NHSA Reacts to GAO Report on Interim Management in Head Start

Washington, D.C.—On January 21, 2025, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a report outlining recommendations for improving the oversight of interim management of Head Start grants. The GAO’s report focused on how the Office of Head Start (OHS) monitors interim grant management and provided a series of recommendations for how to improve oversight during these rare instances.

Interim management is a rare occurrence¹ when a Head Start grant recipient either relinquishes or loses their grant due to serious health and safety issues, inadequate governance, or fiscal malfeasance identified in the Head Start monitoring process. It only occurs in extreme and highly volatile circumstances and is meant to be a temporary, emergency intervention designed to help minimize disruptions of services for children and families.

Interim management organizations’ charge is to stabilize the program and get it back to providing services to children and families as quickly as possible. After services have been re-activated, OHS must then transition the grant to a permanent community-based organization through an open competition process.

The following quote can be attributed to NHSA’s Executive Director Yasmina Vinci:

“The Head Start community has never shied away from accountability and effective oversight as we believe our children, our families, our communities, and the American taxpayer deserve no less. Interim management is an unfortunate, but necessary component of Head Start’s extensive and unparalleled oversight system. And it too needs effective oversight to ensure all children are safe and all federal resources are accounted for.

In addition to taking seriously the findings and recommendations the GAO proposed, we urge the Office of Head Start to make it a requirement that they communicate with the appropriate congressional representatives anytime a program is placed in interim management. This way, they can work with Congress and the community to ensure that every child Head Start serves has access to a safe and healthy environment where they can develop, grow, and reach their fullest potential.”

¹ Per the GAO report, there have been 33 grants out of roughly 1600 grant recipients placed into interim management between the 2017-2018 and 2022-2023 program years. Twenty-six of those 33 were due to relinquishments, while seven were due to grant revocation by OHS.