Head Start/Early Head Start is a federal program that promotes the school readiness of children ages birth to 5 from low-income families by enhancing their cognitive, social and emotional development. RAI’s prenatal to age 5 Head Start program provides educational, health, nutritional, social and other services to children enrolled in a federally recognized tribe and their families. Services are designed to be responsive to each child and family’s ethnic, cultural and linguistic heritage and each child’s and family’s specific needs.
According to a study done by Purdue University, by the age of four, children in poverty generally hear 30 million fewer words than middle class children. This impacts their lives, including success in education and employment, and an increased risk of incarceration. Children without a good start to their education in their early years would have to read 96 books a day for 14 years to make up the gap —- something that is impossible to do.
According to the Center for American Progress, children without early childhood education are:
More likely to drop out of school
25%
More likely to become teen parents
40%
More likely to require special education classes
50%
More likely to not attend college
60%
More likely to be arrested for a violent crime
70%
Early childhood intervention is a strong tool to address serious problems at their root, and Head Start has been proven to be an effective vehicle for these efforts. Without RAI’s Head Start programs, survival would be more difficult for transitional families.
RAI’S Head Start program has consistently scored among the highest in the nation and in 2024 received the highest rating possible from the federal Head Start tribal program. Our Head Start teachers and teacher mentors are required to have an Associate’s Degree or higher. Our Teacher Assistants are required to have a Child Development Associates (CDA) credential in pre-school, and our Early Head Start teachers and teacher mentors are required to have a CDA in an infant/toddler setting.
Each center has a variety of services and options available to families: part-day of full day and school year or full year. Breakfast, lunch, and snacks are provided. Transportation is available. Cultural and language curricula for the Lakota/Dakota language are used, and developmental screenings are regularly administered.
National Head Start Association
RAI Head Start Director Anne Reddy attended the National Head Start Association Fall Leadership Institute in Washington, DC, advocating for Head Start and Early Child-hood Education.
RAI engages parents in their child’s learning and helps them progress toward their educational, literacy and employment goals. Parents are welcomed into our program and our Parent Policy Council representatives are involved in shared decision making with RAI’s administration and Board of Directors.
Parent meetings are held at least once a month throughout the school year. Activities include an annual Art Expo, science fairs, elders and veterans honoring’s, powwows and more, often in conjunction with RAI’s Ateyapi program. Feeding large numbers of families and community members is always a component of our programs and events. Incentives are provided to parents who support our curriculum within the home.
Parents are the backbone of every Head Start program.
We estimate that we save our families at least $1200 per month in child care and transportation costs, or $14,400.00 per child each year.
Moreover, our program addresses the needs of the whole family. There is great disparity in the unemployment rate in Rapid City between Native people at 40% and non-Natives at 2%. Having a job changes lives and changes communities. It is our priority to cultivate teachers from among people whose children have been in our Head Start program, and we provide job-skills training in early childhood development. Over half of our teachers and aides in our Head Start programs began as clients.
