NESC was the coordinator for Region One ESA (Education Service Agency) in South Dakota. Originally established in 2004, ESAs assisted public school districts by offering technical assistance, data analysis, school improvement, and other professional development related to federal and state legislative mandates.

In 2017 our state legislature voted to repeal its ESA laws through House Bill 1022. The main reason was a lack of consistent funding for ESA programs, but another factor was that cooperatives could already deliver supplemental educational services without the need for additional legal authority. Although Region One ESA is no longer supported through State government, NESC's teaching and learning specialists have continued to provide many of those same services.

Map of South Dakota's Historical ESAs:

Teaching and Learning Specialists