Internal Review Prompts Head Start Program to Audit All Files.

SAN DIEGO -- San Diego's Head Start program, conducted by Neighborhood House Association (NHA), is undertaking a thorough review of the records of more than 10,000 children and their families to ensure that they meet federal eligibility standards.

"We are carefully reviewing each and every application and verifying that they fall within the established guidelines," said Dr. Howard Carey, President & CEO of Neighborhood House.

Federal regulations generally limit enrollment in the Head start program to families with income below the poverty line. The federal poverty level is currently set at $16,090 for a family of three. Nonetheless, the Head Start program is allowed to have 10 percent of its enrollment with income above the poverty line for the purpose of assuring diversity in its Head Start Centers. NHA currently has 114 Centers that it operates directly and another 27 Centers that are contracted to delegate agencies.

The complete audit of the records of every child enrolled in Head Start was prompted by an internal analysis of about 100 children that raised questions about possible over-enrollment of those above the poverty level. After carefully evaluating the internal analysis, NHA has concluded that it was based on a sampling of children that was not representative of all the children enrolled in the Head Start program. A preliminary check of the complete data file has shown that there may be some 86 students over the 10 percent limitation.

"This would put us at 11.7 percent," said Carey, who added, "Because we are dealing with so many Centers and over 10,000 children and their families, we are doing a total review to assure ourselves and our funding source, the federal government, that we are serving those in need."

"It was our own internal controls that raised this potential issue, and we see it as our duty to follow through with a comprehensive audit," said Carey. He expects the total review to be completed within 30 days.

Head Start celebrated its 40th Anniversary this past week and is considered one of the most successful programs the federal government provides. Its goal - to give low-income children a "head start" on their learning and their physical and emotional development - has been proven in several independent studies.