All new employees, contractors, and volunteers must have the appropriate state and district-mandated clearances dated no more than one year from the date of their obtainment before they may be cleared to work within the district. Please contact hr@umtsd.org for more information.

Upper Moreland School District Guidelines for Assignment of Student Teachers, Interns, Field Experience, and Observations

The Upper Moreland School District encourages cooperation with colleges and universities in the training of student teachers and interns. Therefore, the school district will accept college students from a broad spectrum of accredited institutions of higher learning. The following guidelines must be followed. You will be asked to sign at the end of the application indicating your understanding of our requirements for student teacher/ intern placements. 

WE ARE PLEASED THAT YOU ARE INTERESTED IN THE UPPER MORELAND SCHOOL DISTRICT FOR:

• Pre-Student Teaching

• Student Teaching

• Internship

• Practicum/ Observation

THE PROCESS & REQUIRED DOCUMENTATION FOR OBTAINING A PLACEMENT IS AS FOLLOWS:

Step 1: The college or university reaches out to the Office of the Assistant Superintendent to verify placement opportunities that meet the needs of the pre-service teachers in their program. The Office of the Assistant Superintendent will verify an affiliation agreement exists between the District and the university. 

Step 2: IF the student candidate is eligible (required forms listed below must be submitted) and IF there is a placement available, the Office of the Assistant Superintendent will reach out to confirm the specifics of the placement. 

• Letter from the college/university formally requesting the placement, which provides the details of the assignment (e.g., dates, grade/subject, location, number of hours, activities that must be performed).

• Résumé

• Unofficial Transcript of Record

Step 3: Once the student candidate is has been approved by the Office of the Assistant Superintendent, the student candidate should visit the links below to complete the following paperwork: 

Step 3: After the student candidate obtains the proper paperwork, the candidate should visit the following link: Frontline System, and complete the steps outlined below:

1. Please fill out personal information. You must provide an email address.

2. Please select either, Student Teacher, Observations, or Intern

3. Upload all required Documents

4. Please read the disclaimer and provide a digital signature 

5. Application Confirmation Completed 

Step 4: Once the district administration verifies the student candidate's paperwork and eligibility, the Office of Human Resources will notify the Office of the Assistant Superintendent that the respective candidate is approved to begin their student teaching, internship, or observation hours. 

Step 5: The Office of the Assistant Superintendent will send a verification letter to the candidate, the college/university, the building principal/ supervisor, and the host teacher confirming the start date and conditions of the placement. 

The deadlines for submitting requests for student teaching, internship, and practicum are:

• April 1 for fall semester placement

• November 1 for spring semester placement

Questions? Contact Gwen Hatcher, Executive Assistant to the Offices of Assistant Superintendent & Teaching & Learning, at ghatcher@umtsd.org or (215) 830-1506

ASSIGNMENT AND PLACEMENT OF STUDENT TEACHERS/INTERNS WILL FOLLOW THE PROCESS BELOW:

1. Human Resources will communicate cleared applicants to the Office of the Assistant Superintendent. Student teachers/interns will be assigned by the building principal/designee in consultation with and approval by the Office of the Assistant Superintendent using the volunteer teacher list of teachers with Instructional II certification. The Supervisor of Special Education and Pupil Services will assign pupil services specialist interns.

2. Student teachers will only be assigned to experienced staff members (Level II certification). The responsible administrator will inform the Director of Human Resources, in writing, of the student-teacher assignments that have been finalized.

3. Prior to the commencement of the student teaching experience, the college/university must provide a written explanation of program expectations to the Upper Moreland SD cooperating professional; and, provide a clear understanding of the frequency of visits from the college/ university supervisor during the semester.

4. Field experience/observations are discouraged during the last two weeks of the school year.