Procedure 5642

 

Internships

The following procedures have been developed to provide general guidance for the district administrative intern program.  It is hoped that through this document the field of experiences of administrative interns will be more uniform within the district and provide that interns working in the district will be exposed to a multitude of daily administrative field experiences leading to the granting of a Principal’s Credential or a Superintendent’s Credential. 

Any questions related to the interpretation of this procedure shall be directed to the chairperson of the Intern Committee.

Candidate Qualifications:

Any person desiring to complete an administrative internship in the district should meet the following criteria:

1. Completed a master’s degree or be currently enrolled in a master’s degree program.
2. Enrolled in a college or university program designed to satisfy the administrative certification requirements of Washington State.
3. Demonstrated five (5) years of successful public education experience.  Three (3) years of this experience must have been completed in the Longview School District prior to internship. At the building level, interns must be current employees of the district. In the case of a Central Administrative Internship Program, prior administrative experience is required, but need not be restricted to experience in the district. 
4. Demonstrate the following, as judged by the Intern Committee:
   1. Leadership potential, as demonstrated by prior professional or community activities.
   2. High academic caliber, as demonstrated by college professor evaluations and/or grade point average.
   3. Ability to effectively organize.
   4. Ability to effectively cooperate with students, parents, certificated and classified staff, determined by previous evaluations and/or letters of recommendation.
   5. Communicates well orally and in writing.

Intern Positions:

The total number of assigned administrative interns shall be determined by the Intern Committee based on the need and quality of candidates. Building interns should be equal or less than the total number of school administers at each site. 

Application Procedures:

1. Prior to applying with the District for acceptance to the Intern Program, the candidate must discuss his/her intentions of completing an internship with his/her immediate supervisor.
2. Candidates desiring to do an administrative internship in the Longview School District must submit the following to the Leadership and Learning Department prior to March 31 of the year preceding the desired internship year:
   1. Updated resume.
   2. Letter of recommendation and support from your current evaluator.
   3. Letter of interest which addresses leadership potential, course and professional development background, and professional experience.
   4. Two additional reference contacts who are acquainted with your professional work.
   5. Examples of leadership within the building and district.
   6. Documentation that you have submitted for any available state funded internship grants (typically available through AWSP)

Intern Committee:

A. The Intern Committee shall be made up of at least three members including a principal representative from secondary and elementary levels.  The Intern Committee shall be chaired by the Executive Director of Leadership and Learning or designee. 

B. Relationship to Colleges or Universities:  The Intern Committee shall work closely with colleges and universities to plan a worthwhile field experience program for each administrative intern accepted into the program.  The Intern Committee will work to implement these intern procedures.

C. Duties: The Intern Committee has the prerogative of accepting or rejecting all prospective administrative interns, even if they have already begun a college or university program leading to an administrative credential.  A candidate who is denied an internship by the Intern Committee shall be given an explanation specifying reasons for the denial and provide details of how the candidate can strengthen their consideration for the future.

D. Intern Selection Procedures:  Intern selection shall be made without regard to race, sex, creed, national origin, age, marital status, or handicap of the applicant.  The Intern Committee will convene on the call of the committee chairperson.  This date will be set after receiving all required information from persons seeking to apply for district internship programs for the following school year. 

      The Committee shall:

1. Receive and review each application.
2. Review candidate’s credential file.
3. Interview candidate.
4. Interview, as necessary, other persons relevant to candidate’s application (i.e. persons named in resume as references; others who have knowledge of candidate’s job-related background).
5. Seek other written information on candidate, if required. 
6. The committee will determine which principal intern candidates, if any, have been accepted or rejected.

E. Timeline: The Intern Committee chairperson shall be responsible for setting all meeting dates. The candidate will be informed of the timeline governing the intern evaluation process. Determination and communication regarding each candidate’s application shall be made by April 30. 

Responsibilities of Supervising Administrator:

The supervising administrator shall be responsible for ensuring that all interns are provided learning experience in all areas of the field experience activities.  The supervising administrator will meet with the intern to select the appropriate activities and establish a recommended calendar for completion of the various field experiences.  The guidelines for the intern field experience shall serve as the basic parameters.  This calendar shall be completed by October 1 of the intern year and copies provided to the intern and the chairperson of the Intern Committee.  In structuring the internship for successful candidates, the needs of the intern and the District shall be considered.

All interns will be placed with a principal or district office administrator with at least three years of successful administrative experience.

Any administrator has the right to decline supervision of any person desiring to do an internship in his/her building or area of responsibility.  If an administrator declines to work with an intern, the District shall make every effort possible to reassign the candidate to a building or department of an administrator will to work with the candidate during the course of the internship program.  Should the supervising administrator accept an intern, it is to be regarded as an additional responsibility without compensation.

Intern Responsibilities:

The administrative intern will be responsible for meeting all school, district, and college requirements. 

Interns are expected to work the same amount of extra time as those in similar positions (i.e. principal interns shall work the same number of days as the building administration). There shall be no additional compensation for the additional days worked. 

Released Time:

The Longview School District recognizes that the internship will require the intern to attend meetings or to complete assignments during the school day.  To assist in the completion of these tasks, the District relies on the funding from the state grant to allow release time for the intern. 

Because the program is offered for the benefit of the intern, it is expected that the intern’s classroom preparation will have to be done outside of the school day.  Time not spent in actual classroom instruction should be devoted to internship responsibilities (planning periods are expected to be used for administrative tasks with no additional compensation for loss of planning time).  Interns by the nature of the program must spend time beyond the regular work day as requested by the supervising administrator. 

Administrative Assignments:

The Longview School District does not assume any responsibility for the placement of the intern into administrative positions following completion of the internship and the awarding of an Elementary or Secondary Principal’s Credential or a Superintendent’s Credential.

 

 

Originally Adopted: December 10, 2018