Township High School District 113
Deerfield High School and Highland Park High School
District 113 is located in the north suburban area of Chicago. It is comprised of two high schools in Highland Park and Deerfield. District 113 strives to create caring learning communities that recognize relationships as the foundation of learning. The district has a long history of excellence in education. Education is highly valued by the communities of this district. Parents are very active in every aspect of our schools. More than ninety-five percent of graduates go on to college after graduation. The structure of the district is site -based decision making with a central administration committed to supporting building based programs and initiatives. Information about the district's mission, long range plan and guiding principles are available on the District 113 website (http://www.dist113.org/) We are a member of the North Suburban Special Education District (NSSED) which provides a range of supplementary/related services to our schools, as well as, programs for students with moderate to severe disabilities.Overall the district is 8.8% Low Income, and 16% of the students population receive Special Education services.
Deerfield High School is located east of I-294 and west of I-41. The Deerfield community is bordered to the south by Northbrook and to the north by Lake Forest. The DHS community is largely residential with some industry along its southern boundary. Of the 1,716 students, 86.9 are white, 1.4% are Black or African American, 8.5% are Hispanic or Latino, and 3.2% Asian. The psych-social staff is part of the Special Education and Counseling Departments. There are four full time psychologists in the building, one of whom is a Ph.D., licensed clinical psychologist.
Highland Park High School is located 25 miles north of Chicago on Lake Michigan. The community is largely suburban residential with some light industry. There are four full time psychologists in the building, one of whom is the supervising psychologist on site. Of the 2018 students, 79% are White, 16% are Hispanic or Latino, 2% are Multi-Racial and 2% are Black or African American.
Internship Description
Historically the district has supported two ISPIC interns per academic year; one at Deerfield High School and one at Highland Park High School. Students with psych-social needs receive direct, individual or group counseling. Focus groups are formed each year according to a needs assessment. Usually groups are offered to address for example: freshman transition, eating disorders, divorce, COA, recovery, depression, grief & loss, gender issues.
Interns receive ongoing training and supervision from both licensed and certified psychologists focusing on developing meaningful and effective intervention components through best practices in assessment, prevention/intervention, consultation and supervision. Opportunities for research and evaluation are limited only by what is in the best interest of students. Interns can avail themselves of the many professional development opportunities afforded through the NSSED Cooperative.
The psychologists' responsibilities include individual and group counseling, intervention and consultation with staff and parents, consultation with special and general education programs, crisis intervention and diagnostic assessment. An intervention based, problem-solving process is used to identify students with learning or adjustment difficulties. The problem solving teams meet weekly and are comprised of guidance counselors, social workers, psychologists, educational diagnosticians, deans, school nurse and administrators. Each ISPIC intern will spend one day per week in the Drop-In Center at Highland Park High School. There is opportunity for system level consultation through participation in district wide initiatives (i.e. emerging RTI practices).
The internship plan is often individualized to address areas of personal interest such as emotional disability, autism, consultation, cognitive behavioral therapy, transition planning or assessment and planning for specific low incidence populations.
In addition to being involved with the District summer school program, additional summer options are flexible and coordinated through NSSED. The majority of our interns have been able to utilize some of their time in the summer to work on their dissertation.
The intern receives a stipend of $20,000. The intern's workweek of 40 hours is individually arranged but typically occurs between 7:00 and 4:30 PM. Both schools offer a rich array of extra-curricular activities and athletic programs. Interns may apply for activity sponsor and coaching positions as positions as they are available.
SUPERVISORS
David Grott, Ph.D., received his doctorate from Loyola University of Chicago (1991). Prior to completing his doctorate he worked as a school psychologist providing diagnostic services in a cooperative program shared by IDCFS and School District U-46. He subsequently completed an externship in Family Systems at the Institute for Juvenile Research. Dr. Grott is a Licensed Clinical Psychologist (IL.) and a Nationally Certified School Psychologist. He is currently a psychologist and off-campus coordinator for Deerfield High School, District 113; in Deerfield, Illinois. His interests include utilization of evidenced based treatments for anxiety and depression in the school setting.
Kevin Caines, MA Ed. has been a practicing school psychologist for over 25 years. A primary focus of his work during this period has been on developing systemic intervention practices within the general education setting. He has found that delivering clinical support to adolescents within their home high school setting provides positive social-emotional outcomes for students, as well as improving their availability for learning. Kevin helped develop Highland Park’s Drop-In Center, which provides a wide range of support groups, short-term problem solving interventions, and crisis work for a diverse student population. Having supervised school psychology interns for over two decades, he helps foster an atmosphere of collegial collaboration and professional development that promotes a student focused support network.
Pedro Garcia-Alonso, PhD, is a school psychologist/intervention specialist in Highland Park High School. He has a Bachelors Degree from the University of Salamanca, Spain, and a Masters and Doctorate from Loyola University. He is a part-time faculty member at Loyola University Chicago and worked at Chicago Public Schools for eight years before coming to Highland Park. He is interested in human rights, LGBT, and social justice issues and volunteer with the AIDS Foundation of Chicago and ALMA (Association of Latin Men for Action).