Who We Are

The National Dropout Prevention Center for Students with Disabilities (NDPC-SD) was established in 2004 by the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) as part of OSEP’s Technical Assistance and Dissemination (TA&D) Network, which supports the implementation of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). NDPC-SD was specifically established to assist in building states’ capacity to increase school completion rates for students with disabilities through knowledge synthesis, technical assistance, and dissemination of interventions and practices that work. NDPC-SD is located at the National Dropout Prevention Center/Network (NDPC/N) at Clemson University.

Our Goal

NDPC-SD is committed to providing technical assistance to assist states in building capacity to design/select and implement effective, evidence-based interventions and programs to address dropout among students with disabilities. NDPC-SD employs various strategies to transfer knowledge and to support systems change and capacity building. These include direct consultation in designing state-level initiatives based on state-identified needs, product and document reviews, technical assistance, professional development institutes, and Web-based resources.

Our Partners

NDPC-SD has two major partners: Education Development Center, Inc. (EDC); and the Intercultural Development Research Association (IDRA). These partners are integrally involved in accomplishment of project activities through collaborative support of dissemination and technical assistance provision. In addition, the Center engages in various partnerships with other organizations and OSEP funded specialty centers to address specific tasks related to its mission. Also, OSEP acts as a partner in supporting Center activities from a governance perspective.