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Developmental Centers Home Page

The Department of Developmental Services directly operates five State Developmental Centers located in San Jose, Costa Mesa, Pomona, Porterville and Eldridge (Sonoma County) and two smaller state-operated community facilities located in Yuba City and in Cathedral City.

The developmental centers are licensed and certified as Nursing Facility (NF), Intermediate Care Facility/Mentally Retarded (ICF/MR) and acute care hospitals. The two smaller community facilities are licensed as ICF/MR facilities.

These facilities provide an array of services and supports for individuals in need of a secure environment, or who have special medical and/or behavioral program needs. Admission to one of these facilities requires either a formal determination that the individual meets stringent admission criteria, or a court order.

As facilities that provide 24-hour services, these facilities deal with all aspects of the individuals' lives. This includes everything from residential services through skill training, specialized health-care and other therapies to leisure and recreational opportunities.

The primary mission is to provide habilitation and training services that are designed to increase residents' levels of independence and functioning skills, ability to control their environment, and ability to live in community settings. These services are supplemented, as needed, with medical, dental, nursing and a wide variety of other specialized services such as physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy and language development.

Persons admitted through the judicial system receive training on the skills and competency necessary to live successfully in the community. Individuals with medical conditions receive special supervision and medical and nursing care in NF units. A full-range of behavior intervention and behavior-skills training services are available for persons who need them.

If able to participate, residents under age 22 attend school either in community schools or in developmental center classes. Adult individuals participate in a wide variety of vocational and skill-development programs both on the grounds or in the community if appropriate. All individuals are given the opportunity to participate in a variety of recreational activities and leisure pursuits.

Developmental Centers:

• Agnews Developmental Center in San Jose, Santa Clara County
  
• Fairview Developmental Center in Costa Mesa, Orange County
  
• Lanterman Developmental Center in Pomona, Los Angeles County
  
• Porterville Developmental Center in Porterville, Tulare County
  
• Sonoma Developmental Center in Eldridge, Sonoma County
  

State-Operated Community Facilities:

• Sierra Vista in Yuba City, Sutter County
  
• Canyon Springs in Cathedral City, Riverside County