REPORT/RECOMMENDATION TO THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
OF SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY
AND RECORD OF ACTION
June 25, 2024
FROM
GEORGINA YOSHIOKA, Director, Department of Behavioral Health
SUBJECT
Title
Non-Financial Agreement with West Coast University, Inc. for the Student Internship Program
End
RECOMMENDATION(S)
Recommendation
Approve the non-financial student internship program agreement with West Coast University, Inc., including non-standard terms, for provision of training and field experience to student interns by the Department of Behavioral Health, for the period of July 1, 2024, through June 30, 2029.
(Presenter: Georgina Yoshioka, Director, 252-5142)
Body
COUNTY AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER GOALS & OBJECTIVES
Promote the Countywide Vision.
Create, Maintain and Grow Jobs and Economic Value in the County.
Provide for the Safety, Health and Social Service Needs of County Residents.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
As the student internship program agreement is non-financial in nature, this item does not impact Discretionary General Funding (Net County Cost).
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
The Department of Behavioral Health (DBH) employs qualified professionals in multiple disciplines, including medicine, nursing, psychology, marriage and family therapy, and social work. As a result, DBH can provide necessary tutelage and guidance to student interns participating in a variety of behavioral health-related educational programs. Reciprocally, the use of interns to assist the County’s workforce is a valuable means of maximizing available public resources. Through student internship programs, DBH provides learning experiences that will help students develop the skills they need to prosper in their chosen professions, which aligns with the Countywide Vision2Succeed initiative.
Since 2008, DBH has operated internship programs through agreements with schools and other institutions which establish the terms and conditions under which DBH will accept student interns. These agreements enable students to earn required internship hours while working under the supervision of qualified DBH staff.
On February 27, 2024 (Item No. 21), the Board of Supervisors (Board) approved standard student internship program agreement templates for public and private schools, and other institutions. However, the recommended student internship program agreement with West Coast University, Inc. (WCU) contains modifications as follows: additional language was developed for student withdrawal requests, student supervision, confidentiality of students’ academic records, and notices given under the agreement. The indemnification provisions have also been modified slightly from the standard student internship program agreement template; these modifications still conform to County Policy 11-07 and have been approved by the Department of Risk Management and County Counsel. In addition, the WCU student internship program agreement includes the following non-standard contract terms:
1. All disputes arising under the agreement must be settled by binding arbitration.
• The County standard contract does not require arbitration.
• Potential Impact: Arbitration decisions are not appealable. In addition, disputes that
might otherwise be settled in small claims court would incur arbitration costs that would exceed the costs of a small claims action and the costs of this non-financial agreement.
DBH recommends approval of the agreement, including non-standard terms as it will allow WCU students the opportunity to intern with DBH. Since changes were made to the standard template, the Board must approve the student internship agreement with WCU.
PROCUREMENT
N/A
REVIEW BY OTHERS
This item has been reviewed by Behavioral Health (Lisa Rivas-Ordaz, Contract Supervisor, 386-8264) on May 21, 2024; County Counsel (Dawn Martin, Deputy County Counsel, 387-5455) on May 28, 2024; Risk Management (Gregory Ustaszewski, Staff Analyst II, 386-9008) on June 3, 2024; Finance (Paul Garcia, Administrative Analyst, 386-8392) on June 4, 2024; and County Finance and Administration (Cheryl Adams, Deputy Executive Officer, 388-0238) on June 6, 2024.