Important Negotiation Topics

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Once you’ve agreed to partner together, there are many important details to work out. The following topics, while not the only items to discuss, are critical questions that should be part of the negotiation and decision-making in setting up your partnership. These decisions can also be written into your Memorandum of Understanding or contract when you’re ready to put pen to paper.

• How long should the initial lease and renewal terms be?
  Going through this type of negotiation (and re-negotiation once the initial term is up) takes a lot of time and effort. The initial lease will need to strike a difficult balance: It needs to be long enough to make it worth signing in the first place, but it also shouldn’t be so long that it makes it difficult to adopt changes once you know what works and what needs to be improved.

• Who will cover the running costs of the physical space?
  Maintaining a building takes effort and money to cover work such as janitorial services, electric and water bills, phone and internet, and security. You’ll need to work out what these costs are, as well as whether Head Start should sign up for and manage these services individually, or if it is best to pay a nominal “rent” each month to the college to cover these services in their existing contracts.

• Who will have access to the physical space?
  What security policies are in place to control who has access to the child care center? Will fobs or key cards be used? How will drop off and pick up be managed for adults coming in and out of the center with children? What are the campus standards and how do they align with Head Start requirements?

• How will you address families who are not eligible for Head Start? How about families from the nearby community not involved with the college directly?
  There is no right answer when it comes to these questions, but they will be important to address.
  
  Eligibility: Head Start has strict eligibility guidelines, and not all families involved with the community college (including students, faculty, and staff members) will be eligible. Is it important and/or possible to blend and braid other funding streams, including private pay, to serve these families? Further, which categories of students does the college want to prioritize and how many seats would it like to hold for each group of priority students?
  
  Prioritization: Head Start programs set prioritization (or ‘selection’) criteria for when there is more demand for slots than the program has available. Is it important to hold space for or prioritize families being served by the campus? What about community members not involved with the college? Will any families at existing centers be asked to relocate along with the program?

• What will the center’s operating hours and calendar schedule be?
  Head Start programs have flexibility around what their operating hours are and what their calendar schedule is, but may already be intentionally aligned with other local organizations, such as public school districts. What are the operating hours that would best serve the families who will use the on-campus center? How important is it for this center’s hours to align with the college’s hours versus the hours of the program’s other locations? What is the college’s academic calendar? How important is it for the on-campus center’s calendar to align with the college’s calendar versus the calendar of the program’s other locations? Are there before-school or after-school hours or non-program-days that can be covered by another entity on campus for when there is any misalignment and families still need child care?

• How do service areas compare, and how will you treat any mismatches?
  Both your organizations have designated service (or “catchment”) areas, and these are not necessarily going to align perfectly, or even well. You’ll need to examine specifically which areas each organization is supposed to serve and where there is a significant mismatch. One possible solution is for the Head Start program to set up a reciprocal agreement with their neighboring programs allowing for children to be served on campus when it is in the best interest of the family. The college can consider a tuition discount for students outside their service district who are enrolled in the Head Start program.

• If any of the college staff are unionized, how will this impact the partnership?
  For example, if the maintenance staff on campus are union workers, there may be specific protocols that need to be followed if the Head Start needs electric or plumbing work done in the center. You’ll need to review any and all unions that are applicable on campus and determine any protocols or procedures that need to be in place accordingly. 

• What are each organization's procurement procedures and when is each applicable? 
  Both of your organizations likely have procurement procedures already in place, and one set of policies may be more difficult or slow to work through than the other. Compare policies and determine which are applicable in which scenarios. If the college has a lot of red tape, it may be easiest for the Head Start program to make certain purchases or pay certain contractors and deduct the cost from any monthly payments rather than go through the college’s payment process. Bringing both fiscal teams together in person may help build relationships and work out any complexities. 

• Will the Head Start program have access to any on-campus facilities outside of the center or classroom space?
  Many colleges have on-campus facilities, such as a gym, library, and parking spaces, that are available to faculty, staff, and/or enrolled students. You should discuss what on-campus facilities exist at the college and what, if any, access Head Start staff, family members, and/or children can have to them.