Workers are very often overloaded with cases, so the primary consideration was to ensure that the self-assesment be quick to complete and simple to navigate. Without this immediate perception, participation would surely suffer.

When the user first opens the book, three large, bold tabs present the three steps to self-assessment.

In order to track progress, we designed a "timeline" across the top of each page that highlights each stage as they progress. Each stage is represented by a table with criteria and three possible stages of progress. The worker simply checks the boxes that most closely describe where they are with their particular program.

Participation in this initiative has far exceeded expectations (well over 300%) and it has become the blueprint for other offices of Head Start. The design has also been adopted as the brand identity for future publications that are developed by the Office of Parent, Family, and Community Engagement.