2021-2022 Study of Family and Staff Experiences in AIAN Head Start Family and Child Experiences Survey Programs

Nationally, more than 20,000 American Indian and Alaska Native (AIAN) children and their families are served by Head Start. More than one-half of these children and families are served by about 140 AIAN Head Start programs in Region XI, which are programs operated by federally recognized tribes and consortia. Region XI Head Start serves approximately 85 percent AIAN children and 15 percent non-AIAN children.  

In the year following the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, there was a need to understand how children, families, and Head Start staff were faring.  In 2021, the Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation in the Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, contracted with Mathematica to design and conduct the 2021–2022 Study of Family and Staff Experiences in American Indian and Alaska Native Head Start Family and Child Experiences Survey Programs (the 2021–2022 Study). The 2021-2022 study explores this with the programs that participated in AIAN FACES 2019. While data from the 2021–2022  study are not nationally representative, the study can help us learn important information about child, family, and Head Start staff well-being and experiences in 18 Region XI programs during the 2021-2022 program year. We extend our thanks to these 18 programs.