The first of the Tribal Consultation Reports was released last week. The following is the message from Pat Brown:

December 9, 2008

Dear Tribal Consultation Participant:

On behalf of the Office of Head Start, I would like to thank you again for joining us for
the Tribal Consultation held in Kansas City. We appreciate the effort you made to attend.
More important, we are grateful for the feedback and recommendations you shared with us
on ways in which the Office of Head Start might better meet the needs of American Indian
and Alaska Native children and families.

Attached is a summary report on the consultation session. This report, and those from the
other Tribal Consultation sessions, will soon be available on the Early Childhood Learning
and Knowledge Center (ECLKC) at http://eclkc.ohs.acf.hhs.gov/hslc.

As we continue to move forward in responding to the Improving Head Start for School
Readiness Act of 2007, we welcome your continued involvement in this process. In
addition to the annual consultation sessions, I encourage you to communicate your
successes, suggestions, and concerns as they occur.

Our new Regional Program Manager for the American Indian and Alaska Native Head
Start programs is Nina McFadden. She can be reached at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or
by phone at 202-205-8569. I know she would welcome the opportunity to talk with you
directly as we work together to improve Head Start services to Native children and families.
Wishing you all the best in the coming new year,

Sincerely,

Patricia E. Brown
Acting Director
Office of Head Start