South Dakota School for the Blind and Visually Impaired

The South Dakota School for the Blind and Visually Impaired (SDSBVI) is a state-supported school located in Aberdeen, South Dakota that provides services to meet the educational needs of sensory impaired children from birth through twenty-one in South Dakota. SDSBVI is governed by the South Dakota Board of Regents.

SDSBVI was founded in 1900 in Gary. Beginning as a charitable asylum, in 1917 the State Legislature designated it for the "care, maintenance, and instruction of blind babies and children under school age"; expanding the upper age limit of 21 in 1925 with up to 12 years of schooling provided at state's expense. The institution was re-designated a school, becoming the South Dakota School for the Blind and in 1945 it was removed from the list of charitable institutions and placed under the jurisdiction of the South Dakota Board of Regents.

On September 18, 1961, the school moved to its present location in Aberdeen and in 1970 the name was changed to the South Dakota School for the Visually Handicapped to better address the range of students it served. The school was accredited by the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools in 1994. In 1998, the name was changed to its present form.