Highland Park Public Schools values our collegiate partnerships and wants to provide an opportunity for students to complete their field experience requirements with us. It is important that the following clearance process is completed prior to a college student entering a school or in a classroom.

All arrangements to accept student teachers for longer than a one day observation period are made through the Human Resources department in conjunction with the College and University placement offices. This includes all observation, practicum, intern, clinical experience, and student teaching requests. In order to meet the needs of the many Universities/Colleges, a student teacher placement request must be sent to the Human Resources department by the following dates:

• By November for Spring

• By June for Fall

The State of New Jersey requires that everyone who has contact with students in the school setting be fingerprinted prior to starting their assignments. Student teachers will not be allowed into the classroom without proof of current fingerprints. Requests for placement will not be sent until fingerprinting can be confirmed. 

STUDENT TEACHER APPLICATION PACKET REQUIREMENTS:

• College/University Student Teacher Request Paperwork including a Memorandum of Understanding with the college/university (emailed from the College/University Placement Advisor)

• A current TB test 

• Proof of Student's Fingerprint Clearance

*APPLICATIONS WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED  WITHOUT THESE DOCUMENTS IN THEIR ENTIRETY*

Field Experience NO longer than one (1) school day (classroom observation):

The student contacts the school Principal  to schedule a campus visit and arrange the classroom(s) to observe.

Field Experience MORE than one (1) day (student teaching, internships, and observations):

The College Placement Advisor contacts the Human Resources Department for the district to arrange placement with written verification of the placement request, including the number of hours required, beginning and ending dates, and other requirements.  Individual students are not permitted to arrange placements. Candidates who reach out directly to the school or a specific department shall be redirected to their college/university advisor to formally contact Human Resources to request the placement. 

Oftentimes, student teachers request a specific placement location and host teacher. We will make every effort to accommodate such requests. There are, however, times that we may not be able to accept the specific placement request due to events in our district that are not conducive to a good student teaching experience.

Procedures

The Human Resources Department emails the school principals for processing and approval of the placement including determining the mentor teacher.  Human Resources will then prepare the board motion for approval at the next board of education meeting following the deadlines established by the district. Once board approval has been granted, the Human Resources department emails the candidate, principal, and college placement advisor to confirm placement and for the candidate to complete the onboarding process.  

Intern and Student Teacher Protocols 

• Assigned staff shall be mindful that the interns and student teachers may not have direct contact with students or parents of Highland Park Public Schools unless the assigned staff person is present and approves such contact in advance.

• In instances where an intern is undertaking work which otherwise would require a professional license, the assigned staff person should be mindful that the intern is operating under the auspices of the staff person’s license or certification (i.e. the school social worker, school psychologist, speech pathologist or therapist, occupational therapist, physical therapist or nursing licenses or certifications). All such work must be directly supervised by the Highland Park staff person and must in all respects comply with legal standards and regularly accepted practices relating to such professional’s work.

• Interns and student teachers are not authorized to use physical restraints of

  students.