From Head Start Child to CEO:
Ciara Haynes Saunders Comes Full Circle
When Ciara Haynes Saunders walks into a Head Start classroom today, she sees more than children learning their ABCs. She sees herself.
Long before she became President and Chief Executive Officer of Quality Care Services, Saunders was a little girl attending Project Head Start in Gouldtown, New Jersey. Like many of the children served through Head Start, she was given an opportunity to learn, grow, and dream in an environment where caring educators believed in her potential.
Today, that little girl has come full circle.
After 17 years of dedicated leadership in Head Start, Saunders now leads the very type of organization that helped shape her own future. Her appointment as President and CEO of Quality Care Services is more than a professional milestone. It is a powerful reminder of what is possible when communities invest in young children and their families.
"My story is proof that Head Start changes lives," Saunders said. "I am not just leading this mission. I lived it. I know firsthand how one opportunity, one caring teacher, and one supportive program can change the course of a child's life."
Throughout her career, Saunders has built a reputation for collaborative leadership, program excellence, and an unwavering commitment to children and families. She earned both her Bachelor of Social Work and Master of Social Work degrees from Delaware State University and has spent nearly two decades leading Head Start programs, strengthening organizational systems, mentoring future leaders, and improving services for children across New Jersey.
Her leadership extends beyond the organizations she has served. Saunders has chaired the New Jersey Head Start Association Conference for the past ten years and currently serves as Chair of the Professional Development Committee for the Region II Head Start Conference, helping shape leadership development and professional learning for Head Start professionals throughout the region.
As she begins her new role, Saunders says her first priority is listening.
"I want to hear from our teachers, our family advocates, our support staff, our parents, our community partners, and our Board of Directors," she said. "The strongest organizations are built by listening, learning, and working together. My goal is to build on the excellent work already happening while creating new opportunities for innovation and growth."
Saunders believes Head Start is about much more than preparing children for kindergarten. It is about strengthening families, supporting parents, improving health outcomes, and building stronger communities.
"As a first generation college graduate who once sat in a Head Start classroom, I hope every child we serve understands that their dreams are possible," Saunders said. "No matter where they begin, their future has no limits."
She also hopes her own journey inspires families to see the lasting impact of early childhood education.
"There may be a future teacher, doctor, entrepreneur, social worker, or CEO sitting in one of our classrooms today," she said. "Our responsibility is to nurture their potential and remind them that anything is possible."
For Saunders, returning to Head Start as President and CEO is both humbling and deeply personal.
"The little girl who walked into Project Head Start in Gouldtown could never have imagined this moment," she said. "I carry that little girl with me every day because she reminds me why this work matters. Every decision we make has the potential to change a child's life, just as Head Start changed mine."
As Quality Care Services begins a new chapter under Saunders' leadership, her vision is rooted in the same values that first welcomed her into a Head Start classroom many years ago: opportunity, compassion, excellence, and hope.
For Saunders, leading Quality Care Services is more than a career achievement. It is the opportunity to give back to the program that first believed in her and to ensure that the next generation of children and families has every opportunity to succeed.