Thank you for inquiring about our pre-doctoral Psychology Internship Program at Child and Adolescent Behavioral Health.  We are proud to be fully accredited by the American Psychology Association and pleased to offer a wide variety of experiences to our interns during their 12-month stay with us.

If you are interested in "rolling up your sleeves" and working with severely emotionally disturbed children and their families, then we are the Psychology Internship for you.

Below you will find information that outlines our Psychology Internship Program. 

Thank you again for your inquiry.

Sincerely,

Linda S. Menes, Ph.D

Director of Internship Training

Child and Adolescent Behavioral Health (C&A) Psychology Internship Program is designed in accordance with APA standards and follows the Guidelines and Principles for Accreditation of Programs in Professional Psychology.  The internship also is listed as a member and strictly follows the policies and procedures of the Association of Psychology Postdoctoral and Internship Centers (APPIC).

The purpose of the Psychology Internship Program at C&A is to provide the intern with specialized training in the provision of services to children, adolescents, and families in an applied setting.  The internship is an organized program that endorses the scholar-practitioner philosophy.  It is community-based and systemic in nature and is consistent with the mission, goals and culture of the sponsoring institution.  The Internship faculty have developed a strong, diversified, evidence-based training program that consistently informs the interns that science and practice are interlocking skills that form the foundation of psychological knowledge and application.  Thus, the Internship provides training in psychological assessment and clinical interventions that are evidence-based and incorporate issues of human diversity throughout the curriculum.  As such, an intensive integration of theory and best practice is stressed throughout the year.  The process of critical thinking, hypothesis testing, and other elements of the scientific method are engendered and integrated into all experiential activities throughout the training process.

Over the course of the training year interns learn about evidence-based practice and become familiar with interventions that have been supported by the research.  It is expected that interns arrive at C&A with well-grounded training in science and the scientific method.  Interns will use these as a foundation for the development of advanced skills in clinical practice. They are encouraged to view their practice as an opportunity to become increasingly independent in utilizing their clinical skills that allow them to gather significant data on their clients, to generate hypotheses about client conditions, and to develop treatment plans based on these hypotheses, as well as the current literature. Training faculty expect interns to learn to practice psychology in a manner that is informed by psychological theory and research and to develop the confidence and skills to convey their expertise to clients, parents, consultants, and colleagues with respect and dignity. 

Interns can expect to develop competence and skills in assessment and diagnosis, treatment planning, understanding of the pertinent literature and its relation to practice, intervention strategies and procedures, consultation and collaboration with other professionals, program evaluation, ethical understanding, and understanding of cultural diversity.  Evaluation relative to the above stated competencies is done periodically in a formal manner as well as weekly in supervision activities

The internship structure includes required placements in Clinical Services, Psychological Assessment and Consultation Services (PACS), and with the Child and Adolescent Trauma Team (CATT).  Further, work experiences may include participation with specialized programs for adolescent sex offenders, pre-school children, school-based clients and group therapy.  An intern may express a preference in an area of interest at the time of the interview in order that a plan may be developed to meet a training need, desire, or goal of the particular intern.

The internship sequence of training was designed to promote both professional and personal growth and development.  The sequence includes an internship and agency orientation, two full quarters of internship seminars, intensive clinical experiences, primary, secondary and assessment supervision, attendance at staff meetings (including Quality Assurance and Peer Review sessions), collaboration with other on-staff specialists, and consultation and collaboration with other community systems.  The sequence therefore begins with an intern orientation and ends with an intern prepared to practice, consult and collaborate in a professional manner in the community.

The Child and Adolescent Behavioral Health Internship was developed based upon the belief that a strong training component is essential to developing expertise in working with children and families.  By structuring the training into a seminar format, we have established clear boundaries between training and work experience.  This assures that the intern will get more than on-the-job training.  The seminars are presented by the internship faculty as well as outside consultants from community agencies and/or area universities with doctoral programs in psychology, as needed.  Most seminars meet for two hours.  The current Psychology Internship Seminar and Special Topics Schedule includes the following presentations:

Cultural Diversity in Testing and Treatment

Introduction to ADHD                                                                          

Children Under 6                                

Introduction to Early Childhood Disorders

Introduction to Pharmacotherapy

Ethics in Psychology                                                         

Evidence-Based Practices

Grief and Loss                                    

Adventure Therapy                             

Parent-Child Interaction Therapy

Dialectical Behavior Therapy                 

Bullying

Introduction to Autistic Spectrum Disorders

Sexual Offender Seminar

Professional Seminar

Supervision in Psychology

Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (6 sessions)

Psychological Assessment Seminars including:

Clinical Interviewing

Cognitive Assessment

Assessment of Achievement and Learning Disorders

ADHD Assessment

Classroom Assessments

Personality Assessment

School-Based Assessment

Developmental Assessment

Introduction to the Rorschach (Specialized training is available as desired)

Introduction to the ADOS (Specialized training is available as desired)

Supervision is an important training component of the internship. Each intern is assigned and meets with both a primary supervisor and an assessment supervisor.  The intern discusses clinical conceptualization, diagnosis, treatment planning and professional, legal, cultural and ethical issues with the primary supervisor.  Psychological assessment administration, scoring, report writing and consultation are discussed with assessment supervisors.  The opportunity to meet with the secondary supervisors is also available depending on the particular additional program an intern may choose to be involved in beyond the required placements.  Internship supervision assignments are generally made based on intern desire to match with a supervisor who has an area of expertise that is common with an intern area of interest.  Consultation with all staff psychologists, psychiatrists, social workers, counselors and community support providers is encouraged.  For further information regarding the Psychology Supervisors see the Psychology Staff Page.

As this internship endorses the scholar-practitioner philosophy, continuous consumption and reference to evidence-based practices is strongly encouraged.  It should be clearly understood by applicants that this internship will be a practitioner-oriented experience.  An intern should not come to C&A seeking primarily to do research.  The intern should come to C&A to learn clinical skills and attempt to seek the integration of theory and research into clinical practice.  Therefore, a research assignment is not required.  On the other hand, research opportunities are abundant at C&A and research time can be made available to interns who request it.  Several interns have collected data and completed dissertations at C&A with the aid of a faculty advisor. 

The internship faculty is both diverse in individuality and specialty.  The membership includes professional psychologists, both men and women, who are dedicated to the field of psychology, to the internship program, and to working with children and families.

Individual, group, play, and family therapy are provided to clients and families for a wide range of mental health concerns at C&A.  Services are provided on an outpatient basis in the client’s or family’s home or school.  Interns will develop and perform competence in the use of DSM-IV TR for clinical diagnoses, proceed with treatment planning, treatment follow-up and after care planning, while developing an understanding of and appreciation for the value of community interaction, collaboration, and consultation.  The Clinical Services placement with clinical supervision continues for the entire 12-month period.

The PACS placement requires interns to complete a minimum of 20 psychological assessments during the internship year.  Interns are guided by the psychological assessment seminars, assessment supervision, and state-of-the-art assessment equipment.  The placement with PACS also continues for the entire 12-month period.

This outpatient program specializes in the assessment and treatment of traumatized children and their families.  The program was developed and is operated in cooperation with several other Stark County agencies, including law enforcement, the Stark County Prosecuting Attorney, and the Stark County Department of Job and Family Services.  CATT was developed based on the ideals of the National Network of Children’s Advocacy Centers.  This placement begins after interns complete the Trauma Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Seminar series.  

The Adolescent Sex Offender Program specializes in the treatment of adolescent sex offenders.  Group therapy is the primary treatment modality with all other agency services available to the client on an adjunct basis.  Assessment services are provided as an aid to various Stark County legal offices and human services agencies.  An intern may gain experiences in this program after completing the Victim/Offender Seminar.

State licensed psychiatrists and psychiatric nurses offer psychiatric evaluation, medication, and treatment recommendations to agency clients from any of the service programs on a consultation basis.  Interns are expected to both consult with and participate in team efforts with the psychiatric staff personnel.

The Community Supportive Psychiatric Treatment Program provides community support services such as advocacy, monitoring, planning, linkage, and referral services to severely emotionally disturbed children and their families.  Interns are expected to consult and participate with community support personnel in team efforts to work with families and follow children through the various systems of care.

The Severe Behavior Handicap/School Outreach Services offers consultation and psycho-educational services to many area schools in an effort to assist in the development of a healthy learning environment for special education and other at-risk students.  Staff members consult with administrators, school psychologists, counselors, and classroom teachers attempting to identify inappropriate behaviors that under normal circumstances would interfere with a student’s ability to learn.  Individual and group therapy are offered to students in order to facilitate changes in problem behaviors and positive school adjustment.  Interns may participate in these programs by making school visits, doing classroom observations, and/or participating in-group co-therapy activities.

This intensive outpatient program is designed to help stabilize, maintain, and strengthen families who are experiencing an acute mental health crisis, which places the child at risk for removal from the home.  These client-driven services are developed to meet the unique needs of each family and are used as an alternative to a child’s placement in a psychiatric hospital or residential facility.

C&A provides consultation, assessment, and counseling to children under the age of six and their families in the pre-school, day care, and home environments.  Developmental and behavioral consultation is offered to parents and/or classroom teachers based on the child’s needs. Psychological Assessment is available to assist in the assessment of those needs. Service plans are developed which maximize collaboration between the families and the available community resources.  C&A has a consultation contract with the Stark County Head Start Program and receives additional referrals from area preschools and individual families.

The Transitional Services program assists clients in the 17 - 21 year-old age group in making the transition to adult living.  Many are developmentally delayed in social, academic, vocational, and independent living skills.  This program offers a variety of services including education, skill training, therapy, case management, and housing assistance.

This program is the umbrella for a variety of group services at C&A, including Coping Cats Anxiety Group, Doing Better Together (DBT) group, The Incredible Years (parenting program), and Dina Dinosaur, to name a few.  It is also home to adventure therapy groups, which combine experiential education principles, outdoor and nature education, cognitive restructuring, and group psychological techniques and provides a unique treatment experience.  This therapeutic formula engages clients on multiple levels, ensuring maximum learning and retention potential.  Group activities include trust exercises, cooperative games, challenges, service projects and camping.  They focus on the overriding goal of improving self -esteem. 

Child and Adolescent Behavioral Health is a community-based mental health center that serves Stark County, Ohio.  Stark County has a population of approximately 380,000, and is a combination of urban and rural areas, including Canton, Ohio, a city of approximately 79,000.  C&A is the only mental health agency in the county that specializes in mental health services to children and their families. 

Stark County is proud of the cultural and recreational activities available in its community.  Canton is the home of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, which is a major attraction for the sports-minded person.  Canton is in the midst of a cultural revitalization in the downtown area, which includes the opening of a local theater and galleries displaying the work of local artists.  Canton is home to the First Ladies Library, a Classic Car Museum, the Canton Museum of Art, The Canton Ballet and the McKinley Museum, which honors President William McKinley, who was a native of Canton. 

Canton is approximately one hour from downtown Cleveland where the sports fan can find professional football, basketball, and baseball.  Cleveland is also home to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.  Canton is 20 minutes from Akron to the north and Columbus is approximately 2 hours to the southwest.  These cities offer museums, exhibits and other venues for exploration, study and enjoyment of culture, history, and science. 

C&A is committed to providing a comprehensive, interagency and community based system of care that emphasizes child-centered services and family involvement.  C&A is also committed to achieving the goals presented in the Mental Health Report of the Surgeon General  (1999) and is committed to the use of evidence-based practice as set forth in the President’s New Freedom Commission on Mental Health (2003).

Child and Adolescent Behavioral Health employs approximately 140 people and has a total budget of approximately $7.5 million.

Stipend:                      $17,000 - $17,500

Hours:                         40 hours/week including 1 evening (12 month internship)

Vacation:                    10 paid vacation days

Holidays:                     8 paid holidays

Personal Time:             2 paid personal days

Sick Leave:                  8 sick leave days

Insurances:                  Health and vision insurances are optional; dental and life insurance

Other benefits:             Professional development flextime; optional employee sponsored benefits

Professional

Liability:                      Each intern is insured for up to $1,000,000

Internship begins July 1 and ends June 30 the following year.

In recent years interns have come to our Psychology Internship Program from the following Professional Schools and Universities:

This internship site agrees to abide by the APPIC policy that no person at this training facility will solicit, accept or use any ranking-related information from any intern applicant.

Child and Adolescent Behavioral Health is APA Accredited through 2009.  Any questions regarding APA guidelines, principles for accreditation, or accreditation operating procedures can be addressed to:

Office of Program Consultation and Accreditation

American Psychological Association

750 First Street, NE

Washington, DC

(202) 336-5979