Head Start was initiated as a part of the Federal Government's War on Poverty. In February 1965, a panel of experts chaired by Dr. Robert Cooke at Johns Hopkins University submitted a paper entitled Recommendations for a Head Start Program to the Office of Economic Opportunity (later combined with other offices in the U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, now Health and Human Services). In addition to identifying the elements of an effective child development program, the paper addressed volunteerism, saying that the design of programs should:
...encourage the use of selected volunteers as aides and assistants in certain activities. These volunteers could be as young as ten years old and should include teenagers and college students as well as adults. There should be persons from circumstances similar to the child's, as well as from differing soci-economic, racial and ethnic groups. Volunteers should find participation a wholesome outlet for realizing their social and ethical values.
Dining the summer of 1965, communities sponsoring the first Head Start programs mobilized parents, students, public and private agencies, and community residents to assist in getting the program under way. Many of these individuals and groups participated on a voluntary basis and were essential to the successful beginning of Head Start.POLICY ISSUANCES AND GUIDELINES
The first official policy document for Head Start programs was The Head Start Manual of Policies and Instructions, published in 1967. This manual (now out of print) presented specific policies for including volunteers in the program. Many key requirements found in the manual are still in effect today and have been restated in other policy issuances. These include the following:
- Programs are expected to use volunteers to the fullest extent possible
- The third person in the classroom is a volunteer
- Volunteer services claimed as part of the non-Federal share must be documented by time sheets
- All personnel, including volunteers, who are in contact with children must be screened for tuberculosis
- Volunteers who eat with children will not have to pay for their meals
- Volunteers will be covered by adequate insurance
- Head Start programs must explore the use of other community resources.
A series of pamphlets known as The Rainbow Series was published by Head Start in 1968. The series (copies of which are no longer available) addressed policy issues and provided supporting information and resources for creating high-quality programs for children and families. The pamphlet on volunteers stated that the primary aims of the volunteer programs are as follows:
The Head Start Program Performance Standards, issued in 1975, incorporated policy from prior documents and addressed the use of volunteers in every component. Several years later, the Office of Human Development Services issued its 1982 memorandum supporting well-managed volunteer efforts in Head Start Programs
- To provide additional staff in all areas of the program, thus increasing the effectiveness of paid staff
- To give interested local citizens, including parents of the children, an opportunity to participate in the program
- To establish a systematic method of mobilizing community resources for the expansion and improvement of all parts of the program
- To build better understanding for the overall War on Poverty and to stimulate widespread citizen support for improved services in education, health, and welfare for children and their families.
Thus, from the beginning, the development of strong volunteer programs in Head Start has been emphasized through policy and guidance. Head Start Policies: Volunteers and Community Resources presents the various policies within each component area and contains actual citations of existing policy. When appropriate, the last section of each chapter in this handbook provides a list of corresponding sections in Head Start Policies: Volunteers and Community Resources.
FOR A WELL-MANAGED VOLUNTEER PROGRAMHead Start parents traditionally have been Head Start's major volunteer resource. Over the past 10 years, however, an increasing number of Head Start parents have been returning to school. or taking entry-leveI employment, which has resulted in a decline in parent time for volunteering. Many Head Start programs have had to increase their recruitment efforts for volunteers in the larger community. This activity has gone hand-in-hand with the need to promote wider recognition and a positive image of Head Start.
Head Start programs have become increasingly aware of the need to create solid community linkages with agencies that can supplement Head Start health, nutrition, parent involvement, and social services activities. The Head Start Bureau has led the way in this effort by developing agreements with other Federal agencies as well as private organizations that can be utilized at State and local levels. It is essential to plan and coordinate these efforts to ensure the greatest benefits for the Head Start families served by the program.
This handbook provides a model for the development of a volunteer program. It has been designed as a working tooL Users can add their own work plans, ideas, and references in developing and managing their volunteer programs.