Report to Mayor and City Council
Tuesday, March 17, 2020
Consent
SUBJECT:
Title
CONSIDER APPROVAL OF THE STUDENT FIELD PLACEMENT AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE CITY OF CARSON AND CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY LONG BEACH (CITY COUNCIL)
Body
I. SUMMARY
The ongoing success of the award-winning Joseph B. Jr. and Mary Anne O’Neal Stroke Center can be attributed in part to the collaborations that have been established over the years. One of the most important collaborations is with local universities such as California State University Dominguez Hills (CSUDH) and California State University Long Beach (CSULB). While CSUDH has provided the Stroke Center with Occupational Therapy services, CSULB has long provided speech therapy classes at no cost to the city.
In an effort to continue these classes and formalize this collaboration, staff wishes to establish a Student Field Placement Agreement between the City of Carson (the City) and California State University Long Beach (CSULB) for a term of three years. Staff requests the City Council to consider approval of this proposed agreement.
II. RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
1. APPROVE the Student Field Placement Agreement by and between the City of Carson and the Trustees of the California State University on behalf of California State University Long Beach, and AUTHORIZE the Mayor to execute the same following approval as to form by the City Attorney.
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III. ALTERNATIVES
TAKE another action the City Council deems appropriate.
IV. BACKGROUND
The City of Carson’s Joseph B. Jr. and Mary Anne O’Neal Stroke Center proudly offers free speech therapy classes for stroke survivors twice monthly. These group classes are implemented by student interns from CSULB and are supervised by Dr. Pei-Fang Hung, a licensed speech pathologist and faculty member from CSULB. The purpose of these classes is to help stroke survivors find effective ways of communicating post-stroke.
Both parties wish to execute an agreement that formalizes and defines an ongoing relationship that is mutually beneficial. The students are grateful for the hands-on experience derived from the internship program and the stroke survivors are grateful for speech therapy that would otherwise be unaffordable.
Legal Issues
The agreement was prepared using CSULB’s standard form, but was modified by the City Attorney per negotiations with CSULB to address (among other things) risk management concerns as discussed below.
The agreement provides for mutual indemnification, with CSULB to indemnify, defend and hold harmless the City for the negligence of CSULB or its officers, agents, or employees in the performance of the Agreement, and for City to indemnify, defend and hold harmless CSULB for negligence of the City or its officers, agents or employees in performance of the Agreement.
CSULB’s indemnification in favor of City does not extend to CSULB’s students (the interns who will be participating in the program) because CSULB has stated that its students are considered customers of the University, rather than agents that it can agree to include within the scope of its indemnification. However, CSULB (in addition to providing its usual self-insurance to cover its officers and employees) has arranged for the student interns to be covered by a special insurance policy providing general and professional liability insurance coverage, with the City to be named as an additional insured per the Agreement. This special coverage is provided by CSULB on behalf of student interns for a number of different internship programs with various agencies/employers, and it helps mitigate the risk arising from the lack of full indemnification and the possibility of an accident or injury caused by a student intern while assisting with the classes or working with stroke survivors as part of the internship program.
V. FISCAL IMPACT
None.
VI. EXHIBITS
1. Student Field Placement Agreement between the City of Carson and California State University Long Beach (pgs. 3-7)
Prepared by: Dani Cook, Human Services Supervisor