Autism Resources in Meade County, South Dakota
17 providers in Sturgis and nearby, plus 12 national programs. Waitlists change often, so it’s worth calling a few.
0 providers in Meade County. Filter by your child’s age — including 18+, which is the hardest to find anywhere.
Based in Meade County
Diagnostic clinics
1 providerFormal autism evaluations by developmental pediatricians, psychologists, or neuropsychologists.
Monument Health Sturgis Hospital — Developmental Referrals
Sturgis, SD · serves several counties
Monument Health Sturgis Hospital provides pediatric primary care and developmental referrals for Meade County families. For comprehensive autism evaluations, families are referred to Monument Health Rapid City Hospital, the regional hub in the Black Hills.
Rapid City (~30 min) is the primary hub for full autism evaluations in the Black Hills region.
Early Intervention (0–3)
1 providerFree services for children under 3 under IDEA Part C.
South Dakota Birth to 3 — Meade County
Sturgis, SD
South Dakota's Part C early intervention program for children birth–3 with developmental delays. Provides in-home therapy, service coordination, and family support at no cost to eligible families in Meade County.
FREE under IDEA Part C for eligible children birth to age 3.
ABA therapy
1 providerApplied Behavior Analysis therapy — typically requires insurance authorization.
Centria Autism — Telehealth ABA (Meade County)
Sturgis, SD · serves several counties
Telehealth ABA therapy for Meade County families, including military families stationed at Ellsworth AFB. BCBA-supervised parent training and behavior support. SD Medicaid and TRICARE accepted.
TRICARE covers ABA therapy for military dependents. SD Medicaid also accepted for eligible children.
Parent & family support
1 providerParent groups, sibling programs, and family peer support.
Autism Society of South Dakota
Sturgis, SD
South Dakota's statewide autism chapter connects Meade County families to support groups, resource navigation, and family events across the state and in the Black Hills region.
Advocacy & legal
1 providerLegal advocates, special education advocates, and disability rights organizations.
South Dakota Parent Connection
Sturgis, SD · serves several counties
South Dakota's federally funded PTI offers free IEP advocacy, training, and one-on-one support for Meade County families navigating special education in the Black Hills area.
FREE. Federally funded PTI. Essential before any IEP meeting or school dispute in SD.
Also serving Meade County
These 24 are based elsewhere, or operate nationally, and list Meade County in the area they cover. Worth calling to confirm how far they actually travel, and whether telehealth or in-home visits are an option.
Diagnostic clinics
3 providersFormal autism evaluations by developmental pediatricians, psychologists, or neuropsychologists.
Monument Health — Pediatric Autism Evaluation
Rapid City, SD · serves several counties
Monument Health Belle Fourche — Developmental Referrals
Belle Fourche, SD · serves several counties
Monument Health's Belle Fourche clinic serves Butte County families with primary care and developmental referrals. Rapid City (~60 miles) is the primary autism evaluation hub for the northern Black Hills region.
Belle Fourche is the geographic center of the nation. Rapid City is the primary specialty hub.
Monument Health Spearfish — Pediatric Services
Spearfish, SD · serves several counties
Monument Health clinic in Spearfish offers pediatric and behavioral health services to Lawrence County and the northern Black Hills. Coordinates referrals to Monument's Rapid City autism specialists.
Early Intervention (0–3)
2 providersFree services for children under 3 under IDEA Part C.
SD Birth to 3 — Lawrence County
Spearfish, SD · serves several counties
IDEA Part C early intervention services for children under 3 in Lawrence County. Free evaluations and home-based therapy coordinated through the SD Department of Health.
FREE under IDEA Part C.
SD Birth to 3 — Pennington County
Rapid City, SD · serves several counties
ABA therapy
1 providerApplied Behavior Analysis therapy — typically requires insurance authorization.
Behavioral Health Services SD — Black Hills Region
Spearfish, SD · serves several counties
ABA services for Lawrence County families through the Black Hills region network. Clinicians split time between Spearfish and Rapid City; in-home delivery available for rural clients.
SD Medicaid covers ABA. Commercial insurance ABA mandate also applies.
Occupational therapy & sensory
1 providerOccupational therapy, sensory integration, and sensory diets.
Monument Health Rehabilitation — Spearfish OT
Spearfish, SD · serves several counties
Occupational therapy services at Monument Health Spearfish, including sensory integration and sensory diet planning for autistic children in Lawrence County.
Respite care
3 providersRespite care providers giving families a break — in-home, center-based, and overnight.
South Dakota Respite Care Program
Statewide, SD · serves several counties
A straightforward state program: up to $600 a year for the first eligible person in a family and $200 for each additional one, capped at $1,000 per family per year running June to May. Eligibility is unusually broad — developmental disability at any age, developmental delay from birth to three, serious emotional disturbance in a child, severe and persistent mental illness in an adult, a chronic medical condition in a child, traumatic brain injury, or an adopted child with or without a disability.
The program year runs 1 June to 31 May, so apply early in that window rather than late. South Dakota Parent Connection helps families with the paperwork.
ARCH National Respite Locator
Searchable by state, SD
A free national directory of respite providers and programs, run by ARCH, the National Respite Network and Resource Center. ARCH says it is not a complete list, so it works best alongside…
A national program with local chapters — we have not verified a chapter in this county. Use their finder to locate the nearest one.
ARCH's advice is to contact your State Respite Coalition or Lifespan Respite program first. Before you pay out of pocket, also check what your state's Medicaid waiver funds.
Your state's Lifespan Respite program
39 states and DC have been funded, SD
Lifespan Respite programs are federally funded, state-run programs that help family caregivers of children or adults, regardless of special need, find and pay for respite.
A national program with local chapters — we have not verified a chapter in this county. Use their finder to locate the nearest one.
ARCH lists every state's Lifespan Respite contact and respite coalition on this page. Ask specifically about voucher or stipend programs — that is the part families most often miss.
Parent & family support
1 providerParent groups, sibling programs, and family peer support.
Autism Society of South Dakota — Rapid City Chapter
Rapid City, SD · serves several counties
Advocacy & legal
1 providerLegal advocates, special education advocates, and disability rights organizations.
South Dakota Parent Connection — Black Hills Outreach
Spearfish, SD · serves several counties
SDPC IEP advocacy and parent training for Lawrence County. Deadwood-area and Spearfish families can access phone and in-person support through SDPC's Black Hills outreach.
FREE. Federally funded PTI.
Activities, clubs & recreation
12 providersClubs, sports, camps, and social programs that welcome autistic children and teens — inclusive, adaptive, and special-needs specific.
Dakota at Home - summer and special interest camps
South Dakota, SD · serves several counties
The state's own searchable resource directory carries summer camp and special interest camp listings for South Dakotans with disabilities. An official, maintained index, which matters more than usual in a state with little organized provision.
LifeScape
Sioux Falls, SD · serves several counties
Services for children and adults with disabilities across South Dakota, including autism services and therapies, with sites at Sioux Falls and Rapid City. Not primarily a recreation provider, but the largest disability organization in the state and the most likely to know what runs locally.
ACEing Autism
227 programs in 32 states, SD
Tennis clinics for kids, teens and, in some locations, adults on the autism spectrum.
A national program with local chapters — we have not verified a chapter in this county. Use their finder to locate the nearest one.
Cost varies by location and scholarships are available. Use the Find a Program search on their site with your zip code.
American Camp Association — camp finder
About 3,900 camps, SD
A free searchable directory of about 3,900 camps, with a filter for disabilities and other special needs alongside distance, activities, session length and cost. A good single starting…
A national program with local chapters — we have not verified a chapter in this county. Use their finder to locate the nearest one.
Choose day or overnight, then use the "Disabilities and Other Special Needs" filter. Specialized camps can fill early, so start looking in the winter before.
Best Buddies
All 50 states — find your local program, SD
One-to-one friendship matching between people with and without intellectual and developmental disabilities, with programs from elementary school through college and adulthood, plus…
A national program with local chapters — we have not verified a chapter in this county. Use their finder to locate the nearest one.
A national organization, not a local listing — use the finder on their site, or call 1-800-89-BUDDY, to locate your nearest program.
Easterseals — camps and recreation
Local Easterseals across the country, SD
Day and residential camps for children and adults with disabilities, plus sports, social activities and community outings run by local Easterseals.
A national program with local chapters — we have not verified a chapter in this county. Use their finder to locate the nearest one.
Programs vary a great deal between locations — use the Find your Easterseals search on the page and check what yours actually runs.
See all 12 activities, clubs & recreation providersShow fewer
iCan Shine (iCan Bike)
Camps hosted in different towns each year, SD
Teaches people with disabilities to ride a conventional two-wheeled bicycle over a five-day camp, 75 minutes a day. iCan Shine says about 80% of participants ride independently by the end…
A national program with local chapters — we have not verified a chapter in this county. Use their finder to locate the nearest one.
Check their Camp Locations page for dates — camps run in different towns each year, so somewhere near you may host this year and not next.
KEEN (Kids Enjoy Exercise Now)
Six cities only: Chicago, DC–Baltimore, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, St. Louis, SD
Free, non-competitive, one-to-one recreation for youth ages 5 to 21 with physical or developmental disabilities, led by trained volunteer coaches.
A national program with local chapters — we have not verified a chapter in this county. Use their finder to locate the nearest one.
Free to families. KEEN runs in six cities plus two university campus chapters (Vanderbilt and the University of Virginia) — outside those, it is not available yet.
Little League Challenger Division
Through local Little Leagues — use the League Finder, SD
Little League's adaptive baseball program for anyone with a physical or intellectual challenge.
A national program with local chapters — we have not verified a chapter in this county. Use their finder to locate the nearest one.
Use the League Finder on their site to locate the nearest Challenger division, or ask about starting one. Little League's rule is that a player who can take part in regular Little League with reasonable accommodations should do so.
Miracle League
300 leagues — check for one near you, SD
Baseball for children and adults with physical or mental disabilities, played on custom-designed rubberized turf fields that accommodate wheelchairs and other assistive devices.
A national program with local chapters — we have not verified a chapter in this county. Use their finder to locate the nearest one.
Use the Find a Miracle League page on their site — there are 300 leagues, so coverage is good but not universal.
Special Olympics
Nationwide — find your local program, SD
Year-round sports training and competition for children and adults.
A national program with local chapters — we have not verified a chapter in this county. Use their finder to locate the nearest one.
Eligibility requires an intellectual disability, a cognitive delay measured by formal assessment, or significant learning or vocational problems due to cognitive delay, identified by an agency or professional. If your child is autistic without a cognitive delay, have a direct conversation about fit before signing up rather than after. Ask your local program about any costs.
TOPSoccer (US Youth Soccer)
Through local soccer clubs, SD
The Outreach Program for Soccer — recreational soccer for children and adults with intellectual, emotional or physical disabilities, offered through local US Youth Soccer clubs.
A national program with local chapters — we have not verified a chapter in this county. Use their finder to locate the nearest one.
Find your state association's TOPSoccer clubs through the link on their page, or ask your state association office directly — it is often not advertised on the club's own website.
Not sure which kind of therapy you need?
Start with our plain-language guide to ABA, speech and OT — what each one is, and questions to ask on the first call.
Read the guideFor providers
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About autism services in Meade County
Meade County encompasses Sturgis and Summerset near Rapid City. Sturgis Brown School District provides special education. Families access Rapid City's provider network for specialized evaluations. South Dakota Parent Connection (SD PTI) provides free statewide IEP advocacy, and SD's Birth to 3 program serves young children.
Helpful guides
Guides for Meade County families
Step-by-step help on the topics that matter most.
School & IEP
Navigating the IEP process
Your rights under IDEA, how evaluations work, and what every IEP section means.
Finding help
ABA, OT, speech and waitlists
How to find qualified providers, navigate insurance, and get off waitlists faster.
Getting started
Where to start after diagnosis
A week-by-week checklist for the first 90 days — from evaluation to early intervention.
Benefits & money
SSI, Medicaid waivers, ABLE accounts
Federal benefits your child may qualify for and how to apply without losing your spot.
Mental health
Co-occurring conditions and support
Managing anxiety, ADHD, and depression alongside an autism diagnosis.
Daily life
Sensory processing and OT
Understanding sensory needs, sensory diets, and how occupational therapy helps.
Adulthood
Employment, housing, legal planning
Supported employment, housing options, guardianship alternatives, and ABLE accounts.
See all South Dakota resources
Waivers, PTI centers, and state programs apply to all families in South Dakota.
South Dakota state guide →Common questions
Answered from the providers currently listed for this county — these update as the directory does.
How many autism providers serve Meade County, South Dakota?
We list 17 providers serving Meade County, covering parent & family support, ABA therapy, activities, clubs & recreation, diagnostic clinics and occupational therapy & sensory, plus 3 more. Some are based in the county and others serve it from nearby areas. Every listing is reviewed by a person before it is published.
Which autism providers in Meade County accept Medicaid?
1 of the providers we list for Meade County state that they accept Medicaid, including Centria Autism — Telehealth ABA (Meade County). Coverage and plan participation change often, so confirm directly with the provider before your first appointment.
Where can I find ABA therapy in Meade County?
ABA providers serving Meade County are listed in the ABA therapy section of this page, with phone numbers and websites. Many deliver services in the family's home or at school as well as in a clinic. Ask about waitlists when you call — they vary widely and change month to month.
Are there telehealth autism services for Meade County families?
Yes — 1 provider serving Meade County offers telehealth or virtual sessions. This is often the fastest route to support for families in rural areas or on long local waitlists.
Can autism therapy happen at home in Meade County?
3 providers serving Meade County deliver services in the family's home. Many children do better in a familiar setting than in an unfamiliar clinic room, and in-home visits remove the travel burden.
Does Medicaid pay for autism services in South Dakota?
South Dakota families can apply to the CHOICES and Family Support 360 waivers, a Medicaid waiver that can fund respite, therapies and in-home support. The typical wait is Generally served without a long queue; risk-based priority if a list forms, and your place is usually set by the date you apply — so applying early matters even if you are unsure what services you need. Many waivers also disregard parental income, so families who don't qualify for regular Medicaid often still qualify here.
What if I can't find an autism provider in Meade County?
If none of the Meade County providers is the right fit, these South Dakota counties currently have the most listed providers: Brown County (28), Codington County (28), Davison County (25), Sanborn County (24). Many providers travel or offer telehealth, so it is worth calling even if they are not based nearby. You can also tell us about a provider we are missing.
Nearby counties in South Dakota
You know things we don’t
Still missing from Meade County
These are the things no database has and every parent knows. If you can answer one of them, another family in Meade Countygets an afternoon back. It takes about a minute and you don’t need to know the business details — a name and a rough location is enough for us to check.
- Which dentist here has managed a cleaning without it becoming a fight?
- Who cuts your child's hair without a meltdown?
- Is there a group here where your child has made a friend?
- Which pediatrician here actually listens, and doesn't rush the appointment?
We check everything before it goes up, and nobody pays to be listed. How we verify.
Get told when this page changes
New provider in Meade County? We'll email you.
One email when we verify a new provider in Meade County — no newsletter, no digest, nothing else. Some counties hear from us a few times a year and some stay quiet for months; we would rather send you nothing than send you filler.
We store your address and county, and nothing else. How we handle it.
See something that needs fixing?
Providers move, phone numbers change, and links break — it happens. If anything on this page is out of date, wrong, or no longer working, please tell us and we’ll fix it. Keeping this accurate for autism families is the whole reason we’re here.
Report a correction →Help the community
Know a great provider in Meade County?
If a therapist, clinic, or specialist helped your family, tell us about them and we’ll add them to the directory so other families can find them too.
Tell us about a provider →For providers
Are you a provider serving Meade County?
Add your practice so families searching for help can find you. Listings are free.
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