446

Attendance (a) When the monthly average daily attendance rate in a center-based program falls below 85 percent, a Head Start program must analyze the causes of absenteeism. The analysis must include a study of the pattern of absences for each child, including the reasons for absences as well as the number of absences that occur on consecutive days. (b) If the absences are a result of illness or if they are well documented absences for other reasons, no special action is required. If, however, the absences result from other factors, including temporary family problems that affect a child's regular attendance, the program must initiate appropriate family support procedures for all children with four or more consecutive unexcused absences. These procedures must include home visits or other direct contact with the child's parents. Contacts with the family must emphasize the benefits of regular attendance, while at the same time remaining sensitive to any special family circumstances influencing attendance patterns. All contacts with the child's family as well as special family support service activities provided by program staff must be documented. (c) In circumstances where chronic absenteeism persists and it does not seem feasible to include the child in either the same or a different program option, the child's slot must be considered an enrollment vacancy

Additional Questions How long can a child remain on the waiting list without needing re-verification? 12 months note: When considering a child for enrollment or reenrollment, if it has been more than 12 months since income was verified, a new application and eligibility verification form must be completed.

Additional Questions Where should the original child enrollment applications be kept? In the office Enrollment Folder

Additional Questions When a child is eligible for their 3rd year of Head Start, should a new application be completed? Yes. A 3rd year child must have a new application and Eligibility Verification form completed. Income must be re-verified.

Additional Questions If a mother tells the interviewer that her husband moved out last week, should his income be counted? No. We accept the current situation and if the mother says the father is not in the home, the interviewer will accept that as the truth. note: In the past, the parent was asked to write a statement saying that she and her husband were separated if no court documents were available. This is no longer necessary. If the parent verbally tells the interviewer that there is a separation and the father is out of the home, that is all the proof that is needed.

Additional Questions If a family receives certain public assistance, their age eligible child is automatically income eligible for Head Start. Name the public assistance programs. A. TANF or SSI

Additional Questions If during the application process, a child is determined to be “homeless”, does the parent still need to produce income verification? A. No.

Questions Q. A family was verified for the program year, left the program within the same school year and wishes to return within the same school year. Does the family have to be re-verified if the income is still current? A. Answer: Yes, if a family was determined eligible for the program, was enrolled, and then is terminated, and later the family wishes to return to the program, the family’s eligibility for the program must be re-verified. A new application must be completed

Questions Q. How long do you keep a family on the waitlist that does not return to finish enrollment? A. There is no limit on how long a family may be on the waitlist. The agency is required to have an active waitlist during the year. The waitlist is the place where a child’s application must remain until the child moves to the accepted status. Being on the waitlist simply means that a child has been determined eligible for the program and is on a list waiting for the agency to identify a vacancy they can fill.

Questions Q. A 1040 Tax form was used for income verification during an enrollment. We used the total income as proof. During a review we were told that when a parent is self employed that we should use tax line 37. Can you explain why? A. Families that indicate they are self-employed and therefore have self-employment tax to pay and other business expenses to report, the actual gross income is identified on line 37 and not line 22. The income on line 37 should only be used for self-employed families.

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E-Eligibility R-Recruitment S-Selection E-Enrollment A-Attendance EE

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