In 1964, President Johnson’s administration asked a panel of child development experts to draw up a program to help communities meet the needs of disadvantaged preschool children.  The panel report became the blueprint for Project Head Start.

Project Head Start was launched in 1965 in an effort to break the cycle of poverty by providing preschool children of low-income families with a comprehensive program to meet their emotional, social, health, nutritional, and psychological needs.  Since that time, great expansion has taken place and Head Start now serves children and their families in all 50 States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Territories.  A well-established, though still an innovative program, Head Start has had a strong impact on communities and early childhood programs across the country.

The Hillsborough County Board of County Commissioners’ Community Action Agency served as the Grantee for the summer Head Start program in 1965. In 1966, the addition of delegate agencies allowed for initiation of 2 program options, a full-day/full-year program for 300 working families and a part-day/part-year program to serve an additional 1,260 children. These choices have continued, with the addition of the Early Head Start program in 1996 which expanded services and partnerships with the community.

In January 2010, another significant expansion occurred.  Due to the receipt of federal economic stimulus funds, the program expanded to serve an additional 151 Head Start children and 252 Early Head Start infants, toddlers and pregnant women.  Partnering with the community was once again essential in this expansion, as three non-profit agencies were newly added to provide services to homeless children as well as through family child care homes.

Hillsborough County Head Start also has its own foundation – The Hillsborough Head Start Community Foundation, Inc. Established in 1995 as a 501(c)3 organization, its mission is to strengthen awareness of Head Start in Hillsborough County, increase community volunteerism and raise funds for the expansion of Head Start services.