Model Secondary School for the Deaf
Internship Program

Internship Host Site Guidelines

Allen Talbert, MSSD Internship Program Specialist 202-651-5772 (TTY)
Allen.Talbert@gallaudet.edu or Talbert@tmo.blackberry.net
Call Sorenson Video Relay Service
1-866-327-8877 and give my (TTY #) 202-651-5772

Jandi Arboleda, Transition Counselor
Jandi.Arboleda@gallaudet.edu or Jandi@tmo.blackberry.net
202-651-5872 (Voice)

• Duration of Work Experience
  Senior: Wednesday, 9:00 am to 3:00 pm . The first day will be October 1st for seniors.
  Junior & Sophomore: Wednesday, 8:30 am to 11:25 am . The first day will be October 1 st for juniors and sophomores.
  Extended Work Program: Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays. Students who are under Work Extended Program can begin work at 11:00 am until 3:00 pm .

• Compensation
  Internship experiences are unpaid. Should a host site wish to pay students we can explore additional work hours during the week or on weekends after internship hours are satisfied.

• Workplace Guidelines
  You are asked to review work place and guidelines to ensure work experience quality and safety of the students.

• Role of the Transition Counselor
  MSSD transition counselors are available as a resource and “job coach” to assist in making the work experiences a positive learning experience for everyone. If you need support or guidance, please contact the appropriate transition counselor below:

• Interviews
  Host sites may want to conduct a mock interview coordinated by the MIP. The mock interview process is a good learning experience.

• Transportation/Brown Bag Lunch
  Model Secondary School for the Deaf will provide fare cards and tokens to all seniors who go off-campus for their internship. Gallaudet shuttle buses are available to take the students to Union Station. The school also provides brown bag lunches for them.

• Attendance and Punctuality
  Attendance and punctuality are important factors for effective work performance. Timesheets should be completed weekly. Supervisors should inform by phone or email as soon as possible if a student does not arrived at the worksite an hour after the expected time of arrival or arrived later than expected, you should inform MSSD by phone or email of the student’s absence or tardiness.

• Calling in Sick
  Students are expected to directly contact you and their transition counselor if they cannot make it to work due to illness. The transition counselor will call you as a follow up.

• Dismissal Time
  Since the internship program is part of our school schedule, we are asking that you dismiss your intern not earlier than scheduled. For sophomores and juniors, their dismissal time on Wednesday is 11:25 a.m. For seniors, their dismissal time is 3:00 p.m. If students need to be dismissed early, they are responsible for making arrangements with you and the transition counselor at least a week before it happens. You will receive a call or email from the transition counselor about it as well.

• Supervision
  In the event that you as the main supervisor will not be available during an internship day, please have an alternate supervisor who will work with your intern. Let you student intern know ahead of time if this will happen so he/she may report to the alternate supervisor in your absence. Students may not be without any adult supervision while at the worksites.

• Timecards
  Even though student interns do not receive financial remuneration, MSSD wants them to learn to be accountable to you. Let them fill out time cards or clock in when they arrive and clock out when they leave if you require the same policy of your employees.

• Routine Tasks
  It is helpful to identify routine task early in the internship. These are tasks the student(s) will perform on a weekly or regular basis. Other tasks can be assigned in addition to the routine tasks.

• Evaluation
  The Transition office will distribute forms for evaluation of students’ performance. Supervisors are asked to review the completed evaluation with the intern and to offer suggestions for work performance improvement. The students will be responsible to ensure the forms are completed with the supervisor. The evaluation form can be obtained through email with the attachment.

[ Forms and Related Information ]