24:14:12:02. Evaluation and assessment of individual child. The department shall ensure that, subject to obtaining parental consent, each child under the age of three who is referred for evaluation or early intervention services under Part C and who is suspected of having a disability, receives timely, comprehensive, multidisciplinary evaluation of the child in accordance with this chapter unless eligibility is established under § 24:14:12:02.02. If the child is determined eligible, the child shall receive (1) a multidisciplinary assessment of the unique strengths and needs of that child and the identification of services appropriate to meet those needs; (2) a family-directed assessment of the resources, priorities, and concerns of the family; and (3) the identification of the supports and services necessary to enhance the child's family's capacity to meet the developmental needs of that child. The assessments of the child and family may occur simultaneously with the evaluation, if the requirements of this chapter are met.
A service coordinator shall arrange for the evaluation of each child, birth through two years, referred for evaluation. The process shall be conducted by qualified personnel, be based on informed clinical opinion, and include a review of health records.
An evaluation of the child's level of functioning shall be conducted in each of the following developmental areas:
(1) Cognitive development;
(2) Physical development, including fine motor, gross motor, vision, and hearing;
(3) Communication development, including receptive and expressive;
(4) Social or emotional development; and
(5) Adaptive development.
An assessment shall be made of the unique needs of the child for each of the developmental areas listed in this section, including the identification of services appropriate to meet those needs, a review of the results of the evaluation conducted under this chapter, and personal observation of the child.
Source: 20 SDR 223, effective July 7, 1994; 28 SDR 105, effective January 31, 2002; 39 SDR 109, effective December 17, 2012; 49 SDR 7, effective July 31, 2022.
General Authority: SDCL 13-37-1.1.
Law Implemented: SDCL 13-1-23, 13-14-1, 13-37-1.1.
24:14:12:02.01. Procedures for evaluation of child. Procedures for evaluating the child must include:
(1) Administering two or more evaluation instruments;
(2) Taking the child's history, including interviewing the parent;
(3) Identifying the child's level of functioning in each of the developmental areas in § 24:14:12:02;
(4) Gathering information from other sources such as family members, other care-givers, medical providers, social workers, and educators, if necessary, to understand the full scope of the child's unique strengths and needs; and
(5) Reviewing medical, educational, or other records.
Source: 39 SDR 109, effective December 17, 2012.
General Authority: SDCL 13-37-1.1.
Law Implemented: SDCL 13-1-23, 13-14-1, 13-37-1.1.
24:14:12:02.02. Use of records to determine eligibility. A child's medical and other records may be used to establish eligibility, without conducting an evaluation of the child, under Part C if those records indicate that the child's level of functioning in one or more of the developmental areas identified in § 24:14:12:02 constitutes a developmental delay or that the child otherwise meets the state's criteria for eligibility under this article. If the child's Part C eligibility is established under this section, the department or early intervention service provider shall conduct assessments of the child and family in accordance with this chapter.
Source: 39 SDR 109, effective December 17, 2012.
General Authority: SDCL 13-37-1.1.
Law Implemented: SDCL 13-1-23, 13-14-1, 13-37-1.1.
24:14:12:02.03. Informed clinical opinion. Qualified personnel shall use informed clinical opinion when conducting an evaluation and assessment of the child. In addition, the department shall ensure that informed clinical opinion may be used as an independent basis to establish a child's eligibility under Part C even when other instruments do not establish eligibility. However, in no event may informed clinical opinion be used to negate the results of evaluation instruments used to establish eligibility under this section.
Source: 39 SDR 109, effective December 17, 2012.
General Authority: SDCL 13-37-1.1.
Law Implemented: SDCL 13-1-23, 13-14-1, 13-37-1.1.
