Boulder County Head Start Division Manager Akane Ogren told the Board of County Commissioners on July 31 that the program has filled leadership positions, closed outstanding corrective actions and expects to be fully enrolled by Aug. 18 for the 2025–26 school year.

Ogren said the program hired three center directors, each with at least 10 years of Head Start leadership or coaching experience, and three lead teachers. She told commissioners the health services coordinator role will begin Aug. 11; that position consolidates the early childhood mental health consultant and the health/safety/nutrition coordinator roles. Ogren said the consolidation was prompted in part by "a 50% reduction in Buell Foundation funding for the ECMHC position" and by alignment with Office of Head Start guidance on holistic well-being.

The report to commissioners included enrollment and monitoring updates. Ogren said pre-enrollment for the coming school year stood at 105 of 110 slots, "with additional enrollments in progress," and that she expected the program to be "fully enrolled by August 18, which is the first day that children are on-site for the school year." She also reported that corrective-action notices dating to 2023 — "2 deficiencies, 5 non compliances, and 1 under enrollment notice," as recorded in the program file — have been corrected and closed, and that the program will "start this next school year with a clean slate."

Commissioners thanked Ogren and Head Start staff for the work addressing the corrective actions and for recruitment efforts. Commissioners also raised concerns about funding continuity and the upcoming federal 2026 competitive grant; Ogren said the division is maintaining frequent contact with the regional Office of Head Start and continuing operations until further notice about grant awards.

No formal action or vote occurred on this item. Commissioners received the monthly report and asked staff to continue grant application work and monitoring as required.

The update included several operational details: classroom staff return next week for pre-service training emphasizing data-driven decision-making, Head Start safety training with regional partners, and a new program slogan and t-shirts for the year. Ogren also noted that leadership returned from summer break on July 28 and that some staff are still on summer schedule.