Head Start

What Head Start does

National Centers for Learning Excellence, Inc., operating as Head Start, is a Wisconsin-based nonprofit organization that has delivered federally-funded Head Start and Early Head Start programs since 1966. It serves income-eligible families in Waukesha and Washington counties through two core programs: a center-based Head Start preschool for children ages 3-5, and a home-based Early Head Start program for pregnant women and families with children from birth to age 3. Services are comprehensive and free to eligible families, including preschool education with individualized curriculum, health screenings, nutrition services, family engagement, and transportation.

The organization's revenue model rests entirely on federal grants from the Office of Head Start within the Administration for Children and Families (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services); there are no fees charged to families and no commercial revenue streams. Services are delivered through center-based classrooms, home visits by trained staff (including degreed teachers, pediatric nurses, speech/language pathologists, and bilingual personnel), and outreach via social service referrals. The organization has reportedly served more than 10,000 families cumulatively in Waukesha County since 1966, and currently operates with 11-50 employees across two Wisconsin counties.

There is no proprietary technology infrastructure — no apps, APIs, integrations, or AI components are disclosed; the core "product" is the regulated, human-delivered early childhood service funded by federal appropriations. Recent sector-wide news indicates material operational risk to Head Start providers from federal funding disruptions tied to government shutdowns, and the organization has only a small partnership signal (Oak Hill Children's Center, announced November 2025) as evidence of recent strategic activity. Its operating profile is that of a small, geographically bounded nonprofit grantee with high dependence on a single federal funding source.

Name

Head Start

Legal name

National Centers for Learning Excellence, Inc.

Website

https://waukeshaheadstart.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1966

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Head Start, operated by National Centers for Learning Excellence, Inc., is a Wisconsin nonprofit delivering federally-funded Head Start preschool and Early Head Start home-visit programs free of charge to income-eligible families in Waukesha and Washington counties since 1966.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Early Childhood Education

NAICS

Child Care Services (62441)

SIC

Services-Child Day Care Services (8351)

akta.pro primary industry

Head Start & Public Pre-K Programs (EDACABAK)

akta.pro secondary industry

Early Head Start & Publicly Funded Infant/Toddler Programs (EDACAGAH)

Keywords

• Early childhood education
• Preschool programs
• Family support services
• Early childhood development
• Home-based early learning

Headquarters

HQ city

Waukesha

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Federal Government Funding: Head Start programs are funded through grants from the Office of Head Start within the Administration for Children and Families, a division of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Programs are free for income-eligible families, with no direct revenue from families.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Head Start operates free, federally-funded preschool and early childhood development programs for income-eligible families. The Head Start program delivers center-based preschool education for children ages 3-5, while Early Head Start provides home-based services for pregnant women and children from birth to age 3, including individualized curriculum, health screenings, nutrition, transportation, and family support in Waukesha and Washington counties, Wisconsin.

Product overview

National Centers for Learning Excellence, Inc. operates Head Start and Early Head Start programs in Waukesha and Washington counties, Wisconsin. Head Start is a center-based preschool program for children ages 3-5, while Early Head Start is a home-based program serving pregnant women and families with children from birth to age 3. Together, these programs provide comprehensive early childhood education, health, nutrition, and family support services to income-eligible families at no cost. The organization has served over 10,000 families since 1966.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Head Start A center-based preschool program for children ages 3-5 from income-eligible families in Waukesha County. Each classroom is taught by a degreed teacher using an individualized curriculum based on each child's needs, strengths, and interests. Services include free transportation, nutritionist-planned meals and snacks, health screenings (vision, hearing, height, weight), and family engagement activities such as conferences, field trips, and activity nights.
• Early Head Start A home-based early childhood program serving pregnant women and families with children from birth to age 3 in Waukesha and Washington counties. Trained staff conduct home visits where children are most comfortable, providing infant/toddler playgroups, family resources (videos, DVDs, books on parenting), monthly family gatherings, and parent groups including fathers' groups and groups for pregnant moms. The program partners with Birth to 3 providers for children of all abilities.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 10,000 families served since 1966 in Waukesha County alone
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Oak Hill Children's CenterminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 12 November 2025New partnership announced between Head Start and Oak Hill Children's Center for early childhood services. Details of the partnership collaboration were not specified in the available source.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Broad incumbents

• KinderCare Learning Companies: One of the largest private early childhood education providers in the U.S., operating thousands of center-based programs. Comparable to NCLE in the core deliverable (center-based preschool education) but at vastly greater scale and as a private-pay rather than federally-funded model.
• YMCA of Metropolitan Milwaukee: Operates early childhood learning centers and child care programs in southeastern Wisconsin, overlapping NCLE's service geography. Comparable in delivering center-based preschool services to families in the same regional market.
• Bright Horizons Family Solutions: Large publicly-traded provider of early childhood education and child care services across the U.S. and globally. While for-profit and broader in scope than NCLE, it operates in the same early childhood care category and shares the preschool/daycare delivery model serving working families.

Others

• Child Care Aware of America: National nonprofit supporting the child care sector through training, resources, and parent referrals. Provides ecosystem-level support relevant to NCLE's outreach and quality-improvement efforts.
• Teachstone: Provider of the Classroom Assessment Scoring System (CLASS) used widely in Head Start programs for evaluating teacher-child interactions. Functions as an enabling technology/vendor to Head Start grantees like NCLE.
• National Head Start Association: National membership and advocacy organization representing Head Start programs and the families they serve. Provides policy, training, and grant support infrastructure to grantees including NCLE, making it a direct ecosystem enabler rather than a competitor.

Regional players

• 4C for Children (Community Coordinated Child Care): Regional child care resource and referral agency supporting providers and families in parts of the Midwest. Comparable as a community-based early childhood support organization, though based in Ohio/Kentucky rather than Wisconsin.

Direct peers

• West Bend School District (Head Start Grantee): Operates the Head Start program in Washington County, WI — the same program area where NCLE provides Early Head Start. Both organizations are federally-funded Head Start grantees operating in adjacent Wisconsin geographies under the same regulatory framework.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat2 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/waukeshaheadstart

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Head Start