Alternative Student Teaching Placements

Diverse Student Teaching Goals

University of Mount Union students participating in a diverse student teaching placement will experience a unique and diverse environment, engage in collaboration, add a "service" dimension to their student teaching experience and take a prudent risk to advance themselves personally and professionally.

Preparatory Reading and Activities

Prospective student teachers are encouraged to read about important issues and topics related to their placement. Students should immerse themselves in the history and current affairs of their host nations, including education, economy, politics, social structures and culture.

Students placed in United Methodist institutions should research the history and tradition of the churches' mission to pre-collegiate education and to the ethnic/cultural composition of the student body. Being informed eases the transition and helps dispel some off the stereotypes that arise out of misinformation.

Having some level of prior knowledge on these topics gives student teachers a degree of confidence and a sense of what kinds of questions to ask once they arrive.

International Education

The University of Mount Union is a member of a consortium. Global Student Teaching places students in many international destinations including Ireland, Australia, England, New Zealand, Wales and Scotland, plus many other countries.

Several Mount Union students have student taught in Ireland, Australia, Spain, and Cost Rica, among others.

Chicago Semester Program
Chicago, IL
A consortium of religiously-affiliated colleges offers student teachers an opportunity to live, learn, and work in an urban setting known for its economic and cultural vitality, as well as the charm of its many neighborhoods. Chicago Semester invites students to explore the call to teach, develop a world view, experience a cultural transformation and pursue social justice in a diverse environment. Six students have completed a similar Chicago experience.

Good Hope School
St. Croix Virgin Islands
The Good Hope School is a non-profit, non-sectarian, independent, co-educational school, fully accredited by the Middle States Association of College and Schools, offering a rigorous college preparatory curriculum to students in pre-kindergarten through grade 12.

Mount Union's first student has been placed there for the 2007 Spring Semester. Dr. Pam Kimble, former professor of education at Mount Union, is the supervisor.

Paradise Valley Unified School District
Phoenix, AZ
This progressive, "lighthouse" district serves approximately 35,000 students in 20 elementary schools, seven middle schools, five comprehensive high schools and alternative K-12 programs. Outstanding academic programs, a diverse student population and the potential to be employed in the district after graduation make this a particularly attractive student teaching opportunity.

We have placed two candidates for the 2007 Spring Semester.

United Methodist Schools

Lydia Patterson Institute
El Paso, TX
Lydia Patterson Institute serves Hispanic high school students from El Paso and neighboring towns in Mexico.

McCurdy School*
Espanola, NM
This school serves Native American, Hispanic, and Anglo students in grades kindergarten through 12.

Red Bird Mission School*
Beverly, KY
This kindergarten through 12th grade school serves students in the heart of Appalachia.

The Robinson School*
San Juan. Puerto Rico
This kindergarten though 12th grade school is located in five historic buildings in the heart of the Condado.

The Pennington School**
Pennington, NJ
Located in the greater Princeton area, this grade five through post graduate has 30 percent international and minority student population. They will not accept student teachers in all areas.

Wyoming Seminary**
Kingston, PA
This prekindergarten through post-graduate level school was established in 1844. It is located in Pennsylvania's historic Wyoming Valley near Wilkes-Barre. It is approximately a two hour drive to Philadelphia and a two hour drive to New York City.

They will only accept student teachers in the following areas: elementary, physical education/health and performing and fine arts.

Kents Hill School**
Kents Hill, ME
Located just 15 minutes outside of Maine's capital city of Augusta, Kents Hill is a co-educational preparatory school for students in grades nine through 12 and post graduate. Student teachers are not accepted in all subject areas/

Tilton School**
Tilton, NH
Founded in 1845, Tilton is an independent, co-educational preparatory school serving students from grades nine through 12 and post graduate. Student teachers are not accepted in all subject areas.

*Mount Union students have completed student teaching here.
**Internships for post baccalaureates may be available.

Native American Reservations
This opportunity is available to a limited number of dedicated applicants  in collaboration with Indiana University-Bloomington. Placements are for the semester in reservation schools which serve Navajo youth in Arizona, New Mexico or Utah. Cultural Preparation is required.

Students need to make a commitment in the fall of their junior year and attend a work-shop in April in Bloomington, IN.

New Opportunities 08-09

Gaston Co., NC- East of Charlotte

Guilford Co., NC- Greensboro/High Point- 30 miles south of VA Border

Osceola Co., FL - East of Orlando - 15 miles from Atlantic Ocean

For more information or to obtain an application, please contact Dr. Gannon, Room #345, Chapman Hall, 3rd floor.