Public Transit Accessibility (and Burden) of Head Start Centers

Since 1965, Head Start has served approximately 37 million children and families throughout the United States with a “whole child, whole family” approach. Programs address not just a child’s educational needs, but their mental and physical needs as well, and partner with families to enhance their stability in a way that will support children long after they have left the program.

The children and families participating in Head Start are some of our nation’s most vulnerable, and the common community college adage that “most of our students are one flat tire away from dropping out,” applies to the Head Start population as well. And yet, accessibility of Head Start centers varies widely, even when only considering accessibility via public transit.

For this report, the National Head Start Association (NHSA) and the Civic Mapping Initiative (CMI) partnered to conduct a first-of-its-kind analysis of Head Start centers and public transit.