Lawmakers are hailing a long-awaited measure to renew the federal Head Start preschool program as an example of the kind of legislation that can emerge from bipartisan consensus and compromise. The bill, approved overwhelmingly by both the House and the Senate on Nov. 14, seeks to address concerns about mismanagement in some local Head Start programs by bolstering accountability requirements for grantees, improve program quality in part by requiring more teachers to get bachelor's degrees, and expand eligibility for the program by raising household income limits. President Bush and some GOP leaders in Congress initially envisioned a very different direction for the 42-year-old program, which serves more than 900,000 children nationwide. They wanted to create a block-grant pilot project that would have shifted much of the authority over Head Start program funds to the states. They also sought to permit faith-based agencies running Head Start programs to take Head Start job applicants' religion into account. Those ideas were ultimately rejected in Congress. The House passed a compromise agreed upon by a committee of House and Senate conferees by a vote of 381-36. The Senate approved the same measure a few hours later by a vote of 95-0. President Bush was expected to sign the bill despite reports that he has reservations about the failure to include the religious provision. Head Start advocates were pleased with the outcome.