Organization of the Intern Training Program

CORE EXPERIENCES

Interns engage in an organized sequence of activities under supervision. During the first four weeks of internship, they are oriented to the intern program and the department's services to the district. Assignments to both site supervisors and campuses are made during this time, and training plans are individually developed for each intern.

The typical work week for interns involves providing services at their campuses, receiving individual and group supervision, and attending targeted training colloquia. Tuesday through Friday, interns provide comprehensive psychological services to campuses to which they are assigned. Interns are assigned to at least one school at varying developmental levels (elementary and secondary), with a varying degree of responsibility and task demands in each setting.
Interns have the opportunity to work with students in general education, as well as students with disabilities, from ages 2 to 21. The district provides several programs to meet various educational needs, such as Early Childhood Special Education (ECSE), Life Skills, and Adaptive Behavior (AB).
Each intern will receive a minimum of two hours of individual, face-to-face supervision per week (per APA guidelines). Typically, this is spread across site supervisors, with one-half-hour of supervisory time spent with each assigned site supervisor for each day assigned with that supervisor/site.

Mondays are dedicated to training and group supervision. Interns begin their day with the Coordinator of Interns and Director of Psychological Services. Interns then spend two hours in either assessment or treatment group supervision. The last part of Monday mornings is spent in Family Interaction Training Clinic/Incredible Year group supervision. 

Assessment group focuses on the conceptualization and evaluation of mental health disorders and educational disabilities. Topics include diagnostic taxonomies, assessment techniques, report writing, case conceptualization, and treatment planning. Treatment group provides the interns training on interventions, data collection/monitoring, and the integration of individualized strategies within school-wide systems. Topics include individual and group counseling strategies, behavior consultation, evidence-based practices for internalizing and externalizing concerns, etc. Assessment group and treatment group provide didactic instruction, case studies, and open dialog about important issues.