Continuing Education and Training

The SD LEND Program provides a specialized graduate level traineeship which focuses on the interdisciplinary training of future professionals for leadership roles in the provision of health and related services to individuals with neurodevelopmental and related disabilities and their families. As one of 60 LEND Programs nationally funded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB), SD LEND prepares trainees to promote and guide public policy and healthcare practice in efficient, effective, evidence-based, comprehensive, family-centered, and culturally responsive care for children with neurodevelopmental and related disabilities. This is accomplished through a minimum of 360 hours of specialized clinical training, research, didactic education, and leadership development provided to at least 20 trainees per year. SD LEND faculty and trainees represent 14 academic disciplines. SD LEND has successfully implemented a self-advocacy trainee position for individuals with developmental disabilities, and was one of the first programs in the nation to implement the appointment of parents of children with disabilities as trainees and faculty. Important highlights of the SD LEND Program include the inclusion of Self-Advocates as trainees and faculty members; emphasis on family-centered care with positions for Parent/Family faculty and trainees; Tribal members as faculty members; collaborative-learning-exchange and immersion experiences in Reservation communities with an emphasis on rural and reservation clinical rotations. This highly successful program also includes robust learning activities around emerging issues including autism spectrum disorder, neonatal abstinence syndrome, fetal alcohol spectrum disorders, COVID-19, health disparities, mental health, and Pediatric Audiology focusing on auditory neuroscience and Early Hearing Detection and Intervention (EHDI).

These courses are conducted through collaboration between the Center for Disabilities and the USD School of Education. This program offers the following courses to graduate-level students across disciplines:

SPED 735: Survey of Autism Spectrum Disorder. This course introduces students to the history, characteristics, and theory associated with Autism Spectrum Disorder. Topics include characteristics, early indicators, definitions and diagnosis, etiology and research, neurodiversity, learning, inclusion, alternative interventions, person and family-centered care, and teaming.

SPED 736: Assessment of Autism Spectrum Disorder. This course introduces students to the primary areas of assessment that must be considered for an individual with an Autism Spectrum Disorder. Interdisciplinary approaches and a differential diagnostic process is provided.

SPED 737: Educating Students with Autism Spectrum Disorder. This course introduces students to the primary areas that must be considered and focused on when planning educational programs for individuals with an Autism Spectrum Disorder. Topics include functional and spontaneous communication, social communication and social skills, play/leisure, development of cognitive skills, strategies for dealing with challenging or problem behaviors, functional academic skills, and transitioning to adult-based services.

This program is a graduate-level certification track in Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA). This program was established to provide a pathway for graduate students and master’s level professionals to obtain Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA) certification. This program was designed and administered by the Center for Disabilities in collaboration with the USD School of Health Science Department of Public Health and Health Sciences and LifeScape, a children’s hospital, special school, and community support provider agency organization that serves children and adults with disabilities. Professionals certified at the BCBA level are independent practitioners who provide ABA services. ABA is an evidence-based practice that focuses on assessing the environmental influences on behavior, assessment-based intervention, and data-driven decision making. ABA has been used to address the behavioral needs of individuals in multiple areas, including general and special education, organizational management and safety, gerontology, and many more. ABA is best known as being the leading evidence-based treatment approach for autism and other developmental disabilities. The seven-course sequence totaling 21 credits meets the Verification Course Sequence (VCS) standards as set by the Association for Behavior Analysis International (ABAI).

Become a leader in an educational or behavioral health settings where behavior analysts support individuals of all ages and are key interdisciplinary members that work alongside educators or other related health providers.

To learn more and/or to apply, click here.

In collaboration with the South Dakota Department of Education, the Center for Disabilities annually prepares at least 50 professionals from South Dakota school districts and educational cooperatives to administer comprehensive autism spectrum disorder (ASD) evaluations. These trainings include a three-day workshop on how to utilize the ADOS-2 assessment tool, obtaining a developmental and clinical history specific to ASD, integrating other assessment tools into the evaluation process, how to effectively conduct behavioral observations, reach consensus on classification by utilizing the DSM-5 criteria, synthesizing evaluation results into a written report format, and communicating results with families. Additional efforts to increase the sustainability of the ASD evaluation teams, as well as provide a community of practice for evaluation teams to turn to for support and feedback are offered. A Level 2 portion was developed, which allowed for participants to watch practice videos, engage in discussion, and receive ongoing support from instructors and colleagues.

The SD DeafBlind Project offers a four-course series for three credits each to professionals across the nation. This one-of-a-kind program provides unique and evidence-based training, education, and best-practice classroom strategies for students with dual sensory loss and high-intensity support needs. Courses offered include: An Introduction to DeafBlindness; DeafBlindness and Communication Strategies; DeafBlindness and Assessment and Instructional Planning; and Life Planning for Success: DeafBlind Strategies.

It can be difficult to find training, education and best practice classroom strategies for students who have dual sensory loss and high intensity support needs. This online professional development courses for teachers and related service providers are being offered. There will be options for continuing education hours and three graduate credits per course. Coursework will include content from the online modules made available from the National Center on DeafBlindness (Open Hands, Open Access), which have been modified to ensure alignment with CEC competencies for educators, resulting in some new content and assignments.

Each course consists of a 14-week semester, approximately three of online work per week and synchronous online meetings. Although the information is geared toward DeafBlindness, much of what is learned can be applied to students with severe disabilities/complex needs. This training is available for both in-state and out-of-state participants.

For additional information regarding course content and registration, check us out on Eventbrite.

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Course 1: An Introduction to DeafBlindness

This first course will provide foundational knowledge of deafblindness and the impact of hearing and vision loss on learning and communication, as well as key evidence-based instructional strategies for supporting those with deafblindness. This course includes content from the following NCDB Open Hands, Open Access Modules: Overview of DeafBlindness, The Sensory System, the Brain and Learning, Building Trusted Relationships, Touch for Connection and Learning, Maximizing Vision and Hearing, The Role of the Intervener and Intervener Strategies.

Course 2: DeafBlindness: Communication Strategies

The key principle of this course is that all students communicate. This course includes content from the following NCDB Open Hands, Open Access Modules: Touch for Connection and Communication, Understanding Communication Principles, Emergent Communication, Progressing from Non-symbolic to Symbolic Communication & Complex Language, Introduction to Sign Language & Braille, Concept Development and Responsive Environments and Calendars. Here you will learn about the importance of touch in communicating with individuals with deafblindness and how to progress from non-symbolic to symbolic communication

Course 3: DeafBlindness: Assessment and Instructional Planning

The course includes an overview of assessment strategies, assessment instruments, and the development of specific and measurable IEP goals based on authentic assessment data. In addition, the course includes content from the following NCDB Open Hands, Open Access Modules: Availability for Learning, Routines for Participation and Learning, Behavior and Environmental Supports, and Introduction to Orientation and Mobility.

Course 4: Life Planning for Success: DeafBlind Strategies

The course provides an overview of curricular options and instructional strategies to promote student success in school and beyond, and to ensure that all students successfully transition from school to adulthood. The course includes content from the following NCDB Open Hands, Open Access Modules: Transition to Adulthood and Community Living, Self-Determination, Social Skills and Peer Relationships, Sexuality and Collaborative Teaming and Family Partnerships. The course focuses on fully integrating the module content above to prepare students who are deafblind to be actively engaged in communities of their choice.

While these courses are not required to be completed sequentially, it will be beneficial to have foundational knowledge in the content areas included in each of the courses prior to enrolling in courses 2 & 3 (some exceptions may apply).

Who should join us?

• Any certified educators serving students birth through 21. Families are also welcome to join

Contact

Amy Scepaniak

Amy.Scepaniak@usd.edu DeafBlind Program Coordinator

Brandy Sebera

Brandy.Sebera@usd.edu DeafBlind Program Specialist

These courses were established through collaboration between the Center for Disabilities and the USD School of Health Sciences and is offered to students from any school or program across the university. Center for Disabilities faculty teach the following courses:

HSC 285: History and Introduction to Disability

This course provides an overview of the field of disability including historical and legislative foundations, service delivery system roles and practices, and contemporary issues impacting individuals and their families. Different disability characteristics and implications for the provision of supports and services aimed at education, employment, independent living, and quality of life outcomes are covered, and a variety of classroom and community-based learning experiences are offered.

HSC 340: Interdisciplinary Approaches to Person-Centered Care

This course examines interprofessional teamwork which characterizes relationships between professions when providing services and supports to individuals with disabilities and their families. Levels of cooperation, coordination, and collaboration among the professions working across various agencies and facilities are provided, along with community-based learning opportunities discussed.

This four-course series is offered through a partnership with the South Dakota Department of Education. The focus of these courses is to promote a better understanding of how trauma and significant adverse childhood experiences can impact the development of a child’s brain and body, and how educators can implement responsive social-emotional learning practices using a school-wide approach to build capacity and skills in support of students. The courses provide an overview of mental health and the intersection of developmental disabilities, incorporating the social-emotional learning framework, teaching through a trauma-informed lens, and a variety of other evidence-based practices. Each of the four courses are offered for three graduate credits.

Project ECHO (Extension for Community Health Outcomes) is a revolutionary guided-practice model that reduces health disparities in under-served and remote areas of the state, nation, and world. Through innovative telementoring, the ECHO model uses a hub-and-spoke knowledge-sharing approach where expert teams lead virtual clinics, amplifying the capacity for providers to deliver best-in-practice care to the underserved in their own communities. The Center for Disabilities is developing several initiatives and focus areas utilizing the ECHO model.

The Center for Disabilities has joined with other UCEDD’s including the Wyoming Institute for Disabilities, the Nisonger Center at The Ohio State University and the University of Cincinnati Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities to implement Project SCOPE: Supporting Children of the Opioid Epidemic, which is a national training initiative. Project SCOPE was developed in 2018 and uses the Project ECHO platform. The purpose of this initiative is to train interdisciplinary teams on emerging knowledge and evidence-based practices in screening, monitoring and interdisciplinary care for infants, children and families impacted by Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome (NAS), Neonatal Opioid Withdrawal Syndrome (NOWS), or who are suspected of being impacted by substance use, trauma, or related. The core curriculum builds nationwide provider capacity and confidence by focusing on current research on brain development, developmental outcomes of prenatal exposure to opioid and other substances, trauma-informed care, provider secondary trauma stress, and strategies to support caregivers. Additional topics will include training focused on the impact of childhood trauma, medication-assisted treatment for addiction, developmental outcomes, family supports and service coordination. Center for Disabilities faculty and trainees are infused into this program as hub team members, expert presenters, and participants. Other participants include physicians, psychologists, special educators, early interventionists, social workers, counselors, addiction specialists, nurses, administrators, parents, guardians, and recovering mothers, along with other disciplines and students.

The RISE-UP Program provides opportunities for enhanced public health leadership training in maternal and child health, focusing on social determinants of health, elimination of health disparities, and developmental disabilities. Grant funding for this program was awarded to Kennedy Krieger Institute by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to develop a national consortium of institutions and universities that provides undergraduate scholars with three public health leadership experiences: (1) clinical, (2) research, and (3) community engagement and advocacy. The purpose of this program is to enhance the pursuit of careers in research, public health, and the field of maternal and child health for college students from underrepresented populations. This program was developed in partnership with several UCEDDs including the Kennedy Krieger Institute, the Center for Disabilities, and the University of California, Davis (UC-Davis) MIND Institute. The Kennedy-Krieger Institute, SD LEND, and UC-Davis centers are responsible for the recruitment of students and providing summer training experiences. Each year, a minimum of 10 students participate in the Center for Disabilities site, and are placed across health, educational, clinical, research, public policy/advocacy, and community-based organizations in South Dakota. The Center for Disabilities serves as the primary recruitment site for Native American students; however, participants in the program may come from any underserved population.

Learn More and Apply

Participating Sites

Training takes place at one of three locations:

• Kennedy Krieger Institute, with assistance from Johns Hopkins University
• University of Southern California, with assistance from California State University Los Angeles and the Children's Hospital of Los Angeles
• The University of South Dakota, with assistance from the Sanford School of Medicine

Program Tracks

• Clinical/Community: Students rotate through clinical experiences provided by maternal and child health disciplines. Students will gain experience in providing community-based healthcare and community support systems for under-served groups.
• Leadership and Policy: Students work with industry professionals to create and evaluate health care and disability legislation, regulations and practice guidelines.
• Research: Students work with research mentors on public health, prevention, treatment and epidemiological studies. Students receive training in community-based participatory research, which engages under-served communities.

Program Benefits

Our program allows students to select one or more of the three training tracks that best meet their needs. They will work with experts and meet other students with similar career interests. They will also:

• Attend a week-long public health orientation at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
• Attend a comprehensive orientation at Kennedy Krieger
• Receive an American Public Health Association membership
• Present health and research information to colleagues and mentors
• Participate in distance learning seminars offered throughout the year

Program participants will receive a paid stipend, including transportation and housing.

RISE-UP Success

• More than 90 percent of RISE-UP students who graduated from college or graduate school are working, seeking employment or continuing their education in public health
• 89 percent of abstracts submitted to national meetings were accepted. RISE-UP is a collaboration of Kennedy Krieger Institute and the Maternal and Child Health Bureau and is funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

RISE-UP is a collaboration of Kennedy Krieger Institute and the Maternal and Child Health Bureau and is funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The annual South Dakota Special Education Conference is hosted by the Center for Disabilities in collaboration with the South Dakota Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs. This event provides a unique experience to gather with South Dakota educators, related service providers, and parents to learn about evidence-based innovations, educational trends leading toward best practices and provide practical solutions for educational settings. Over 400 participants attend this event each year.

In partnership with the South Dakota Department of Human Services, the South Dakota Developmental Disabilities Network, and over a dozen additional state and community agencies and organizations host the South Dakota Conference on Developmental Disabilities. Participants include people with developmental disabilities, their families, and professionals from disciplines across healthcare, human services, mental health, education, vocational rehabilitation, and direct service professionals, among others. While this event takes a conference form, this robust collaboration of planning partners offers a platform to develop relationships and collaborations, and to discover new approaches to solve complex issues. This convening of people and organizations from a broad range of perspectives coming together to partner on these issues has been powerful, and has focused on topics and issues that our stakeholders have communicated are critical. Key areas including mental health, trauma-informed care, Native American health and disability issues, technology, leadership development and self-advocacy, along with many other important topics have been featured. Over 200 participants attend this event this year.