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UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

OFFICE OF SPECIAL EDUCATION AND REHABILITATIVE SERVICES

Dec. 19, 2017

Honorable Joshua Baker

Acting Director

South Carolina Department of Health and Human Services

P.O. Box 8206

Columbia, South Carolina 29202 

Dear Director Baker:

This letter summarizes the results of the on-site monitoring visit conducted by the Office of 

Special Education Programs (OSEP) of South Carolina’s (SC’s) early intervention program 

under Part C of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). BabyNet is the IDEA 

Part C early intervention program in South Carolina and it is administered by the SC Department 

of Health and Human Services (SCDHHS). 

OSEP’s monitoring visit occurred on August 8 and 9, 2017. Participants included staff from 

SCDHHS, the SC School for the Deaf and Blind, (SCDBS), and the SC Department of 

Developmental Disabilities (SCDDSN) as well as technical assistance (TA) providers from the 

IDEA Data Center (IDC) and the Early Childhood Technical Assistance Center (ECTA). 

In 2016, OSEP began providing differentiated monitoring and support (DMS) to States as part of 

its Results Driven Accountability (RDA) framework. SC’s IDEA Part C program was targeted 

for monitoring under DMS due to the State’s longstanding noncompliance in the areas of 

monitoring, data, timely service provision, 45-day timeline and the State’s plan to improve

results through its State Systemic Improvement Plan (SSIP). These areas were the subject of

Special Conditions imposed on SC’s Federal fiscal year (FFY) 2017 Part C grant award and the 

State was required to submit data and progress reports to OSEP on August 1, and October 1, 

2017. To date, OSEP has not received the required data and progress report.

The State has a history of noncompliance with IDEA Part C requirements. SC’s IDEA Part C 

grant has been subject to special conditions since FFY 2008. During the past ten years, three 

different State agencies have served as the lead agency in South Carolina. SCDHHS became the 

State lead agency on July 1, 2017 (the two prior lead agencies were the SC First Steps to School 

Readiness (FSSR) and the SC Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC)).

OSEP’s August 2017 monitoring visit was held after OSEP’s October 17, 2016 DMS letter

informed SCDHHS that SC received a designation of universal, targeted, or intensive 

engagement in five areas under Part C of the IDEA. The five areas were: compliance, fiscal, 

results, child find, and SSIP. OSEP’s notice was based on the State’s FFY 2014 Annual 

Performance Report (APR) data for Indicator 1 (Timely Provision of Services) and Indicator 7 

(45-Day Timeline), SC’s high-risk designation with special conditions on its FFY 2016 IDEA 
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Part C grant, and its low data for child find. For these reasons, SC was designated as needing 

intensive engagement under Part C of the IDEA in the areas of compliance and child find, which 

were the areas of focus during the August 2017 visit.

During the August 2017 visit, OSEP identified, and the State acknowledged, significant 

noncompliance with four critical requirements of Part C. Specifically, OSEP finds that South 

Carolina has failed to:

1. Implement its State-level general supervision responsibilities including, monitoring, 

funding, and ensuring interagency coordination of, the early intervention program as 

required by IDEA sections 635(a)(10) and 640 and 34 CFR §§303.120, 303.501.

2. Have in place a Statewide system and provide early intervention services to infants 

and toddlers with disabilities in a timely manner as required by IDEA sections 633 

and 634 and 34 CFR §303.342(e).

3. Provide valid and reliable data under IDEA sections 616, 618, 635(a)(14), and 642 

and 34 CFR §§303.701(c) and 303.720. 

4. Submit its FFY 2015 (Phase III) SSIP, which was due on April 3, 2017 and is 

submitted under IDEA sections 616 and 642 and 34 CFR §303.700 through 303.708.

During OSEP’s visit, SCDHHS requested OSEP’s assistance in addressing these challenges and 

helping the State to implement and enforce IDEA Part C requirements. OSEP learned that much 

of this noncompliance stems from at least three longstanding root causes that include: (1) the 

lack of State-level coordination between the State Lead agencies and the South Carolina 

Department of Developmental Disabilities (SCDDSN); (2) the decentralized provider system 

with over 1,400 early intervention service (EIS) providers that do not provide data to the State; 

and (3) payment systems that are not coordinated across different funding sources for early 

intervention services. 

OSEP has grave concerns about how South Carolina can ensure compliance with each of the four 

requirements identified above and how the State will address its longstanding structural 

challenges. OSEP is reviewing each of these four areas of noncompliance to determine the 

appropriate enforcement action, which include: (1) requiring a corrective action plan (CAP) or 

improvement plan for all areas for which the State can ensure correction within one year from 

the date of this letter; (2) entering into a compliance agreement under section 457 of the General 

Education Provisions Act (GEPA) if the State demonstrates that it cannot come into compliance 

within one year as required by 34 CFR §303.700(e); (3) revising the special conditions on SC’s 

FFY 2017 IDEA Part C grant; and/or (4) taking additional enforcement action.
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We are scheduling a follow-up visit in January to discuss the State’s plan for correcting each of 

these four noncompliance areas as soon as possible. In the interim, if you have any questions, 

please contact your State lead, Brenda Wilkins, at 202-245-6820.

Sincerely,

/s/

Ruth E. Ryder

Acting Director

Office of Special Education Programs 

cc: Stephanie Hicklin,

SCDHHS Acting Part C Coordinator