Alternative Supporting Statement for Information Collections Designed for
Research, Public Health Surveillance, and Program Evaluation Purposes
Further Understanding Children’s Transitions from Head Start to Kindergarten:
A National Descriptive Study (HS2K)
Pre-testing of ACF Data Collection Activities
0970 - 0355
Supporting Statement
Part A
JANUARY 2026
Submitted By:
Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation
Administration for Children and Families
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
4th Floor, Mary E. Switzer Building
330 C Street, SW
Washington, D.C. 20201
Project Officer: Kathleen Dwyer, PhD (OPRE)
Part A
Executive Summary
Type of Request: This Information Collection Request is for a generic information collection under the umbrella generic, Pre-testing of ACF Data Collection Activities (0970-0355).
Description of Request:
The Office of Planning, Research, & Evaluation (OPRE) within the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) at the Department for Health and Human Services (HHS) proposes to conduct pre-test data collection activities for a future national descriptive study of Head Start to kindergarten (HS2K) transitions. The purpose of the national descriptive study is to better understand the system-level supports for kindergarten transitions within the Head Start (HS) and K-12 systems. Surveys will be conducted with respondent groups at three levels within each system – 1) HS Program Directors and local education agency (LEA) Administrators, 2) HS Center Directors and Elementary school principals, and 3) HS lead teachers and kindergarten lead teachers. This novel approach addresses research questions relating to the content, quality, and quantity of transition supports; perspectives on transitions from both administrator and teacher levels; and the extent to which the two systems collaborate to support kindergarten transitions. Pre-test data collection activities include a pilot study to test the feasibility of the study design, including recruitment methodology, and survey completions. Data collected through this request are not intended to be generalized to a broader population. We do not intend this information to be used as the principal basis for public policy decisions.
Time Sensitivity: To stay on schedule to meet contract milestones, we are seeking approval to begin recruiting the pilot study sample in January 2026, ahead of data collection starting in February 2026.
A1. Necessity for Collection
The kindergarten transition takes place within a context of diverse organizational infrastructures and local community needs, and a smoother transition can help children build upon the early development and gains they made while in Head Start (HS).1 However, very little is known about how leaders and staff across multiple educational organizations—HS programs, elementary schools, and LEAs—engage with each other and collaborate through policies, perspectives, professional development, and practices to create environments within and across early childhood education and K-12 systems that support smooth transitions from HS to kindergarten for children and families.2
The Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation (OPRE) at the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) under the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has contracted with NORC at the University of Chicago (NORC) to conduct a nationwide study to better understand how local systems (HS and K-12 systems) work together to build collaborations that support staff, children, and families. The goal of the proposed information collection is to conduct a pilot study to test the feasibility of the study design.
There are no legal or administrative requirements that necessitate this collection. ACF is undertaking the collection at the discretion of the agency.
A2. Purpose
Purpose and Use
This proposed information collection meets the primary goals of ACF’s generic clearance for pre-testing (0970-0355): to develop and test information collection instruments and procedures. Specifically, it is intended to test instruments and procedures for a national descriptive study of transitions from Head Start to kindergarten. The information collected for the pilot study will inform the national descriptive study’s design and recruitment procedures. The goal of refining the study design is to increase successful recruitment and completion rates while reducing burden on respondents.
For the future national descriptive study, six nationwide surveys will capture (1) how both the HS and K-12 systems structure kindergarten transition supports in service of creating more positive experiences for children and their families, and (2) the extent to which various types of cross-system collaboration efforts occur in different types of geographic locales.
OPRE proposes conducting a pilot study to test the feasibility of the study design, including recruitment methodology and survey design. The project team will seek to recruit respondent groups at three levels within each system: 1) HS Program Directors and LEA Administrators, 2) HS Center Directors and Elementary school principals, and 3) HS lead teachers and kindergarten lead teachers.
The information collected is meant to contribute to the body of knowledge on ACF programs. It is not intended to be used as the principal basis for a decision by a federal decision-maker.
Research Questions or Tests
NOTE: This section first provides the research questions for the future national descriptive study design to contextualize the questions that are specific to this proposed pilot test.
Research Questions for the National Descriptive Study
The proposed national descriptive study design will seek to answer the following research questions and example sub-research questions.
What kindergarten transition practices3, policies, and professional supports do Head Start programs and elementary schools/LEAs engage in and what perspectives do each hold?
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Sub-questions |
What kindergarten transition policies do Head Start programs and LEAs/elementary schools have? What professional supports related to kindergarten transitions do Head Start programs and LEAs/elementary schools engage in? What perspectives related to kindergarten transitions do Head Start programs and LEAs/elementary schools hold? |
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Within each system, how do the 4Ps (practices4, policies, professional supports, and perspectives)5 relate to each other? |
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What job roles hold primary responsibility for kindergarten transitions? |
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To what extent are practices, policies, and professional supports done in collaboration across the Head Start and LEA/elementary school systems and to what degree are perspectives in line with each other?
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Sub-questions |
What kindergarten transition practices are done in collaboration across Head Start and LEA/elementary school systems? How aligned are Head Start and LEA/elementary school policies related to kindergarten transitions? What professional supports are offered jointly to Head Start and LEA/elementary school staff? How aligned are Head Start and LEA/elementary school perspectives related to kindergarten transitions? |
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What do these collaboration efforts look like across different Head Start/LEA characteristics and contexts? |
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What is the relationship between system-level supports for kindergarten transitions (i.e., leadership buy-in, financial resources devoted to supporting transitions, staff time for supporting transitions) and collaboration for transition practices, professional supports, and policies? |
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What information do Head Start and LEA/elementary school staff share and receive about transitioning Head Start children? |
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Sub-questions |
How do within-system policies vary with system-level supports for kindergarten transitions? How do within-system policies vary with cross-system collaboration? How do within-system professional supports vary with system-level supports for kindergarten transitions? How do within-system professional supports vary with cross-system collaboration? |
|
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Sub-questions |
What is the relationship between Head Start/LEA/elementary school staff-identified outcomes and the level of cross-system collaboration around kindergarten transition practices, policies, and professional supports? |
Specific questions/tests for the Pilot Study
The pilot study will test the feasibility of the national descriptive study’s design (specifically sampling methodology) and determine if our recruitment and data collection methods and procedures are sufficient to gain cooperation with each respondent type. For example, are we able to actually create our sample files based on our sampling plan, are the respondent materials able to successfully recruit all respondent groups, are certain respondent groups able/willing to assist with recruitment of others? Results of the pilot study will help to determine, if necessary, how to improve the study design and recruitment strategies to successfully implement the national descriptive study.
Study Design
The HS2K study design’s primary objective is to examine how HS programs and LEAs collaborate to support HS to kindergarten transitions. The study design incorporates a multi-level sampling strategy targeting HS Program Directors, LEA Administrators, HS Center Directors, Elementary school principals, HS lead teachers, and kindergarten lead teachers. These roles at various levels reflect the organizational complexity of the transition process and enable analyses across individuals and systems. The HS2K team will mimic the national descriptive study’s sampling and data collection procedures in the pilot study, ensuring methodological consistency and feasibility testing before full-scale implementation. The use of nationally representative samples for the national descriptive study will support generalizable insights for the study’s target populations. The national descriptive study is designed to generate descriptive—not causal—findings. In contrast, the pilot study results are not intended to be nationally representative, but instead will be used solely to refine study methods, materials, and procedures. Please refer to the Supporting Statement B (SSB) for additional details on the recruitment and study design plans.
The objective for each survey is to obtain information about the types of approaches to and supports for the kindergarten transition within each system, as well as the degree of collaboration between HS and LEA systems. The surveys all include a focus on kindergarten transition perspectives, policies, professional supports, and practices (i.e., the 4Ps). These 4Ps were identified under the previous HS2K contract as core mechanisms that shape a child’s transition experience, highlighting the way the HS and LEA systems work both independently and collaboratively to support kindergarten transitions.
Perspectives refer to visions, values and beliefs participants may have regarding kindergarten transitions.
Policies refer to explicit documentation of organization regulations, roles, standards, procedures and guidance.
Professional supports refer to learning opportunities, professional development, and relationship building participants may receive to support their work surrounding transitions.
Practices refers to concrete activities designed to support the kindergarten transition.
For each P, items were developed that address each role’s experience both within and across systems.
The surveys were drafted to capture alignment within systems (vertical) and across the two systems (horizontal). Thus, to meet the study objectives, there is intentional overlap across many survey items to examine each domain of interest at the three levels within each system and to triangulate findings across respondents during analysis (i.e., HS Program Directors and LEA Administrators, HS Center Directors and Elementary school principals, and HS lead teachers and kindergarten lead teachers).
Given the overlap between questions for respondent pairings, the attached instruments are combined for ease of review with clear designations to indicate when a question or text applies to any specific respondent type. They are combined in pairings: Instrument A (Versions 1-2): HS Program Director and LEA Administrator Survey, Instrument B (Versions 3-4): HS Center Director and Elementary School Principal Survey, and Instrument C (Versions 5-6): HS Lead and Kindergarten Lead Teacher Survey. The instruments are listed separately here to aid with calculating the estimated burden hours and cost to the respondent (see Exhibit A12.1).
Other Data Sources and Uses of Information
For Design and Data Collection. The Head Start Enterprise System (HSES) administrative data (OMB #0970-0207), in combination with the Head Start Program Information Report (PIR, OMB #0970-0427) will be used to establish the list of the population of HS Program Directors who will be potential respondents to the HS program survey. The study will base the sampling frame for the LEAs and schools on the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) and Common Core of Data (CCD), while the U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey (ACS) will be used for obtaining addresses. The NCHS Urban-Rural Classification Scheme for Counties will be used for urban/rural classifications. Please refer to the SSB for additional details on the HS2K team’s sampling and recruitment approaches.
A3. Use of Information Technology to Reduce Burden
The six surveys, as noted in section A2 above, will be administered online via Voxco, an electronic survey platform. Respondents will complete the survey at their own convenience and with minimum contact from NORC data collection staff, such as telephone interviewers. Collecting data in this manner helps to reduce burden on respondents since they will be able to complete at their convenience from multiple devices (mobile or desktop) and can stop and pick back up with the survey at any time, as desired. Self-administration via a programmed online survey compared to paper-and-pencil format improves data quality given the complex nature of following survey skip patterns and completing appropriate text fill-ins based on the respondent type being surveyed. Self-administered surveys are often completed more quickly than interviewer-administered surveys, in part because silent reading, which is used in self-administration, is generally faster than listening to questions read aloud.7,8 As such, self-administered, web-based interviews are expected to reduce burden relative to interviewer administration.
A4. Use of Existing Data: Efforts to reduce duplication, minimize burden, and increase utility and government efficiency
Demographic questions focused on the respondents' levels of education and experience are included to help understand the experience of those leading, supporting, and enacting HS to kindergarten transitions. Outside of these questions, no survey items duplicate any other work being done by ACF/OPRE or any other data sources in the public or private sector that the HS2K team could identify. For example, no survey items duplicate those already asked within the HSES, PIR, or the National Survey of Early Care and Education (NSECE, OMB #0970-0391).
A5. Impact on Small Businesses
The HS programs may be small organizations, including community-based organizations and other nonprofit agencies, as well as small businesses. The HS2K team will minimize burden for respondents by offering a web-based survey that respondents can complete at their convenience and by restricting the length of the survey (see section A3 above). Efforts will also be made by NORC staff to provide technical support to respondents over the phone and via email so that questions about the survey or study can be addressed at the respondent’s convenience.
A6. Consequences of Less Frequent Collection
This is a one-time data collection.
A7. Now subsumed under 2(b) above and 10 (below)
A8. Consultation
Federal Register Notice and Comments
In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104-13) and Office of Management and Budget (OMB) regulations at 5 CFR Part 1320 (60 FR 44978, August 29, 1995), ACF published a notice in the Federal Register announcing the agency’s intention to submit a request to OMB for review of the overarching generic clearance for pre-testing activities. This notice was published on June 20, 2024 (89 FR 51888) and provided a sixty-day period for public comment. During the notice and comment period we received requests for information about the umbrella generic but did not receive any comments. A second notice in the Federal Register announcing the agency’s submission of the overarching generic clearance for pre-testing activities for OMB’s review. This notice was published on August 19, 2024 (89 FR 68444) and provided a thirty-day period for public comment. During the notice and comment period, ACF received one comment, which is highlighted in the materials related to the overarching generic.
Consultation with Experts Outside of the Study
The HS2K team initially developed the surveys as part of an earlier project, in which we did have expert engagement related to the surveys.9 The experts engaged with the initial survey development effort were Iheoma Iruka, Beth Rous, and Amanda Stein. The consultation was in November 2021. The surveys were then revised based on findings from case studies conducted as part of the earlier project10. The HS2K team conducted cognitive interviews to test the instruments. We will seek consultation with experts outside of the study after the cognitive testing findings are determined and the pre-testing of ACF data collection activities concludes with the pilot study data collection.
A9. Tokens of Appreciation
To facilitate successful recruitment, improve data quality, and achieve survey completions, the research team will provide tokens of appreciation to respondents. This is in addition to other strategies to boost survey response via mailing and email outreach and encouragement to participate over the phone by telephone interviewers. This approach is informed by similar survey data collections that utilized tokens of appreciation with similar respondent groups for the following ACF studies: 2024 National Survey of Early Care and Education (NSECE) (OMB #0970-0391), Head Start Family and Child Experiences Survey (FACES) (OMB #0970-0151), and Financing for Early Care and Education: Quality and Access for All (F4EQ) (OMB #0970-0623). The primary motivations for utilizing tokens of appreciation to achieve desired outcomes are:
To increase the likelihood that pilot study data collection can be completed within the expected timeframe.
To test approaches that will ensure representativeness, minimize response bias, and ensure target sample sizes are achieved in the future national descriptive study.
Recent studies, particularly since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, have had a harder time recruiting and obtaining response rates necessary to produce valid and reliable data. For example, with another ACF study, the NSECE, which surveyed center-based child care providers similar to the survey respondents for the HS2K study (e.g., HS directors, elementary school principals), the research team initially offered $25 for survey completion. This was later increased to $50 and successfully increased participation. Similarly, for a survey of staff working in center-based classrooms, the token of appreciation was increased from $10 to $20, which also increased participation rates. The center-based classroom survey was 45 minutes in length, and the workforce survey was 20 minutes in length.
For HS2K, participants will receive the same amount ($50) regardless of their role (e.g., administrator or teacher), since they will be responding to the same types of questions and the estimated completion time for all surveys is similar (i.e., 50 minutes). These tokens of appreciation will help mitigate nonresponse bias and ensure response rates that would result in high quality data by reducing the burden of participation. This burden may include potential time away from other necessary duties (regardless if completed during work hours or on personal time) and incidental costs that respondents may incur such as transportation or travel costs and child care or dependent care expenses.
This pilot study data collection effort will focus on testing the national descriptive study’s recruitment approach and design, which relies on successful recruitment from each part of the HS and K-12 systems. Please see the SSB for more details on the study design. As such, seeking to obtain participation from all respondent types within and across systems will have a profound effect on our final plans for the larger national study.
The HS2K team will distribute the token of appreciation as a $50 gift card. This gift card will be electronically delivered at the completion of the survey via the online Tango portal and emailed to respondents’ preferred email address. Respondents will be able to select a gift card of their choice.
A10. Privacy: Procedures to protect privacy of information, while maximizing data sharing
Personally Identifiable Information (PII)
None of the surveys will request or collect PII as part of the survey itself, nor will individuals be identifiable. However, as discussed above in section A2 under the subsection Other Data Sources and Uses of Information, names and contact information will be synthesized from existing files and online resources to create a contact list for invitations to complete the HS Program Director and LEA Administrator surveys. HS Center administrator contact information will come from the HS active centers file (from HSES). Elementary school principal contact information will come from online school websites. Finally, HS and Kindergarten lead teacher contact information will be requested from the HS Center Director and Elementary school principal respondents. Contact information will also be collected for the receipt of gift cards (see section A9 Tokens of Appreciation above). Information will not be maintained in a paper or electronic system from which data are actually or directly retrieved by an individuals’ personal identifier.
Assurances of Privacy
The information collected will be kept private to the extent permitted by law. Respondents will be informed of all planned uses of data, that their participation is voluntary, and that their information will be kept private to the extent permitted by law (see “Appendix A: HS2K Survey Consent Information”). As specified in the contract, NORC will comply with all Federal and Departmental regulations for private information.
The HS2K team will obtain Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval for the recruitment, respondent contact materials, consent statements, instruments, data collection, and the analysis processes included in this study. The HS2K team will conduct recruitment outreach using potential respondent names, emails, and work telephone numbers, which will be linked to eventual survey responses via a unique identifier, accessible only by NORC to aid with recruitment and receipt of tokens of appreciation. All information will be protected as described in NORC’s Data Security Plan, which states that respondent PII will be stored separately from survey responses.
Participants will receive their informed consent statement upon first entering their personal identification number (PIN) as instructed on the welcome landing page (from the survey URL), both of which are provided in the recruitment letter and emails. Participants who have questions about the consent statement or other aspects of the study will be instructed to contact the HS2K team’s principal investigator for the study, Marc Hernandez, PhD at HS2KProject@norc.org.
There are no sensitive questions being asked in the surveys as noted in section A11. Thus, we will not request a Certificate of Confidentiality.
Data Security and Monitoring
NORC has created a Data Safety and Monitoring Plan to protect respondents’ personal information. The plan ensures that all NORC employees, subcontractors (Child Trends), and their staff working on this contract are trained in data privacy issues and compliance.
As specified in the contract, the contractor will use Federal Information Processing Standard compliant encryption (Security Requirements for Cryptographic Module, as amended) to protect all instances of sensitive information during storage and transmission. The contractor will securely generate and manage encryption keys to prevent unauthorized decryption of information, in accordance with the Federal Processing Standard. The contractor will ensure that this standard is incorporated into the contractor’s property management/control system. Additionally, the contractor will establish a procedure to account for all laptop computers, desktop computers, and other mobile devices and portable media that store or process sensitive information. Any data stored electronically will be secured in accordance with the most current National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) requirements and other applicable Federal and Departmental regulations. Furthermore, the contractor will submit a plan for minimizing to the extent possible the inclusion of sensitive information on paper records and for the protection of any paper records, field notes, or other documents that contain sensitive or PII that ensures secure storage and limits on access.
ID numbers will be assigned to each survey respondent. Names or other identifiers are not attached to the survey data.
A11. Sensitive Information 11
This study does not intend to collect sensitive information via survey responses.
A12. Burden
Explanation of Burden Estimates
To estimate the average response time for each proposed instrument, the HS2K team tested each instrument internally and considered the number and type of questions for each respondent sample type along with the amount of time allotted for each survey. The goal of each instrument and the data collection effort overall is to maximize the efficiency of data collection activities and minimize burden on participants. All estimates per respondent type are based on the potential for respondents answering all of the questions in the survey.
Respondents will complete a survey once and the surveys are estimated to take approximately 50 minutes to complete. Surveys are tailored by respondent type and are grouped accordingly:
HS Program Directors and LEA Administrators
HS Center Directors and Elementary school principals
HS lead teachers and Kindergarten lead teachers
Estimating the number of respondents for the pilot study will follow the same sampling and methodology plan at a smaller scale as the national descriptive study to ensure they are feasible. The primary difference will be the number of programs sampled. For the pilot, an initial sample of 20 HS programs will be selected and use administrative data to determine whether LEAs, HS centers, and elementary schools can be easily and accurately identified. Please see the SSB for more details on the sampling and selection procedures. This request is for 1 year of information collection.
Estimated Annualized Cost to Respondents
The estimated annual cost for respondents is shown in Exhibit A12.1. The source for the mean hourly wage information for each respondent type is Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2024. Note that the Kindergarten teacher mean hourly wage comes from a separate 2023 source. Source link for the “All data” XLSX file for the 2024 mean hourly wages: https://www.bls.gov/oes/tables.htm#
For HS Program Directors the mean hourly wage of $54.20 was used, based on the wage for 11-9030 Education and Childcare Administrators.
For LEA Administrators, the mean hourly wage of $55.32 was used, based on the wage for 11-3012 Administrative Services Managers.
For HS Center Directors, the mean hourly wage of $39.41 was used, based on the wage for 11-9031 Education and Childcare Administrators, Preschool and Daycare.
For Elementary school principals the mean hourly wage of $49.14 was used, based on the wage for 11-9030 Education and Childcare Administrators.
For HS lead teachers the mean hourly wage of $18.16 was used, based on the wage for 39-9011 Childcare Workers.
For Kindergarten lead teachers the mean hourly wage of $32.59 was used, based on the wage for 39-9010 Childcare Workers. Source: https://www.bls.gov/oes/2023/may/oes252012.htm
Exhibit A12.1: Burden Hours and Costs to Respondents
Instrument |
No. of Respondents (total over request period)12 |
No. of Responses per Respondent (total over request period) |
Avg. Burden per Response (in hours) |
Total / Annual Burden (in hours)
|
Average Hourly Wage Rate |
Total Annual Respondent Cost |
HS Program Director Survey |
5 |
1 |
0.83 |
4 |
$ 54.20 |
$ 216.80 |
LEA Administrator Survey |
10 |
1 |
0.83 |
8 |
$ 55.32 |
$ 442.56 |
HS Center Director Survey |
10 |
1 |
0.83 |
8 |
$ 39.41 |
$ 315.28 |
Elementary School Principal Survey |
10 |
1 |
0.83 |
8 |
$ 49.14 |
$ 393.12 |
HS Lead Teacher Survey |
10 |
1 |
0.83 |
8 |
$ 18.16 |
$ 145.28 |
Kindergarten Lead Teacher Survey |
10 |
1 |
0.83 |
8 |
$ 32.59 |
$ 260.72 |
Totals: |
55 |
1 |
.083 |
44 |
- |
$1,773.76 |
A13. Costs
There are no additional costs to respondents.
A14. Estimated Annualized Costs to the Federal Government
The total (and annual) cost for the data collection activities under this current request will be $432,481 for the proposed data collection under this OMB clearance number (0970-0355).
The method used to estimate annualized costs to the Federal Government includes taking into account the study’s actual operational expenses (such as purchasing equipment, overhead, printing, staff support), and any other expenses which would not have been incurred without this collection of information.
Cost Category |
Estimated Costs |
Instrument Development |
$ 140,806 |
ATO and Privacy Impact Assessment |
$ 27,598 |
Data Collection |
$ 240,895 |
Analysis |
$ 23,182 |
Total/Annual costs over the request period |
$ 432,481 |
A15. Reasons for changes in burden
This is for an individual information collection under the umbrella clearance for pre-testing (0970-0355).
A16. Timeline
Pending OMB approval, ACF proposes the following project timeline for the pilot study data collection:
Activity |
Timing |
Outreach & Recruitment |
Over about 4 months, following OMB approval |
Data Collection |
Over about 4 months, anticipated beginning January 2026. |
Analysis |
Over about 2 months, beginning as data collection is completed |
Reports |
Over about 2 months, beginning as analyses are completed |
A17. Exceptions
No exceptions are necessary for this information collection.
Attachments
Instrument A: HS Program and LEA Administrator Survey
Instrument B: HS Center and Elementary School Principal Survey
Instrument C: HS and Kindergarten Lead Teacher Survey
Appendix A: HS2K Survey Consent Information
Appendix B: HS2K Recruitment Materials for HS Program Directors
Appendix C: HS2K Recruitment Materials for LEA Administrators
Appendix D: HS2K Recruitment Materials for HS Center Directors
Appendix E: HS2K Recruitment Materials for Elementary School Principals
Appendix F: HS2K Recruitment Materials for HS Lead Teachers
Appendix G: HS2K Recruitment Materials for Kindergarten Lead Teachers
1 Barrows, Mitchell R., Molly Gordon, Stacy B. Ehrlich Loewe, Carol Hafford, Kyle DeMeo Cook (2023). Systems-Level Strategies to Facilitate Kindergarten Transitions: Key Study Findings and Examples from Case Studies of Head Start & K-12 Partnerships, OPRE Report # 2023-233, Washington, DC: Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
2 Gordon, Molly F., Hafford, C., Barrows, M.R., Ehrlich Loewe, S.B., Cook, K.D., Gutwein, M., Carrazza, C., Feldman, R.C., Halle, T.G., & Kauerz, K. (2023). Understanding Cross-System Transitions from Head Start to Kindergarten: A Comparative Cross Case Study of Head Start and K-12 Partnerships, OPRE Report # 2023-247, Washington, DC: Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation.
3 While the surveys collect data on the overall policies, professional supports, and perspectives in each system, questions on transition practices ask specifically about those done jointly between Head Start and LEAs. The HS2K team plans to describe the policies, professional supports, and perspectives of each system in RQ1, but move the description of practices to RQ2 as it has a collaborative focus.
4 For reasons described above, discussion of the relationships between practices and the other 3Ps will be limited to joint practices.
5 Barrows, Mitchell R., Molly Gordon, Stacy B. Ehrlich Loewe, Carol Hafford, Kyle DeMeo Cook (2023). Systems-Level Strategies to Facilitate Kindergarten Transitions: Key Study Findings and Examples from Case Studies of Head Start & K-12 Partnerships, OPRE Report # 2023-233, Washington, DC: Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
6 The small sample size poses challenges for measuring variation. Caution is suggested when interpreting results.
7 Kuperman, V., Kyröläinen, A.-J., Porretta, V., Brysbaert, M., & Yang, S. (2021). A lingering question addressed: Reading rate and most efficient listening rate are highly similar. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance, 47(8), 1103–1112. https://doi.org/10.1037/xhp0000932
8 Bowling, A. (2005). Mode of questionnaire administration can have serious effects on data quality. Journal of Public Health, 27(3), 281–291. https://doi.org/10.1093/pubmed/fdi031
9 Loewe, Stacy B. Ehrlich, Sarah Kabourek, Andrew Schaper, Kyle DeMeo Cook, Christina Padilla, Mitchell R. Barrows, Sara Amadon, Tamara Halle, Kristie Kauerz, Cristina Carrazza, Gretchen Streett, Sarah Her, Lekha Venkataraman (2022). Design Options for Head Start to Kindergarten Transitions Descriptive Study, OPRE Report #2022-203, Washington, DC: Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
10 Barrows, Mitchell R., Molly Gordon, Stacy B. Ehrlich Loewe, Carol Hafford, Kyle DeMeo Cook (2023). Systems-Level Strategies to Facilitate Kindergarten Transitions: Key Study Findings and Examples from Case Studies of Head Start & K-12 Partnerships, OPRE Report # 2023-233, Washington, DC: Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
11 Examples of sensitive topics include (but not limited to): social security number; sex behavior and attitudes; illegal, anti-social, self-incriminating and demeaning behavior; critical appraisals of other individuals with whom respondents have close relationships, e.g., family, pupil-teacher, employee-supervisor; mental and psychological problems potentially embarrassing to respondents; religion and indicators of religion; community activities which indicate political affiliation and attitudes; legally recognized privileged and analogous relationships, such as those of lawyers, physicians and ministers; records describing how an individual exercises rights guaranteed by the First Amendment; receipt of economic assistance from the government (e.g., unemployment or WIC or SNAP); immigration/citizenship status.
12 The number of respondents (total over request period) takes into account the highest possible number of respondents completing the survey.
| File Type | application/vnd.openxmlformats-officedocument.wordprocessingml.document |
| Author | De Frias, Anayma (ACF) |
| File Modified | 0000-00-00 |
| File Created | 2026-01-31 |