Strategic Planning Update

CSD of South Dakota (CSD-SD) and Innivee Strategies, Inc. are excited to share the survey and focus group results. These findings will help shape CSD-SD’s strategic priorities.

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CSD of South Dakota has been serving the community for more than 45 years

equipment consumers

community support clients

subsidy recipients

We provide the following services:

Information Referral

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Services provided in relation to a consumer’s rights or a referral to other resources. CSD of SD connects the consumer to necessary services through disability, civic or social programs, or provides information and referral to programs that address the barriers confronted by deaf and hard of hearing individuals in areas of education, employment, and other settings.

Employment Services

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In partnership with Vocational Rehabilitation, CSD of SD provides job coaching, job shadowing, communication assistance, sensitivity training, and sign language classes for employment with deaf employees.

Peer Support

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Services provided to promote personal growth by sharing experiences either in a group setting or through one-on-one meetings between our specialists and individuals who may be homebound or live in rural areas. Peer support services may include information sharing, support services, mentoring and parent-to-parent opportunities. Peer Support may help facilitate personal and social adjustment skills, communication skills, educational activities, and develop resources.

Communication Assistance

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CSD of SD works to bridge communication and cultural gaps. Individual or small group sign language classes help parents and caregivers to communicate more effectively with deaf individuals. Larger classes may be offered to the community for a small fee.

Family Communication Assistance

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Families with children who are deaf or hard of hearing from birth to age 8 are eligible for services to promote early visual communication through instruction in American Sign Language, gesture, and Deaf Culture by a trained Deaf Mentor. Mentors have been screened and chosen based on their signing fluency, their ability to communicate easily with hearing families, their comfort with young children, and their ability to support family decisions.

Community Integration Skills Training

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Individualized teaching, mentoring and guidance services enable consumers to access programs in the community. Services include national supports, social supports, skill development and communication supports that empower the consumer to become more independent. Additionally, transition services are also provided to support students moving from basic education to post-secondary education or entering the workforce.

Deaf Awareness Training/Technical Assistance/Consultation

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Deaf culture and awareness trainings are provided to different organizations to remove existing communication and cultural barriers. Technical assistance or consultative services are offered to Centers of Independent Living, schools, vocational rehabilitation, medical, parents, employers and businesses to enhance the consumer’s experience.

Interpreter Mentoring/ASL Classes

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CSD of SD’s mentoring program is an opportunity for a new interpreter to learn from an experienced interpreter or a native ASL user and receive direct support, access to information critical for their continued growth, a more smooth entry into the interpreting profession, and expert feedback. While not a substitute for a formal interpreter training program, CSD of SD’s mentoring program is used to augment the skills of a novice interpreter.

Our Offices in South Dakota

About CSD

Founded in 1975, Communication Service for the Deaf (CSD) opened in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, in response to the overwhelming needs of local deaf and hard of hearing people who encountered communication barriers. Since then, CSD has grown to redefine what access means for our community. As champions of equal access for the deaf and hard of hearing, we continue to remain at the forefront of innovation by developing technology that changes the way the deaf community interacts with the world.