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ExpectMore.govExpectMore.gov home pageEXPECT FEDERAL PROGRAMS TO PERFORM WELL, AND BETTER EVERY YEAR.
 
Program Assessment

Program

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Even Start

The purpose of the Even Start program is to break the cycle of poverty and illiteracy for low-income families. Even Start integrates early childhood education, adult literacy, and parenting education into a unified family literacy program.

Rating

What This Rating Means

NOT PERFORMING
Ineffective

Programs receiving this rating are not using your tax dollars effectively. Ineffective programs have been unable to achieve results due to a lack of clarity regarding the program's purpose or goals, poor management, or some other significant weakness.
  • National evaluations show the program to have no impact. The Department of Education has conducted three major evaluations of this program, two of which included a small experimental design. None of the studies showed that Even Start children and parents showed greater educational gains than those not receiving Even Start services.
  • The program has an extensive data system in place for tracking information on grantees. However, State and local data often measure outputs, such as hours of service provided, rather than outcomes, such as whether children read on grade level.
  • While performance measurement has been improved to focus on improving student reading or reading readiness, the program has not made progress in achieving long-term or annual targets for the measure.

Improvement Plan

About Improvement Plans

We are taking the following actions to improve the performance of the program:

  • Working with Congress to eliminate funding for the program due to program ineffectiveness, and redirecting funding to other education programs.
  • Supporting grantees in the delivery of high-quality services through monitoring and technical assistance activities.

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