Head start

The Department of Health and Human Services Administration for Children and Families awarded Quad-Area Community Action Agency Inc. $3.187 million on December 1, 2025, under the Head Start program (CFDA 93.600), a five-year project grant through November 30, 2030.

The award funds comprehensive early childhood education, health, nutrition, and family engagement services to low-income families in Louisiana. Quad-Area Community Action Agency Inc., a Louisiana-based nonprofit headquartered in Hammond, delivers these services across the state's rural areas as a prime grant recipient with no federal contracts in its portfolio.

Head Start promotes school readiness by enhancing the cognitive, physical, behavioral, and social-emotional development of children through educational, health, nutritional, social, and other services. Local Head Start programs operate nationwide through approximately 1,600 agencies that tailor federal programming to local family needs. Awards are made for five-year periods; recipients meeting performance criteria remain eligible for renewal continuations, while those failing to meet criteria trigger competition for service area funding. The Office of Head Start issues awards through ten regional offices responsible for geographic territories, with the Central Office handling awards to American Indian, Alaska Native, and Migrant and Seasonal programs.