Field Placement

The Master of Arts in Teaching program offers a comprehensive student teaching experience in partner district classrooms throughout Central Oregon. The student teaching component is a crucial part of teacher formation that offers students unique exposure to a diversity of school districts, policies, administration, staff, cultures, and ethnic and economic groups.

Placement Policy

  • 黑料吃瓜总站-Cascades guarantees student teaching placements that meet the program requirements on the condition that students adhere to the program policies and professional dispositions. The placements will be in the teacher candidate鈥檚 primary endorsement area and within a 60-mile radius of the OSU-Cascades campus. Placement in a district that is further than 60 miles will be considered upon request. 
  • In accordance with Oregon Teacher Standards and Practices Commission, student teaching placements must be in accredited schools. 
  • Teacher Candidates will be required to pass a background check through Teacher Standards and Practices Commission (TSPC).

Please contact our Internship Coordinator with placement questions

Placement Timeline

  • February through April: Once students have accepted their offer of admission, they will receive an email detailing the placement process and required documents. It is very important that students DO NOT make any contact with school district administrators, principals, or teachers concerning their student teaching placement.
  • April through August: The Internship Coordinator will email students with their assigned placement information and directions to initiate a 鈥淢eet and Greet鈥 with their Cooperating Teacher(s).
  • August: The Internship Coordinator will email students specific directions for all other placement requirements including district-specific training and procedures. 
  • End of August: Student teaching placements begin during in-service week and follow the school district calendar rather than the OSU-Cascades academic calendar.

Placement Information

  • Information related to your placement is collected from you upon acceptance into the Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) program.
  • We work with six school districts in Central Oregon: 黑料吃瓜总站-La Pine, Redmond, Sisters, Crook, Madras, and Culver. Students will be required to travel to schools in these districts (up to 60 miles from the OSU-Cascades campus) for their internship experience.
  • The timing for placement notification varies and is dependent upon multiple circumstances, to include timely submission of placement documentation, district timelines, and staffing availability. 
  • The MAT program offers two student teaching placements.
    • First Placement: Part-time, starting at the end of August through end of December (varies per district calendar). 
    • Second Placement: Part-time until OSU-Cascades spring break, then full-time through mid-June following district contract hours. 
  • For students seeking an elementary endorsement, one placement will be in grades K-2, and one one placement will be in grades 3-5. 
  • For students seeking a secondary endorsement, one placement will be in middle school (grades 6-8), and one placement will be in high school (9-12). 

Fingerprints and Background Checks

The safety of children is always our highest priority, and we are vigilant in assuring that the appropriate clearance has been given for each OSU student we place in a K-12 setting. Please allow a minimum of 8 weeks before your placement is scheduled to begin. 

If you have had a background check within the past 3 years and have the TSPC clearance email, please contact the Internship Coordinator.

Instructions

Throughout the process, save all emails and receipts, and check your spam folder regularly.

Please follow the instructions at the bottom of this webpage:
 (Link is external)

  1. Apply via this website:
    • Please note:
      If you do not have an account with TSPC, you'll need to create one.
      Select "Clinical Practices" for the licensing category, and 黑料吃瓜总站 (not Cascades College).
  2. After about 5-7 days, TSPC will send an email with instructions and your code to schedule an appointment with Fieldprint - a company contracted by Oregon state agencies to provide fingerprinting services. Schedule your appointment at and get fingerprinted as scheduled.
  3. After approximately 4-6 weeks, eLicensing will email you your clearance. Save this email as a pdf and submit to the program as instructed. (TSPC does not notify OSU.)

Questions

Please contact our Internship Coordinator (Link sends email) if you have questions about the fingerprinting or background check processes.