Academic Senate Ad Hoc Workgroup on Internship and Co-op Policy

 

Background:

Cal Poly’s policies governing cooperative education and internships have developed through multiple Academic Senate actions and California State University requirements over time. The current campus internship policy was established through AS-804-15 in response to CSU Executive Order 1064 and defines internships and establishes responsibilities for departments and colleges related to academic credit, placement, oversight, risk, and documentation. The President approved AS-804-15 with modifications to several administrative responsibilities contained in the original policy.

More recently, AS-990-25 updated the allowable number of cooperative education and internship units as part of the transition to semesters. It established a combined maximum of 12 semester units applicable toward baccalaureate program requirements and six semester units applicable toward graduate program requirements.

Since these policies were developed, the California State University has revised Executive Order 1064 governing student academic internships and community-engaged learning. The revised systemwide policy establishes current requirements related to planning, pre-placement assessment, learning-site agreements, student placement and orientation, academic relevance, document retention, and university review. At the same time, the YRO Summer Work Group on High-Impact Practices has examined work-integrated learning and developed a report with guiding principles.

We require a broad workgroup to bring University policy into compliance with current CSU requirements, clearly distinguish cooperative education from internships, define responsibilities for administering and overseeing these experiences, and incorporate the relevant work and guiding principles of the YRO Summer Work Group. The chair will be appointed by and from the members of the ad hoc work group. 

 

Charges:

1. Review existing Cal Poly policies governing cooperative education and internships, including AS-804-15 and AS-990-25, and identify areas requiring revision, clarification, consolidation, or updating.
2. Review current California State Labor laws and the California State University requirements governing academic internships and related experiences and reconcile existing University policy with those requirements.
3. Develop and write definitions for cooperative education and internships that clearly establish their purposes, distinctions, and the academic and administrative requirements associated with each.
4. Review the responsibilities and support currently provided by departments, colleges, and University offices, including risk management, affiliation agreements, and legal review, and recommend a clear and sustainable allocation of responsibilities and University-level support for the timely implementation, administration, oversight, and compliance of cooperative education and internships, taking into account workload and the practical and operational feasibility of proposed responsibilities.
5. Incorporate the work and guiding principles developed by the YRO Summer Work Group on High-Impact Practices as a foundation for developing the University’s policies and practices governing cooperative education and internships as part of YRO implementation.
6. Incorporate the work and recommendations developed by the Internship & Service Learning Policy Compliance and Standardization Taskforce as a foundation for developing the University’s policies and practices governing cooperative education and internships.
7. Recommend revisions to university policies governing cooperative education and internships and submit proposed policy language to the Academic Senate Executive Committee for consideration.
8. Invite additional ex officio non-voting members as needed.  
9. Present findings to the Senate and any resolutions by March 30th, 2027.

 

A printable version of this committee's charges can be found here.

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Meetings:

TBD

Membership:

• One faculty member from each college, one representative from Professional Consultative Services, and one faculty member from the Solano Campus, preferably with experience in cooperative education and/or internships of different types and placement settings, appointed by the Academic Senate Executive Committee
• One representative from the Academic Senate Instruction Committee
• One representative from the Academic Senate Curriculum Committee
• Two undergraduate students with experience in cooperative education and/or internships appointed by ASI, one graduate student
• As needed, ex officio nonvoting members including one representative from each of the Office of the Registrar, Academic Programs and Planning, Academic Advising, Financial Aid, International Programs, University Risk Management, Career Services, and the Office of Student Research; the Director and Project Manager of Semester Conversion and Integration; the Associate Vice President for Innovation, Industry and Economic Development, and one associate dean, preferably responsible for curriculum or student affairs
• Chair will be determined by the voting committee members once established

 

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Membership

College / Division	Name	Department/Area	Office Phone	Email
BCSM
CAED
CAFES
CENG
CLA
OCOB
PCS
Solano
Academic Senate Curriculum Committe Representative
Academic Senate Instruction Committee Representative
ASI		Undergraduate Student Representative
ASI		Undergraduate Student Representative
ASI		Graduate Student Representative