Each state sets eligibility ages for services to children and youth with disabilities. For current information concerning this state, please contact the office listed under Department of Education: Special Education.

State Department of Education: Special Education 
Robert Rutten, Director
Office of Special Education
Department of Public Instruction 
600 E. Boulevard Avenue, Department 201
Bismarck, ND 58505-0440 
(701) 328-2277; (701) 328-4920 (TTY)
E-mail: brutten@state.nd.us
Web: www.dpi.state.nd.us/speced/index.shtm

State Coordinator for NCLB (No Child Left Behind)
Greg Gallagher, Director
Education Improvement
Department of Public Instruction 
600 E. Boulevard Avenue, Department 201
Bismarck, ND 58505-0440 
(701) 328-1838
E-mail: ggallgher@state.nd.us
Web: www.dpi.state.nd.us

Programs for Infants and Toddlers with Disabilities: Ages Birth through 2 
Debra Balsdon, Part C Coordinator 
Developmental Disabilities Unit 
North Dakota Department of Human Services 
600 S. 2nd Street, Suite 1A
Bismarck, ND 58504-5729
(701) 328-8936; (800) 755-8529 (In ND) 
E-mail: sobald@state.nd.us
Web: http://ndearlyintervention.com

Programs for Children with Disabilities: Ages 3 through 5 
Office of Special Education
Department of Public Instruction 
600 E. Boulevard Avenue, Department 201
Bismarck, ND 58505-0440 
(701) 328-2277; (701) 328-4920 (TTY)
Web: www.dpi.state.nd.us/speced/index.shtm

State Vocational Rehabilitation Agency 
Gene Hysjulien, Director 
Disability Services Division 
North Dakota Department of Human Services 
600 S. 2nd Street, Suite 1B
Bismarck, ND 58504-5729
(701) 328-8950; (701) 328-8968 (TTY)
(800) 755-2745 (In ND)
E-mail: sohysg@state.nd.us

Coordinator for Transition Services 
Valerie Fischer, Transition Coordinator 
Office of Special Education 
North Dakota Department of Public Instruction 
600 E. Boulevard Avenue 
Bismarck, ND 58505-0440 
(701) 328-2277 
E-mail: vfischer@state.nd.us
Web: www.dpi.state.nd.us/transitn/

State Board of Career and Technical Education 
Garry Freier, Supervisor of Special Needs 
State Board of Career and Technical Education
15th Floor, Capitol Tower
600 E. Boulevard Avenue
Bismarck, ND 58505-0610 
(701) 328-3178
E-mail: GFreier@state.nd.us
Web: www.state.nd.us/cte

State Mental Health Agency 
Karen Larson, Director 
Division of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services
Department of Human Services 
600 S. 2nd Street, Suite 1D
Bismarck, ND 58504-5729 
(701) 328-8940; (800) 755-2719 (In ND) 
E-mail: dhsmhsas@state.nd.us
Web: http://lnotes.state.nd.us/dhs/dhsweb.nsf

State Mental Health Representative for Children and Youth
JoAnne Hoesel, Administrator
Children's Mental Health 
Division of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services
Children and Family Services Division
State Capitol-Judicial Wing
600 E. Boulevard Avenue, Room 302 
Bismarck, ND 58505
(701) 328-2335
E-mail: SOHOEJ@state.nd.us
Web: www.state.nd.us/humanservices

State Mental Retardation Program
Gene Hysjulien, Director 
Disability Services Division
North Dakota Department of Human Services 
600 S. 2nd Street, Suite 1A
Bismarck, ND 58504-5729 
(701) 328-8930; (800) 755-8529 (in ND)
E-mail: dhsds@state.nd.us

State Developmental Disabilities Planning Council
Tom Wallner, Director 
State Council on Developmental Disabilities
Department of Human Services 
600 S. 2nd Street, Suite 1B 
Bismarck, ND 58504-5729
(701) 328-8953
E-mail: sowalt@state.nd.us
Web: www.ndcd.org/ndcpd/uapdis

Protection and Advocacy Agency 
Teresa Larson, Executive Director
North Dakota Protection and Advocacy Project 
400 E. Broadway, Suite 409
Bismarck, ND 58501-4071 
(701) 328-2950; (800) 472-2670 (in ND)
(800) 366-6888 (ND Relay 711) 
E-mail: panda@state.nd.us
Web: www.ndpanda.org

Client Assistance Program
Dennis Lyon, Director 
Client Assistance Program
Department of Human Services 
600 S. 2nd Street, Suite 1B
Bismarck, ND 58504-5729
(701) 328-8964; (800) 207-6122 (in ND)
E-mail: cap@state.nd.us
Web: www.state.nd.us/cap

Programs for Children with Special Health Care Needs 
Tamara Gallup-Millner, Unit Director
Children's Special Health Services 
Department of Human Services 
State Capitol
600 E. Boulevard Avenue, Department 325
Bismarck, ND 58505-0269
(701) 328-2436; (800) 755-2714 (in ND)
E-mail: dhscshs@state.nd.us
Web: http://lnotes.state.nd.us/dhs/dhsweb.nsf

State CHIP Program
(health care for low-income uninsured children)
Healthy Steps
Department 325
600 E. Boulevard Avenue
Bismarck, ND 58505-0250
(800) 755-2604
E-mail: somooa@state.nd.us
Web: www.state.nd.us/childrenshealth/

Programs for Children and Youth who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing
Rocklyn Cofer, Director
North Dakota School for the Deaf
1401 College Drive
Devils Lake, ND 58301
(701) 662-9000
Web: www.state.nd.us/ndsd/

Telecommunications Relay Services for Individuals who are Deaf, Hard of Hearing, or with Speech Impairments
(800) 366-6889 (V)
(800) 366-6888 (TTY); 711 (TTY)
(877) 366-3709 (Speech to Speech)

Programs for Children and Youth who are Blind or Visually Impaired
Carmen Grove-Suminski, Superintendent
North Dakota Vision Services – School for the Blind
500 Stanford Road
Grand Forks, ND 58203
(701) 795-2708; (800) 421-1181 
Web: www.ndvisionservices.com

Programs for Children and Youth who are Deaf-Blind
Colleen Sanford, Project Coordinator
North Dakota Deaf-Blind Project
500 Stanford Road
Grand Forks, ND 58203
(701) 795-2741; (877) 630-6214
E-mail: colleen.sanford@sendit.nodak.edu
Web: www.state.nd.us/deafblind/

State Education Agency Rural Representative 
Patricia A. Laubach, Programs Administrator
North Dakota Department of Public Instruction 
State Capitol
600 E. Boulevard Avenue, Department 201
Bismarck, ND 58505-0440
(701) 328-4525
E-mail: plaubach@state.nd.us 
Web: www.dpi.state.nd.us

Regional ADA & IT Technical Assistance Center 
Patrick Going, Director
Rocky Mountain Disability and Business Technical Assistance Center
3630 Sinton Road, Suite 103
Colorado Springs, CO 80907
(719) 444-0268 (V/TTY); (800) 949-4232 (V/TTY)
E-mail: rmdbtac@mtc-inc.com
Web: www.adainformation.org

University Centers for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities
Bryce Fifield, Director
North Dakota Center for Persons with Disabilities
Minot State University
500 University Avenue West
Minot, ND 58707
(701) 858-3580; (800) 233-1737
E-mail: ndcpd@minotstateu.edu
Web: www.ndcpd.org

Technology-Related Assistance 
Judie Lee, Project Director
North Dakota Interagency Program for Assistive Technology
3509 Interstate Boulevard
Fargo, ND 58103
(701) 265-4807 (V/TTY); (800) 265-4728 (V/TTY)
E-mail: jlee@polarcomm.com
Web: www.ndipat.org

State Mediation System 
Valerie Fischer, Coordinator
Department of Public Instruction 
Office of Special Education
State Capitol
600 E. Boulevard Avenue
Bismarck, ND 58505-0440
(701) 328-2277
E-mail: vfischer@state.nd.us
Web: www.dpi.state.nd.us

Special Format Library
Stella Cone, Librarian 
North Dakota State Library 
Talking Book Services 
604 E. Boulevard Avenue, Department 250 
Bismarck, ND 58505-0800 
(701) 328-1408; (800) 843-9948 (in ND)
(800) 892-8622 (TTY, in ND)
E-mail: tbooks@state.nd.us
Web: http://ndsl.lib.state.nd.us/tbprogram.html

Disability-Specific Organizations

Attention Deficit Disorder
To identify an ADD group in your state or locality, contact either:

Children and Adults with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (CHADD)
8181 Professional Place, Suite 201
Landover, MD 20785
(301) 306-7070
(800) 233-4050 (Voice mail to request information packet)
Web: www.chadd.org

Attention Deficit Disorder Association (ADDA) 
P.O. Box 543
Pottstown, PA 19464
(484) 945-2101
Web: www.add.org
 

Autism
To identify an autism group in your state, contact:
Autism Society of America
7910 Woodmont Avenue, Suite 300
Bethesda, MD 20814
(301) 657-0881; (800) 3-AUTISM
Web: www.autism-society.org

Blind/Visual Impairments
Jay Stiteley, Director
American Foundation for the Blind-Midwest
401 N. Michigan Avenue, Suite 350
Chicago, IL 60611
(312) 396-4420
E-mail: chicago@afb.net
Web: www.afb.org

Brain Injury
Mary Simonson, Executive Director
Brain Injury Association of North Dakota
Open Door Center
209 2nd Street S.E.
Valley City, ND 58072
(701) 845-1124

Epilepsy
Bennie Loro, Executive Director
Epilepsy Foundation of Minnesota
1600 University Avenue, Suite 205
St. Paul, MN 55104
(651) 287-2300; (800) 779-0777
E-mail: info@efmn.org
Web: www.efmn.org

Learning Disabilities
Mary Ann M. Anderson, Co-President
Learning Disabilities Association of North Dakota
409 3rd Avenue, N.W.
Mandan, ND 58554
(701) 663-1949

Henri Heidt, Co-President
Learning Disabilities Association of North Dakota
7840 Arcata Drive
Bismarck, ND 58503-6333
(701) 222-1490

Mental Health 
Allan Stenehjem, Director
Mental Health Association in North Dakota
1051 E. Interstate Avenue
P.O. Box 4106
Bismarck, ND 58502
(701) 255-3692; (800) 472-2911 
E-mail: astenehjem@mhand.org
Web: www.mhand.org

Mental Retardation 
The Arc, Upper Valley
The Arc of North Dakota
2500 DeMers Avenue
P.O. Box 12420
Grand Forks, ND 58208-2420
(701) 772-6191; (877) 250-2022
E-mail: thearc@arcuv.com
Web: www.thearcuppervalley.com

Special Health Care Needs
Donene Feist, Director
Family Voices of North Dakota, Inc.
312 2nd Avenue
P.O. Box 163
Edgeley, ND 58433
(701) 493-2634; (888) 522-9654
E-mail: feist@daktel.com
Web: www.geocities.com/ndfv

Speech and Hearing 
Vicki Riedinger, President
North Dakota Speech-Language-Hearing Association 
1405 15th Avenue East
West Fargo, ND 58078
(701) 433-0880
E-mail: vicki.riedinger@aegistherapies.com

Organizations Especially for Parents
Parent Training and Information Center (PTI) 
Kathryn Erickson, Director 
Pathfinder Family Center
1600 2nd Avenue, S.W., Suite 19
Minot, ND 58701-3459 
(701) 837-7500; (701) 837-7501 (TTY)
(800) 245-5840 (in ND)
E-mail: ndpath01@ndak.net
Web: www.pathfinder.minot.com

Parent-To-Parent 
Sue Offutt, Program Director
Family to Family Support Network
University of North Dakota School of Medicine and Health Sciences
Center for Rural Health
P.O. Box 9037
Grand Forks, ND 58202-9037
(701) 777-2359; (888) 434-7436
E-mail: NDF2F@medicine.nodak.edu
Web: http://medicine.nodak.edu/crh

Partners in Policymaking 
Joyce Smith, Program Coordinator
North Dakota Partners in Policymaking
Dakota CIL
3111 E. Broadway Avenue
Bismarck, ND 58501
(701) 222-3636; (800) 489-5013
E-mail: joyces@dakotacil.org
Web: www.dakotacil.org

Other Disability Organizations

Gordon Hauge, Chief Executive Officer 
Easter Seals Goodwill North Dakota, Inc.
211 Collins Avenue
P.O. Box 1206
Mandan, ND 58554 
(701) 663-6828; (800) 247-0698 
E-mail: ghauge@nd.easter-seals.org
 

Independent Living 

To find out the contact information for the Statewide 
Independent Living Council (SILC) in your state, contact:
Independent Living Research Utilization Project
The Institute for Rehabilitation and Research
2323 South Sheppard, Suite 1000
Houston, TX 77019
(713) 520-0232 (V); (713) 520-5136 (TTY)
E-mail: ilru@ilru.org
Web: www.ilru.org

To find out the contact information for centers for 
independent living (CILs) in your state, contact:
National Council on Independent Living
1916 Wilson Boulevard, Suite 209
Arlington, VA 22201
(703) 525-3406; (703) 525-4153 (TTY)
E-mail: ncil@ncil.org
Web: www.ncil.org