A

APPENDIX A
AUTHORIZING STATUTE

H. R. 1429—25
‘‘(vii) changes in the characteristics of the population of children who are eligible to participate in
Head Start programs, including country of origin, language background, and family structure of such children, and changes in the population and number of
such children who are in foster care or are homeless
children;
‘‘(viii) mechanisms to ensure that children participating in Head Start programs make a successful
transition to the schools that the children will be
attending;
‘‘(ix) the need for Head Start agencies to maintain
regular communications with parents, including conducting periodic meetings to discuss the progress of
individual children in Head Start programs; and
‘‘(x) the unique challenges faced by individual programs, including those programs that are seasonal or
short term and those programs that serve rural populations;
‘‘(C)(i) review and revise as necessary the standards
in effect under this subsection; and
‘‘(ii) ensure that any such revisions in the standards
will not result in the elimination of or any reduction in
quality, scope, or types of health, educational, parental
involvement, nutritional, social, or other services required
to be provided under such standards as in effect on the
date of enactment of the Improving Head Start for School
Readiness Act of 2007; and
‘‘(D) consult with Indian tribes, including Alaska
Natives, experts in Indian, including Alaska Native, early
childhood education and development, linguists, and the
National Indian Head Start Directors Association on the
review and promulgation of standards under paragraph
(1) (including standards for language acquisition and school
readiness).
‘‘(3) STANDARDS RELATING TO OBLIGATIONS TO DELEGATE
AGENCIES.—In developing any modifications to standards under
paragraph (1), the Secretary shall describe the obligations of
a Head Start agency to a delegate agency to which the Head
Start agency has delegated responsibility for providing services
under this subchapter.
‘‘(b) MEASURES.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, in consultation with representatives of Head Start agencies and with experts in the
fields of early childhood education and development, family
services, and program management, shall use the study on
Developmental Outcomes and Assessments for Young Children
by the National Academy of Sciences and other relevant
research to inform, revise, and provide guidance to Head Start
agencies for utilizing, scientifically based measures that support, as appropriate—
‘‘(A) classroom instructional practices;
‘‘(B) identification of children with special needs;
‘‘(C) program evaluation; and
‘‘(D) administrative and financial management practices.

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‘‘(2) CHARACTERISTICS OF MEASURES.—The measures under
this subsection shall—
‘‘(A) be developmentally, linguistically, and culturally
appropriate for the population served;
‘‘(B) be reviewed periodically, based on advances in
the science of early childhood development;
‘‘(C) be consistent with relevant, nationally recognized
professional and technical standards related to the assessment of young children;
‘‘(D) be valid and reliable in the language in which
they are administered;
‘‘(E) be administered by staff with appropriate training
for such administration;
‘‘(F) provide for appropriate accommodations for children with disabilities and children who are limited English
proficient;
‘‘(G) be high-quality research-based measures that have
been demonstrated to assist with the purposes for which
they were devised; and
‘‘(H) be adaptable, as appropriate, for use in the selfassessment of Head Start agencies, including in the evaluation of administrative and financial management practices.
‘‘(3) USE OF MEASURES; LIMITATIONS ON USE.—
‘‘(A) USE.—The measures shall be designed, as appropriate, for the purpose of—
‘‘(i) helping to develop the skills, knowledge, abilities, and development described in subsection (a)(1)(B)
of children participating in Head Start programs, with
an emphasis on measuring skills that scientifically
valid research has demonstrated are related to children’s school readiness and later success in school;
‘‘(ii) improving classroom practices, including
reviewing children’s strengths and weaknesses and
individualizing instruction to better meet the needs
of the children involved;
‘‘(iii) identifying the special needs of children; and
‘‘(iv) improving overall program performance in
order to help programs identify problem areas that
may require additional training and technical assistance resources.
‘‘(B) LIMITATIONS.—Such measures shall not be used
to exclude children from Head Start programs.
‘‘(4) CONFIDENTIALITY.—
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, through regulation,
shall ensure the confidentiality of any personally identifiable data, information, and records collected or maintained
under this subchapter by the Secretary and any Head
Start agency. Such regulations shall provide the policies,
protections, and rights equivalent to those provided to a
parent, student, or educational agency or institution under
section 444 of the General Education Provisions Act (20
U.S.C. 1232g).
‘‘(B) PROHIBITION ON NATIONWIDE DATABASE.—Nothing
in this subsection shall be construed to authorize the
development of a nationwide database of personally identifiable data, information, or records on children resulting
from the use of measures under this subsection.