U of A Psychology Internship Consortium

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Sunnyside Unified School

Sunnyside Unified School District is the second-largest school district in Southern Arizona, serving more than 16,300 students and families in prekindergarten through 12^th grade. SUSD consists of a culturally diverse community of teachers, classified staff, and administrators and is surrounded by two First Nations — the Tohono O'odham and Pascua Yaqui Tribes. At the start of the 2018-2019 academic year, SUSD students spoke 20 different languages. All SUSD schools are Title I programs and receive funding in accordance with federal programs.

Interns matched with SUSD will join a team of 22 school psychologists (five of whom are licensed psychologists in Arizona). SUSD school psychologists provide a wide variety of assessment and consultation services related to school populations and issues. Interns have the opportunity to work on specialized teams, such as the autism team that provides district-wide services. Psychologists are assigned to no more than two schools at the elementary level and one school at the secondary level.

SUSD interns will have the opportunity to work with several different age levels and gain exposure to students with a wide range of needs. They will be expected to provide the same services provided by a certified school psychologist by the time they complete their internship. Interns receive individual and group supervision and have opportunities to both receive and provide didactics and case presentations.

Tucson Unified School District

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Tucson Unified School District is currently the second-largest school district in the state of Arizona and is the largest school district in Southern Arizona, serving students from prekindergarten through 12^th grade. With a student enrollment of approximately 47,000 students in over 80 campuses, TUSD is comprised of a diverse population with nearly 79% minority enrollment. The Exceptional Education Department serves approximately 7,000 students identified with varied special education needs. School psychologists work closely with related service personnel, such as speech pathologists, occupational therapists, physical therapists, social workers, special education teachers, paraprofessionals, nurses, counselors, and general education staff.

Interns matched with TUSD will be assigned an internship program tailored to the individual’s professional goals. Based on preference and supervisor’s discretion, interns could conduct rotations that focus on students with intellectual disabilities, emotional disabilities, severe emotional disabilities, and/or autism. TUSD would offer opportunities to work with ages from prekindergarten to high school. Interns can build assessment, counseling, and procedural process skills with different supervisors through the rotations, but also focus on target areas with the primary supervisor. After the first half of the year, the intern will be assigned a school to immerse in the day-to-day functioning of a school psychologist.