A number of innovative collaborations have been implemented throughout San Diego County, which have been recognized on the national level as being on the cutting edge. Unique to San Diego, the following collaborations serve as models for other programs in their endeavors to enhance services to families.
Head Start and County of San Diego blend onsite preschool child care services and assessments for at-risk children placed in the county emergency care facility. The collaboration includes formalized family referral, child care, and integrated services for "hard to serve families" recruited from the A.B. and Jessie Polinsky Children's Center. Sharing child and family information gathered by each agency consolidates information collection on families. The Head Start Family Partnership Agreement integrates treatment and services across agencies with the goal of maintaining children in center based full day, full year services that allow non-traditional hours.
Head Start centers are based at a number of school campuses at San Diego Unified School District affording the family the opportunity for Head Start and their school age siblings to be located at one site. Head Start is a partner in New Beginnings collaborative where health and social services programs are located on campus. O'Farrell Community Charter School, a middle school, houses a Head Start center on campus and offers onsite family support services from another community based program. The charter school, San Diego Innovative Project School of Success, provides a Head Start kindergarten on its campus with charter school status and an after-care program.
In this small desert community of two thousand (2,000) people, the state funded Child Development Division (CDD) Program provides preschool education for twenty-five (25) children. Mental health and disability services are provided jointly through the local education agency and Head Start. A NHA vehicle housed at the school district is utilized to transport families to related services. NHA also maintains and manages a Borrego Springs Head Start Community Center, which houses two (2) staff, who facilitate parent involvement, health, and social services. Other activities at the Community Center are determined by community need and resources.
Head Start provides evening care on two community college campuses at the Educational Cultural Complex in Southeast San Diego and San Diego City College in center city. Head Start uses the college child development centers that are operated by the college during the day.
Head Start has been a long-term partner in the revitalization of communities. Private investors and the City of San Diego provide facility space at new community centers such as the Urban Village in the City Heights community. Head Start provides services from early morning to late evening programs. Head Start centers are also housed at Boys and Girls Clubs, the YMCA, and at a former Naval Training Center now owned by the City of San Diego.
The Head Start program works closely with the Job Corp to offer child care on campus to Job Corp trainees who have preschool age children. The Head Start center is used as a training site for Job Corp trainees.
NHA Head Start contracts with licensed Family Child Care providers to provide child care and support for child development and early childhood education, nutrition, and parent involvement.
The University provides approximately ten (10) Nurse Interns who provide health services to Head Start children and families in Mid City San Diego.
In conjunction with the NHA Social Services Department and Head Start, the University offers counseling services to Head Start families from graduate level social work interns. The interns are supervised by NHA social workers and the counseling services are provided at a community center in proximity to the Head Start centers in Southeast San Diego.