An April 2022 decision by the College of Education at Cal State Fullerton to withdraw student teachers from the Placentia-Yorba Linda Unified School District hasn’t kept students in the university’s other divisions from completing internships in district classrooms.
Since the beginning of summer, the district renewed three agreements with the university that will place Cal State students in classroom settings for the next two or three years. Each of the agreements was approved on an unanimous vote by trustees.
And according to comments at an August meeting, district officials are in contact with College of Education administrators to return student teachers to the district’s 34 campuses. Assistant Superintendent Issaic Gates said he’s “hopeful” Cal State student teachers will be back.
The university had six student teachers in the district at the time of the withdrawal decision, down from the 70 to 80 normally placed in district elementary, middle and high school classrooms, according to EdSource, a nonprofit newsroom covering public education in the state.
One factor in the decision to withdraw student teachers was the district’s decision to prohibit the teaching of critical race theory, the first district in Orange County to establish such a ban in 2022.
Currently, the district has nearly 30 agreements with colleges and universities regarding the placement of interns in the district. Statements accompanying most of the agreements note the institutions screen interns, with participation in the pacts assisting in future recruitment.
The recently renewed pacts with Cal State include a Teaching Internship Program Agreement to provide support for non-credentialed teachers, an Affiliated Clinical Site Agreement for athletic training students and a Communicative Disorders Program Agreement for use by speech-language pathologists.
Other agreements approved by trustees in June, August and September include pacts to place student teachers, counselors, physical and occupational therapists, speech-language pathologists and speech-language pathology assistants with Central State University, Maryville University, Chapman University and Calvin University.
Others include Nova Southeastern University, Rancho Santiago Community College, Point Loma Nazarene University, Massachusetts Emerson College and Cal State East Bay.
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The recent denial of a charter school petition submitted by California Republic Leadership Academy on a 5-0 trustee vote will be appealed to the Orange County Board of Education.
Currently, Orange County has 42 charter schools, including the 23 authorized by the county board. Some of the board-authorized charters were approved after being denied by districts.
The California Republic Leadership Academy has a county board-approved charter school for kindergarten through eighth grade students in the Capistrano Unified School District.
Jim Drummond is a longtime Yorba Linda resident. He gives his opinion on local issues weekly. Send e-mail to jimdrummond@hotmail.com.
