2017 SPP/APR and State Determination Letters PART C – South Carolina
OSEP Response to SPP/APR
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OSEP Response to SPP/APR
400 MARYLAND AVE. S.W., WASHINGTON DC 20202-2600
www.ed.gov
The Department of Education’s mission is to promote stu dent achievement and preparation for global competitiveness by
fostering educational excellence and ensuring equal access.
UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
OFFICE OF SPECIAL EDUCATION AND REHABILITATIVE SERVICES
J une 29, 2017
Honorable Deirdra T. Singleton
Acting Director
South Carolina Department of Health and H uman Services
SCDHHS P.O. Box 8206
Columbia, S outh Carolina 29202
Dear Director Singleton :
I am writing to advise you of the U. S. Department of Education's (Department) 2017
determination under sections 616 and 642 of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act
( IDEA ). The Department has determined that South Carolina needs assistance in meeting the
requirements of Part C of the IDEA. This determination is based on the totality of the State’s data
and informa tion, including the Federal fiscal year (FFY) 2015 State Performance Plan/ Annual
Performance Report (SPP/ APR), other State -reported data, and other publicly available
information.
The Department began making determinations under Part C of the IDEA in 2007 and since 2007,
South Carolina has received a Needs Intervention determination for all but two of the past ten
years. With South Carolina’s 2017 Needs Assistance determination, OSEP acknowledges the
changes South Carolina has recently made including chang ing its State lead agency and the
State’s efforts to improve its results data . OSEP notes, however, that South Carolina continues
to work on ensuring compliance with critical IDEA requirements while improving results for its
infants and toddlers with disa bilities. The Department will continue to work with S outh Carolina
as it develops and implements its policies and procedures and monitors the implementation of
IDEA in the State to ensure that South Carolina improves its compliance with, and performance
under, the IDEA for infants and toddlers with disabilities and their families.
Your State’s 2017 determination is based on the data reflected in the State’s “ 2017 Part C
Results -Driven Accountability Matrix” (RDA Matrix) . The RDA Matrix is individualized for
each State and consists of:
(1) a Compliance Matrix that includes scoring on Compliance Indicators and other
compliance factors ;
(2) Results Components and Appendices that include scoring on Results Elements;
(3) a Compliance Score and a Results Score;
(4) an RDA Perc entage based on both the Compliance Score and the Results Score; and
(5) the State’s Determination.
Page 2—Lead Agency Director
The RDA Matrix is further explained in a document, entitled “How the Department Made
Determinations under Sections 616(d) and 642 of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act
in 2017: Part C” (HTDMD).
OSEP is continuing to use both results data and compliance data in making determinations in
2017, as it did for Part C determinations in 2015 and 2016. (The specifics of the determination
procedures and crite ria are set forth in the HTDMD and reflected in the RDA Matrix for your
State.) For 2017, the Department’s IDEA Part C determinations continue to include consideration
of each State’s Child Outcomes data, which measures how children who receive IDEA Part C
services are improving functioning in three outcome areas that are critical to school readiness:
• Positive social- emotional skills;
• acquisition and use of knowledge and skills (including early language/communication);
and
• use of appropriate behaviors to meet their needs .
Specifically, the Department considered the data quality and the child performance levels in each
State’s Child Outcomes FFY 2015 data.
You may access the results of OSEP’s review of your State’s SPP/APR and other relevant data
by acce ssing the SPP/APR module using your State-specific log -on information at
osep.grads360.org. When you access your State’s SPP/APR on the site, you will find, in
Indicators 1 through 10, the OSEP Response to the indicator and any actions that the State is
re quired to take. Th e actions that the State is required to take are in two places:
(1) actions related to the correction of findings of noncompliance are in the “ OSEP
Response ” section of the indicator; and
(2) any other actions that the State is required to take are in the “Required Actions” section
of the indicator.
It is important for you to review the Introduction to the SPP/APR , which may also include
language in the “OSEP R esponse” and/or “ Required Actions ” sections.
You will also find all of the following important documents saved as attachments to the Progress
Page:
(1) the State’s RDA Matrix;
(2) the HTDMD document;
(3) a spreadsheet entitled “2017 Data Rubric Part C ,” which shows how OSEP calculated the
State’s “Timely and Accurate State- Reported Data” score in the Compliance Matrix;
(4) a document entitled “Dispute Resolution 2015- 16,” which includes the IDEA section 618
data that OSEP used to calculate the State’s “Timely State Complaint Decisions ” and
“ Timely Due Process Hearing Decisions ” scores in the Compliance Matrix; and
(5) a Data Display, which presents certain State- reported data in a transparent, user-friendly
manner and is helpful for the public in getting a broader picture of State performance in
key areas.
Page 3—Lead Agency Director
As noted above, the State’s 2017 det ermination is Needs Assistance. A State’s 2017 RDA
Determination is Needs Assistance if the RDA Percentage is at least 60% but less than 80%. A
State would also be Needs Assistance if its RDA Determination percentage is 80% or above, but
the Department has imposed Spec ial Conditions on the State’s last three IDEA Part C grant
awards (for FFYs 2014, 2015, and 2016) , and those Special Conditions are in effect at the time
of the 2017 determination.
OSEP will continue Special Conditions on South Carolina ’s FFY 2017 IDEA Part C grant to
ensur e: (1) correction of noncompliance, as required by IDEA section 635(a)(10)(A) and 34 CFR
§§303.120 and 303.700(e) ; (2) timely provision of IDEA Part C services, as required by 34 CFR
§303.342(e) ; and (3) the timely evaluation, assessment, and initial Individualized Family Service
Plan or IFSP meeting within 45 days of referral, as required by 34 CFR §§303.310(a) and (b) and
303.342(a) . The specific reporting requirements and other required actions will be described in
OSEP’s FFY 2017 IDEA Part C grant award documents .
OSEP is concerned about the State’s failure to submit Phase II I of the State Systemic
Improvement Plan (SSIP) by April 3, 2017, which was a factor in the State’s determination . The
SSIP is critical to the State’s efforts to improve results for infants and toddlers with disabilities
and their families. South Carolina’s FFY 2017 IDEA Part C grant also includes Special
Conditions to ensure submission of the first year of Phase III of the SSIP and timely submission
and implementation of the second year of Phase III of the SSIP, which is due on April 2, 2018.
As a reminder, your State must report annually to the public, by posting on the State lead
agency’s website, on the performance of each early intervention service (EIS) program located in
the State on the targets in the SPP /APR as soon as practicable, but no later than 120 days after
the State’s submission of its FFY 2015 SPP/APR. In addition, your State must:
(1) review EIS program performance against targets in the State’s SPP/AP R;
(2) determine if each EIS program “meets the requirements” of Part C, or “needs assistance,”
“needs intervention,” or “needs substantial intervention” in implementing Part C of the
IDEA ;
(3) take appropriate enforcement action; and
(4) inform each EIS program of its determination.
Further, your State must make its SPP/APR available to the public by posting it on the State lead
agency’s website. Within the next several days, OSEP will be finalizing a State Profile that:
(1) will be accessible to the public;
(2) include s the State’s determination letter and SPP/APR, and all related State and OSEP
attachments; and
(3) can be accessed via a URL unique to your State, which you can use to make your
SPP/APR available to the public .
We will provide you with the unique URL when i t is live.
OSEP appreciates the State’s efforts to improve results for infants and toddlers with disabilities
and their families and looks forward to working with your State over the next year as we
continue our important work of improving the lives of children with disabilities and their
Page 4—Lead Agency Director
families. Please contact your OSEP State Lead i f you have any questions, would like to discuss
this further, or want to request technical assistance .
Sincerely,
/s/ Ruth E. Ryder
Ruth E. Ryder
Acting Director
Office of Special Education Programs
cc: State Part C Coordinator
(Grant Year 2015-2016—Issued June 29, 2017) Contact the Partner Support Center at EDEN-Submission-System@ed.gov or 877-HLP-EDEN (877-457-3336) for state profile.
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Last modified on September 7, 2017