SCHOOL COUNSELOR PRACTICUM/INTERNSHIP PROGRAM FAQs

Transcription

1 Contact the Office of School Counseling & Postsecondary Advising (OSCPA) at or visit or CPS INTERNAL FAQs: Commonly Asked Questions of Administrators and Site Supervisors 1) I was an approved Site Supervisor in for placement of an intern in Do I still have to complete this year s application? ANSWER: Yes and No. If even remotely interested in supervising an intern at any time in , you must complete some parts of the Site Supervisors Online Application in order to update records and ensure an accurate school profiles database during the application window (September 22 to November 10, 2014). ONLY approved Site Supervisors can supervise a practicum/internship student next school year. In addition, approval is per individual Site Supervisor. If another counselor you work with was issued approval, this does not automatically extend to other counselors in the building. 2) Why was the school counselor practicum and internship placement process in CPS formalized in ? ANSWER: It was necessary to have a Board Report (Board Report ED3) specific to school counselor practicum and internship placements in CPS. Because of this, legally there must be a formal process and university partnership agreements in place. The School Counselor Practicum/Internship Program has been developed to assist CPS elementary and high school counselors in partnering with an intern in order to positively impact student achievement while exposing future counseling professionals to quality evidence-based academic, personal/social, and college and career programming within the CPS. 3) I am a School Counselor at a CPS Charter School. Do I have to comply with the School Counselor Practicum/Internship Program s requirements and protocols? ANSWER: No. Chicago Public Schools Talent Office is not responsible for processing the security clearance of charter school employees or school interns, volunteers, etc. Please check with your individual school and/or charter school network organization and comply with their procedures. 4) I know that a minimum of 2 years of experience as a School Counselor with Professional Educator Licensure (f/k/a ISBE Type 73 certificate) is required in order to be eligible to be a supervisor. I worked as a School Counselor with an Interim School Counselor Intern certificate (f/k/a ISBE Type 78) for a year. Does that count towards the requirement? ANSWER: No. SCHOOL COUNSELOR PRACTICUM/INTERNSHIP PROGRAM FAQs

2 5) In the past, I ve supervised 2 or 3 student interns at once. Can I still do this in the future? ANSWER: First, the number of placements in the district is dependent on the number of approved applicants received and university partnership agreements in place. To ensure equity and access across the district and a quality individual supervision experience for both interns and supervisors, there is one internship placement per CPS approved Site Supervisor allowed, up to two Site Supervisors per school. Additional consideration can be given by OSCPA to schools with special circumstances by contacting counselorintern@cps.edu with the subject line Special Request in such cases. 6) My school has a counseling department with multiple school counselors. Can we each apply to supervise an intern next school year? ANSWER: First, the number of placements in the district is dependent on the number of approved applicants received and university partnership agreements in place. A maximum of two Supervisor Applications per school will be accepted for consideration; Supervision arrangements will be decided internally at a school s discretion (i.e. two supervisors sharing supervisory duties if allowable by university). In addition, approval is per individual Site Supervisor. If another counselor you work with was issued approval, this does not automatically extend to other counselors in the building. To ensure equity and access across the district, there is only one internship placement per CPS approved Site Supervisor allowed. Additional consideration can be given by OSCPA to schools with special circumstances by contacting counselorintern@cps.edu with the subject line Special Request in such cases. 7) I have been contacted recently by a student intern who is interested in placement at my school. Can I make arrangements with them directly? ANSWER: The first step for a student intern is to complete the Online Application and submit a hard copy of the Security Clearance Packet to Talent Office directly for processing and approval. OSCPA will collaborate with Talent Office and Law Department to ensure security clearance and eligibility. Students should not submit resume, cover letter, etc. to schools directly or contact schools for placement until the student has received an official notice of acceptance into the School Counselor Internship Program from OSCPA, which should be requested and verified by approved Site Supervisors and Principals. 8) I have a long standing relationship with a university and have been supervising interns for years. Do I still have to go through this process and submit an application? ANSWER: Yes. All CPS protocols must be followed. Every school counselor practicum/internship placement and supervision arrangement in CPS must be processed through OSCPA. Any violation in our university partner agreements can result in loss of privilege to mentor interns and/or dismissal from placement arrangement. 9) I am an approved Site Supervisor for Is there a deadline date to make placement arrangements by? ANSWER: Yes. The CPS School Counselor Practicum/Internship Program for placements in closes May 22, 2015 so all arrangements need to be finalized by then. OSCPA will not process and review Placement Decision Forms past this date.

3 10) I am currently supervising a student Intern. How do I get the PDs (f/k/a CPDUs) for this experience? ANSWER: The university that the student is attending, not Chicago Public Schools, is the provider for the PDs. Once Site Supervisors have confirmed their service at the end of the supervision cycle and supplied their contact information, the coordinator for PDs at the university issues the certificate. The Site Supervisor is then advised to enter their PDs received in the ISBE Educator s Certification System (ECS) and keep a hard copy for his/her records in case of audit. To learn more, please discuss with the intern you are supervising. 11) I submitted an online application to be a Site Supervisor for but have not had a response. How do I know that it went through? ANSWER: Once you have completed your online application, it is recommended that you print the thank you page that appears on the screen for your records as verification of your submittal. After the application window has closed on November 10, 2014 and applications are reviewed by OSCPA, applicants will receive an notification of their status as an approved Site Supervisor for acceptance, non-acceptance, or pending (in cases of incomplete or failure to participate in mandated training). If your application receives a pending status, you will have 7 days to comply with the requested actions to receive acceptance status. If you do not receive an and/or see your name listed in Choose Your Future in the Approved Site Supervision Profiles List by December 5, 2014, please contact counselorintern@cps.edu with the subject line Supervision Application Status Inquiry.

4 EXTERNAL FAQs: Commonly Asked Questions of University Students and Liaisons 1) Why was the school counselor practicum and internship placement process in CPS formalized in ? ANSWER: It was necessary to have a Board Report (Board Report ED3) specific to school counselor practicum and internship placements in CPS. Because of this, legally there must be a formal process and university partnership agreements in place. Our School Counselor Practicum/Internship Program has been developed to assist CPS elementary and high school counselors in partnering with an intern in order to positively impact student achievement while exposing future counseling professionals to quality evidence-based academic, personal/social, and college and career programming within CPS. 2) I want a placement in a CPS Charter School. Do I have to comply with this process and protocols? ANSWER: No. Chicago Public Schools Talent Office is not responsible for processing the security clearance of charter school employees or school interns, volunteers, etc. Please check with the respective charter school and/or charter school network organization to comply with their procedures. 3) I am a current CPS Charter School Employee who wants placement in a CPS, non-charter school. Do I have to comply with this process and protocols? ANSWER: Yes. All placement requests for CPS schools must be processed by Chicago Public Schools Talent Office and OSCPA. Remember that fingerprinting and TB test results must be within 90 days of application submission. 4) If Step One of the process is to complete the Application and Security Clearance Packet, when does the student contact the school counselor directly? ANSWER: As part of the CPS Application and Security Clearance Packet, students are required to submit supplemental documentation such as a resume and letters of recommendation to OSCPA. Students should not submit resume, cover letter, etc. to schools directly or approach schools for placement until the student has received a Notice of Acceptance into the School Counselor Internship Program. At this time, the intern student will be eligible to contact approved site supervisors/school sites directly and complete any actions required as part of the individual school s screening process (i.e. submittal of documents, interview, etc.). 5) My university requires confirmation of placement by a certain deadline. What is the timeframe for CPS? ANSWER: It varies and there can be no guarantee. The application window is open from November 17, 2014 to January 19, At this time there is no clear timeframe as much depends on the receipt of TB test and fingerprinting results (up to 2 weeks for processing) and the numbers of supervisor and practicum/internship placement applications received that require processing. In addition, placement arrangements with an approved Site Supervisor are the responsibility of the practicum/internship student. Keeping this in mind, it is recommended that students act in a timely manner and contact counselorintern@cps.edu for status inquiries if an excessive amount of time has lapsed.

5 6) The TB test is requested as part of the CPS Application and Clearance Packet. However, I thought that the TB test is supposed to be done within 90 days of the actual site placement in Fall. Will I have to get another TB test prior to my internship in July? ANSWER: The 90 day language for the fingerprinting and TB sections of the packet has been updated. Results for both should be within 90 days of the submission deadline. Packets for placement during are due between November 17, 2014 and January 19, Results should be completed within a 90-day window prior to submission of packet. 7) What is considered to be acceptable proof of liability insurance? ANSWER: Insurance coverage information has been clarified on the cover page of the Application and Clearance packet. CPS will accept an official letter from a university in the instance that the university provides coverage for their students. If the university doesn t, a student intern should obtain private insurance or join ASCA, ACA, or ISCA as a student member to obtain coverage for school counseling related services in schools. For example, ACA through an agreement with Healthcare Providers Service Organization (HPSO) and its underwriter, American Casualty Company of Reading Pennsylvania, is providing eligible ACA student members with professional liability insurance coverage as an additional value-added benefit of membership. Coverage is available to ACA student members solely while performing counseling services related to their master s degree counseling curriculum. Coverage terminates when the student graduates from their master s degree program, or their ACA membership expires. Note: Many insurance policies allow an individual to set the start and end date for coverage. Therefore, students should include one of the following: a university letter regarding coverage provided, proof of private insurance, or proof of coverage through ASCA or some professional organization to meet this requirement. Again, we are confirming that at time of application and acceptance into program, students have insurance coverage. Student interns are expected to maintain coverage throughout the duration of their CPS placement. It can be noted that they are signing an Acknowledgement form adhering to this requirement that insurance will be maintained throughout internship experience. If students don t maintain insurance coverage, they are in violation of the Acknowledgment Form with their signature, and more importantly, the university/cps legal agreement. 8) I realize that, in some cases, students will have to renew their proof of liability insurance midinternship and sign the Acknowledgement form to abide by the rule of maintaining coverage. Will I later have to send proof of policy renewal to OSPCA? ANSWER: Please submit a copy of proof of liability insurance to OSCPA at 125 S. Clark Street, 12th FL, Chicago, IL or electronically to counselorintern@cps.edu upon renewal to update your file. 9) I am currently employed by CPS in some capacity. Do I still have to follow this process and complete the Application and Security Clearance Packet? ANSWER: Yes, to some degree. All school counselor internship placements and supervisor arrangements need to be processed, cleared, and tracked through OSCPA. First, the question of whether or not the student is already currently employed by CPS is on the application so we will be able to capture these instances. Per the cover page of the Application and Clearance packet, a current employee does not need

6 to complete the TB and Fingerprintportions since that information is already on file with CPS. Please complete and submit all other sections, including the online application and supporting documentation. 10) I am currently employed by CPS in some capacity and am a student in a school counseling program. What are my options for placement? ANSWER: Placement arrangements are up to the approved student intern and Site Supervisor in accord with your university s requirements. Please talk with a Professional Educator Licensed School Counselor(s) at your current employment site to discuss possible arrangements and ensure that an application to be a Site Supervisor is submitted, if desired, by the deadline. Some options previous CPS employees have considered: sabbatical, time off, prioritize schools with a different calendar track, prioritize schools with evening school, Saturday programs, and/or summer school programs, making special scheduling arrangements with Principal, etc. If interested in a placement in a CPS school (non-charter school), please review the Citywide School Site Supervisors Profile List to assist in determining which schools could best meet your needs potentially. 11) Will I be assigned a placement or will I be able to determine best fit for me based on my needs and circumstances? ANSWER: OSCPA will not be conducting any matching or issuing placement pool sites. Once approved, an internship candidate can contact schools from the currently available list of approved site supervision placements, which will be posted online. 12) I completed the Application and Security Clearance Packet. Am I guaranteed placement in CPS next school year? ANSWER: No. First of all, there must be an executed university partnership agreement between CPS and your university/college in order to be eligible for placement. Approval for potential placement is granted based on a review of the candidate s TB test and fingerprinting results and application. Approval of application is not a guarantee for placement as placement is dependent on the availability of school sites approved to supervise a practicum/internship student. 13) I m at the point in my program where I only have to complete an observation in a school. Do I still have to complete the School Counselor Internship Application and Security Clearance Packet? ANSWER: No. CPS Talent Office is processing requests for students wishing to complete school counseling non-field experience (i.e. observations and/or brief school visits that are NOT a part of university course requirements for Practicum and/or Internship) within the CPS. Please visit under the 'Attention Field Experience Candidates' section for detailed information and online registration. Registration for CPS School Counselor Non-Field Experience is open year-round; there are no deadline dates. For more information, please fieldexperience@cps.edu. Per CPS Labor Relations, any university student completing school visits, pre-practicum experiences, and/or observations in order to gain credit for their respective degree programs will need to obtain clearance and provide a recent background check that provides the results from both the FBI and Illinois State Police, regardless of the length of time spent in the school. However, TB test results are not required. In cases where a university wants to conduct a field trip/visit to a CPS school for whatever

7 reason, there is an additional one page form to complete regarding the purpose of your visit. To obtain the CPS Visiting Universities Form, please request via to: 14) My approved Site Supervisor for per OSCPA s Final Approval Notice has since transferred to another school in CPS. What do I do? ANSWER: First, you can transfer with your approved Site Supervisor to the new school site with the Principal s agreement. Second, you can remain at the original school site as long as the new School Counselor was previously approved to be a Site Supervisor for by OSCPA. In either of these cases, please complete a new School Counselor Practicum/Internship Placement Decision (Form K-12-S3) and submit to counselorintern@cps.edu. OSCPA will update records and make the adjustment accordingly. Third, you can seek placement at a non-cps site such as a private or suburban school or a CPS Charter School. 15) My approved Site Supervisor for per OSCPA s Final Approval Notice has since retired or is no longer working as a School Counselor in a CPS school and the new School Counselor was not previously approved to be a Site Supervisor. What do I do? ANSWER: Please contact counselorintern@cps.edu for direction on next steps. 16) I am attending a university that is not currently a university partner but I want to intern in CPS during the school year. How can I add my university to the partnership list? ANSWER: At this time, certain universities have been invited to become university partners based on select criteria. These universities had the option of executing an agreement with the CPS or not. If your university would like to arrange a partnership, the university must submit documentation to counselorintern@cps.edu for review regarding the school counseling program offered at the university. Check the Choose Your Future website for a current list. 17) I am a Student Intern accepted in the School Counselor Internship Program for placement Is there a deadline date to make placement arrangements by? ANSWER: Yes. The CPS School Counselor Practicum/Internship Program for placements in closes May 22, 2015 so all arrangements need to be finalized by then. OSCPA will not process and review Placement Decision Forms past this date. 18) I submitted an online application for practicum/internship placement in but have not had a response. How do I know that it went through? ANSWER: Once you have completed your online application, it is recommended that you print the thank you page that appears on the screen for your records as verification of your submittal. Talent Office will first process and review the hard copy Security Clearance Packet, which can take approximately two weeks on average. Once security clearance is issued, OSCPA will review the online application and issue a practicum/internship placement candidate status notification for acceptance or nonacceptance. If you do not receive an notification within 30 days from submittal of your Security Clearance packet, please contact OSCPA at counselorintern@cps.edu with the subject line Placement Application Status Inquiry.

8 19) I was approved for practicum/internship placement in in the CPS but have secured a placement outside of Chicago Public Schools. How should I proceed? ANSWER: Please complete the applicable sections of the Notice of Placement Decision Form and submit to counselorintern@cps.edu so that our database and records can be updated LD