The Annual Report: Connecting to Your Community Through Storytelling and Reporting

Head Start Program Performance Standards require that programs must disseminate an annual report each fiscal year that complies with section 644(a)(2) of the Head Start Act and includes a summary of the program’s most recent community assessment. An annual report can be a powerful tool to communicate about the progress, outcomes, and financial status of your program.Sec. 644 Administrative Requirements and Standards of the Head Start Act requires that the annual report include the following information from the most recently concluded fiscal year. As you create your report, use this as a list to check for compliance. You can certainly include more information; this is the minimum.

(A) The total amount of public and private funds received and the amount from each source.(B) An explanation of budgetary expenditures and proposed budget for the fiscal year.(C) The total number of children and families served, the average monthly enrollment (as a percentage of funded enrollment), and the percentage of eligible children served.(D) The results of the most recent review by the Secretary and the financial audit.(E) The percentage of enrolled children that received medical and dental exams.(F) Information about parent involvement activities.(G) The agency's efforts to prepare children for kindergarten.(H) Any other information required by the Secretary.

Remember to include data in the aggregate, but no data that can be tied to a specific person. This is an important consideration for compliance with the Head Start Act, which specifies that personally identifiable information in the annual report is not allowable.Now that we’ve gotten the statutory requirements out of the way, let’s focus how to put the data into context to better connect with your community. At its most basic, an annual report should include:

1. Your organization’s mission and value statements;
2. A financial and impact overview (see the checklist above);
3. Highlights of the year;
4. Gratitude;
5. And lastly, a Call to Action.

Let’s take a closer look at the last three items on the list.Highlights of the year. This is your chance to tell your story. You can do this by putting data into context and showing the true impact of your work. This could include compelling stories about program milestones: “This year we launched….” “For the first time, we …” “We accomplished something we have strived for …”Gratitude. Simply put, this means “thank you.” Show your appreciation for and acknowledge the support of families, staff, and community. You can also use this as an opportunity for families and/or staff to share their gratitude for the program. With their permission, you can include personal success stories: “The Head Start program helped my family by…” “My children and I were able to …”Call to Action. Consider your audience. Who are you preparing this annual report for? Of course, one answer is the Office of Head Start. But what about your board members, civic leaders, community partners, donors, and potential partners and donors? What is most interesting or important to them? And what do you want them to do with this information – get more involved, collaborate, volunteer, donate, learn more? This is your Call to Action. “Find out more…” “Contact us for ...” “Join us for …” “We welcome you to …”With these concepts and guidance from the Head Start Act, your annual report will be sure to meet the statutory requirements while connecting with your community.We encourage you to explore Foundations for Families’ Consulting Services. If your program needs assistance with its annual report, please be in touch. Our team of consultants will work with your program to determine a process, timeline, and approach that is the best fit for your needs.Thank you.Thank you for reading our blog. We encourage you to use our blog posts for thought, integration, and sharing. When using or sharing content from blog posts, please attribute the original content to Foundations for Families.