Township 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, which is highly valued by the communities of this district. Parents are very active in every aspect of our schools. The district graduation rate was 98% in 2019. More than 97% of these graduates go on to post-secondary education. The structure of the district is site-based decision making with a central administration committed to supporting building-based programs and initiatives. Both schools offer a rich array of extracurricular activities and athletic programs. Information about the district’s mission, long range plan and guiding principles are available on the District 113 website (http://www.dist113.org/).
District 113 will offer one internship position at Deerfield High School. 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 1,622 students, 89% are white, 5% are multiracial, 3% are Asian, 2% are Hispanic or Latino, and 1% are Black or African American.
There are four full-time psychologists employed at Deerfield High School, three of whom are ISPIC alumni and licensed clinical psychologists. The psychologists’ responsibilities include individual and group counseling for students with and without IEPs, intervention and consultation with staff and parents, consultation with special and general education programs, crisis intervention and diagnostic assessment. Students with social-emotional needs receive individual or group counseling, and psychologists spend a significant amount of time working directly with students. Focused groups are formed each year according to needs assessment, and groups are facilitated by psychologists and social workers. At the systems level, problem-solving teams meet weekly to identify students with academic or social-emotional difficulties, create individualized intervention plans, and monitor student outcomes. The teams are comprised of teachers, guidance counselors, psychologists, social workers, deans, school nurses and administrators. Additionally, psychologists are members of the schools’ crisis teams.
All interns engage in a diverse array of experiences, and the amount of time an intern spends in each of the aforementioned activities depends somewhat on the needs and desires of the intern.
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 and by District 113 Board of Education policy. Interns can avail themselves of the many professional development opportunities afforded through District 113 and the NSSED Cooperative. In addition to being involved with the District 113 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 $27,000. The intern’s week of 40 hours is individually arranged, but typically occurs between 7:30 and 4:00 PM. Employment is contingent upon satisfactory completion of a criminal background check at the discretion of the Assistant Superintendent of Human Resources.
SUPERVISORS
Erin Januszewski, Ph.D., received her undergraduate degree from University of Notre Dame (2001) and her doctorate from University of Wisconsin-Madison (2006). She is an ISPIC alumna and completed her internship at Highland Park High School. Dr. Januszewski is a Licensed Clinical Psychologist (IL) and a Nationally Certified School Psychologist. She has worked at Deerfield High School since 2006. Her interests include utilization of evidenced based treatments for internalizing disorders and consultation with teachers and parents.
Jessica Brunner-Downs, Ph.D., received her undergraduate degree from Miami University (Ohio) (2004), masters in special education from Brooklyn College (2007), and her doctorate from Fordham University (2013). She is an ISPIC alumna and completed her internship at Deerfield High School in 2012. Dr. Brunner-Downs is a Licensed Clinical Psychologist (IL) and a Nationally Certified School Psychologist. Her interests include internalizing disorders in adolescence and the relationship between executive functioning and academic achievement.
Peter Platten, Ph.D., received his undergraduate degree from University of Wisconsin-Madison (2002) and his doctorate from University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (2010). He is an ISPIC alumnus and completed his internship at Washburne Middle School. Dr. Platten is a Licensed Clinical Psychologist (IL) and a Nationally Certified School Psychologist. He has worked in general education and therapeutic day school settings since 2009. He joined the staff at Deerfield High School in 2014. His interests include working with adolescents to improve their academic and emotional self-regulation skills.
