Texas Even Start Administrative Manual

September 2010
(Published June 2004, Revised January, September, November 2008, May, September 2010)

Even Start Guidance

---

Local Administration (cont'd)

Participant Eligibility

To be eligible for Even Start, a family that qualifies as “most-in-need” (Program Element section, Program Element #1) must have at least one eligible parent and one eligible child, as described below, participating together. (Section 1236)

Parents

The definition of “parent” includes, in addition to a biological or adoptive parent, a legal guardian or other person standing “in loco parentis.” Generally, “in loco parentis” means a person acting in place of a parent and may include a person such as a grandparent or stepparent with whom the child lives, or a person legally responsible for the child’s welfare. (Section 9101(31))

To be eligible for Even Start, an adult must be the “parent” of an eligible child, and either be:

• (1) eligible for participation in adult education and literacy activities under the Adult Education and Family Literacy Act;
• (2) within the State’s compulsory school attendance age range, so long as an LEA provides or ensures the availability of the basic education component required under this part; or
• (3) attending secondary school.

(Section 1236(a)(1))

Eligible participants under the Adult Education and Family Literacy Act are individuals:

• (1) who have attained 16 years of age;
• (2) who are not enrolled or required to be enrolled in secondary school under State law; and
• (3) who--
  • (i) lack sufficient mastery of basic educational skills to enable the individuals to function effectively in society;
  • (ii) do not have a secondary school diploma or its recognized equivalent, and have not achieved an equivalent level of education; or
  • (iii) are unable to speak, read, or write the English language. (Section 203(1) of the Adult Education and Family Literacy Act, 20 U.S.C.
  9202(1))

 

Children

Children at birth through age seven are eligible to participate in Even Start if their parent or parents are eligible for and participating in Even Start services. (Section 1236(a)(2))

Children over the age of seven also are eligible to participate in Even Start with an eligible parent if the local project collaborates with a program under Title I, Part A of ESEA, and Title I, Part A funds contribute to the cost of providing Even Start program services to those children. Although the participation of families with children over the age of seven is now permissible, the focus of a local program must continue to remain on families with young children. (See the Title I, Part A Collaboration section of this guidance for further information.)

Parents or Children in Private Schools

The equitable participation provisions, applicable to Even Start for the first time under NCLB, are found in sections 9501-9504. These provisions require recipients of Federal funds to provide eligible school-age children who are enrolled in private elementary and secondary schools, and their teachers or other educational personnel, educational services and benefits under those programs on an equitable basis. Eligible entities must provide the equitable services after timely and meaningful consultation with the appropriate private school officials. The services must be provided by the eligible entity or through a contractor that is independent of any private school or religious organization.

This means that Even Start projects must consult with private school officials to determine how to ensure that private school students (elementary and secondary) are given the same opportunity to participate in the Even Start project as their public school counterparts. (See the Parents and Children sections of this guidance above for further information on who is eligible for Even Start, whether they attend public or private schools.) Specifically, the eligible entity must consult with private school officials to determine how to provide equitable Even Start services to eligible families in Even Start that have children enrolled in private elementary schools or parents enrolled in private secondary schools.

Consultation between public and private school officials must occur before any decision is made that could affect the ability of private school families to participate (that is, as the project is being designed and before the application is submitted to the subgrant competition) and should continue throughout the implementation and assessment of activities. Consultation generally must include discussions on such issues as: how the private school families’ needs will be identified; what services will be offered; how and where the services will be offered and provided; who will provide the services; how the services will be assessed and how the results of assessments will be used to improve those services; the amount of funds available for services; the size and scope of services to be provided; and how and when the LEA/agency will make decisions about the delivery of services. The Even Start services for eligible private school students must be comparable to the services for their public school counterparts in terms of quality, scope, and opportunity for participation. In addition, total program expenditures for services and benefits for participating elementary and secondary private school students must be equal (taking into account the relative numbers of those private and public school students participating in the Even Start program and their needs) to the expenditures for participating elementary and secondary public school students.

Other Family Members

Family members of eligible participants may participate in activities and services provided by an Even Start project, when appropriate, to serve the purposes of the program. For example, if the participation of an older sibling would enhance learning for the participating parent and child, then the older sibling may participate in appropriate Even Start activities such as home-based interactive literacy activities between parents and their children.

Eligible Participants Enrolled in Other Programs

So long as participating families meet the Even Start eligibility requirements described in section 1236, and qualify as most in need of Even Start services, they may participate in the program. Even Start is designed to build on, rather than duplicate, already existing high-quality community resources. Therefore, a child’s enrollment in a high-quality Head Start program or, for school-age children, enrollment in a high-quality, regular school program, could satisfy the required early childhood education component of Even Start. Likewise, a parent’s enrollment in a high-quality, adult basic education program could fulfill the adult education component of the Even Start program. In both examples, the Even Start project should provide supplemental learning opportunities to reinforce what is being taught through its collaborators and partners. The project's responsibility is to ensure the family receives all four core components at high enough levels of quality, either through a collaborator or directly from the project, in order for families to make literacy achievement gains.

Migrant and Indian Families

Eligible migrant and Indian families in need of family literacy services may participate like any other family in an Even Start project under the State-administered program. Organizations serving migrant families or Indian tribes or tribal organizations may also apply to SEAs for subgrants in partnership with an LEA, if the organizations qualify as one of the required entities under section 1232(e)(1)(B).

In addition, migrant and Indian families may participate in programs funded through the Federal set-aside programs for migrant and federally recognized Indian tribes and tribal organizations. For each fiscal year in which the appropriation is greater than $200 million, the Secretary must reserve six percent of the funds appropriated for the Even Start program (if the appropriation is $200 million or less, five percent of such amount) for grants to projects serving migrant families, the outlying areas, and federally recognized Indian tribes and tribal organizations. (Section 1232(a)(1)) However, if the same migrant or Indian tribe or tribal organization receives both a grant from the Secretary and a subgrant from the SEA for an Even Start project, the funds may not be used for duplicative purposes (that is, the funds may not be used to provide the same services to the same families). (EDGAR, sections 75.531 and 76.760)

Continuing Family Eligibility

Families generally may participate in Even Start Family Literacy program services until all family members become ineligible for participation. In the case of families who enter the program with children ages birth through seven, when the parent has achieved his or her educational goals, the family continues to be eligible until all children in the family reach age eight. In contrast, if all children in a family have reached the age of eight and the participating parent has not achieved his or her educational goals, the family continues to be eligible for two more years until the youngest participating child is 10 years old or until the parent is no longer eligible for adult education services under the Adult Education and Family Literacy Act, whichever occurs earlier. In both situations, if a family chooses to continue participating in Even Start under the provisions for continuing family eligibility, the family must participate in all remaining appropriate Even Start services (parenting education, interactive parent and child literacy activities, home visits) until the family exits the program. (Section 1236(b)(2))

If the Even Start program collaborates with a Title I, Part A program and Part A contributes to paying the cost of the Even Start program, families are eligible and may participate in the Even Start program until the parent reaches his or her educational goals, regardless of the age of the child. However, the focus of the local program must continue to remain on serving families with young children. Family ineligibility in this situation occurs when the parent attains his or her educational goals. (Section 1236(b)(3) and the Title I, Part A Collaboration section of this guidance.)

Temporary Absence From the Project

Even Start is unique in that it is designed as a family literacy program, in which the eligibility of parents and children is interdependent. (Section 1236) To be eligible, at least one parent and one or more eligible children must participate together in an Even Start project. However, should a child or parent be temporarily absent due to extenuating circumstances, the other eligible family members may continue to receive Even Start services.

---

Previous | Next | Table of Contents