Early Head Start (EHS) is a comprehensive, two-generation program providing intensive services from before birth to age 3 to promote improved outcomes in children's development, family development, staff development, and community development. The second of a 3-volume series designed to share the experiences of the 17 EHS programs participating in the Early Head Start National Research and Evaluation Project, this report describes the Early Head Start program and its national evaluation, and presents in-depth profiles of each of the participating research programs. Information for the profiles was obtained through two rounds of site visits conducted in Fall 1996 and Fall 1997. The programs participating in the national evaluation represent diversity in location, rural-urban setting, client population, and service delivery approach. There are 4 center-based programs, 8 home-based programs, and 5 mixed-approach programs profiled in this report. The profiles describe each programs' enrollment, recruitment procedures, the context in which the program operates, the services offered in each program area (child development, family development, community building), continuous program improvement efforts, and local research studies. Contact information for the program directors and local researchers is also provided. The profiles are grouped according to program approach as of Fall 1997 and presented in alphabetical order by state within each group. (KB)