Except as provided below, each applicant shall complete a thirty-hour training course provided by the department. The course includes training in the following areas:

1. (1) The impact of separation on child development;
2. (2) How attachments are formed;
3. (3) The importance of the birth family;
4. (4) Techniques of managing behavior;
5. (5) Permanency planning for children; and

6. (6) Child development.

   The training requirements do not apply to an adoptive applicant for a kinship child adoption. The department or a child-placement agency licensed by the state shall instead assess the adoptive applicant’s training needs and assist them in locating training resources.

Source: 17 SDR 157, effective April 23, 1991 ; 51 SDR 127, effective June 1, 2025 .

General Authority: SDCL 26-4-9.1 .

Law Implemented: SDCL 26-4-9.1 .

Prior versions effective: 1991-04-23.