Getting Started
Once your community assessment team is in place, you are ready to establish your primary questions, or what you want to learn through the community assessment. Begin Step 2 by reviewing the HSPPS to identify the core areas you will be exploring. The HSPPS set out three types of information you are required to gather about Head Start-eligible children and families, as well as three types of information specific to your community. Within these categories, you will develop the primary questions that explore issues unique to your families and region. Do not confuse the primary questions to be asked through the community assessment (e.g., "How are community demographics changing?") with the specific survey or interview questions you will be developing in Step 3.
Learning Objectives
There are many things you can learn through a community assessment, and what your team prioritizes will affect how you gather data and from whom. In Step 2 you will learn how to:
- Align community assessment data collection with the HSPPS requirements
- Develop the primary questions to be answered
- Identify internal and external sources of data
- Distinguish between open- and closed-ended questions, as well as quantitative and qualitative data.
Read more:
Resource Type: Article
National Centers: Program Management and Fiscal Operations
Audience: Directors and Managers
Last Updated: August 4, 2023