History of PLANS in South Dakota

The goal of PLANS is to make a way for people with disabilities to get the services they need.  They also help people choose these services on their own.

• South Dakota was given one year to plan this project.  The money to do this was in the form of a grant (money to use for a project) from the government.  It came from the Administration on Developmental Disabilities (ADD).

• PLANS started in eight counties .  The counties were rural (not many people lived there).  They were all in the Northeastern part of South Dakota.  The counties included:
  • Clark
  • Day
  • Deuel
  • Grant
  • Hamlin
  • Marshall
  • Roberts
  • Spink

 

• PLANS worked hard so people with disabilities could get the services and supports they needed.  They also helped family members to find services in their communities.

• The group in Grant and Roberts counties was made up of parents, community members, and service providers.  They shared ideas that they learned from their family members. 

• A statewide group also got together.  Many different people made up this group.  People with disabilities and their families were included.  Service providers and people who worked for the state thought about the way things were being done.  They also thought about new ideas and ways to make things better.

• The staff wrote a plan of action.  The ideas on this plan came from the thoughts shared from the workgroup and other public meetings.

• The plan was given to ADD.  It was successful.  ADD gave South Dakota a grant (money to be used for a project).  This money would be used for five years.  The dats of this grant (money to use for a project) go from 9/30/2004 to 9/29/2009.