Policy Council

If you only read one of The Gravely Group’s blogs each year, our annual Year in Review should be it. Each year, we do a recap of all the articles we put out throughout the year, as well as give a few other highlights from our trainings and travels. After nearly three years of uncertainty,…

September seems so far from now, doesn’t it? Where will things stand at that time? Will school be back in session? Even as states begin cautiously reopening some businesses, schools remain closed. However, most expect that school will be back in session in the fall. But what will that look like? As we try to…

In Head Start, shared governance is something we live by every day. From the very beginning, the framers of Head Start wanted to provide parents and community representatives with the authority and opportunity to participate in share decision-making concerning program design and implementation. But as we know, as human beings, we sometimes disagree. That’s completely…

According to Sec 642(c) of the Head Start Act, all Head Start designees are required to have a formal structure for program governance, including the formation of a governing body and policy council. The section goes into detail about the responsibilities of the board and policy council, including the composition of each group and who…

Every time we host a webinar on record keeping or on the three entities of Head Start/Early Head Start, we get the same question: “What is the minimum amount of members that must be present at a Board or Policy Council meeting to achieve a quorum? “ The answer to this question is actually pretty…

We recently gave a free webinar on the three entities of Head Start/Early Head Start Program Governance Structure. (Sign up for our mailing list to receive notices about upcoming free webinars). In that webinar, we talked about the roles and responsibilities of each entity, as well as training and reporting requirements. Based on the questions…

As Head Start professionals, we know that Head Start needs parents’ input to succeed. With new regulations cropping up and in an ever-changing world, the guidance of parents is sorely needed to run a program that meets the needs of the community, the children, and parents. However, when talking with parents and trying to gauge…

People want to have a voice and be part of something bigger than themselves. It’s easy to type a hashtag on social media. It’s a lot harder to effect real change. How can you do that? Head Start programs are based on family engagement. But is it really embedded in your program? Does your program…

Parent Participation is Essential The skill to manage ideas and motivate people to action is perhaps the most critical asset to any Head Start program. As we know, parent participation is essential to successful program outcomes, however, it’s not always easy to get parents involved. That’s why upfront and ongoing training, especially when it relates…

The new Head Start Performance Standards didn’t change much on the area of the policy council/committees. Since this was already revised in the Head start Act, it largely remained the same. Establishing policy councils and policy committees. “Each agency must establish and maintain a policy council responsible for the direction of the Head Start program…