Alternative Spring Break Announced - Info Meeting Jan. 23

Cancun and Fort Lauderdale not your thing? Then come to the library's Sanford Room at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 23 for an informational about this year's alternative spring break options.

The Center for Community Engagement and Service-Learning offers alternative break trips to four locations:

Pocahontas State Park, Va., where students will spend the week at a beautiful park outside Richmond. Past projects have included clearing land for a nature trail, installing drainage pipes, building bridges and removing, rebuilding and replacing fishing piers. Students will stay in a lodge (sleeping bags and mattresses on the floor) with a large kitchen. Members pair up to prepare dinners co-op style, and reflections are shared after dinner each night. One day is devoted to sight-seeing in the area. Trip leaves Saturday morning, March 15 and returns on the evening of Saturday the 22nd. Projected cost: $100-$125.

Mariam Boyd Elementary School, Warrenton, N.C., where students will spend the week at a rural elementary school doing one-on-one tutoring, group reading and math help and general classroom assistance. HWS students will prepare crafts and activities for children in the after-school program run by the Norlina Methodist Church. The church also serves as the host site where meals are prepared and eaten and reflection activities occur. Cots are provided; students should take a sleeping bag and pillow. The group can expect to be warmly welcomed by the community; lasting friendships have been established with the children and teachers. A Readers College will be associated with this trip: expect required readings dealing with poverty, class and race; discussions before and during the trip, and a short paper integrating the readings and trip upon return. Trip leaves Saturday, March 15 and returns Saturday the 22nd. Projected cost: $100-$125.

HWS Responds, New Orleans, La., where students will spend the week rebuilding houses for Operation Helping Hands. The group stays overnight in Louisville, Ky. both ways. Accommodations have varied on previous trips but include a dry place to sleep, three meals a day and showers. This will not be easy work: emotional stresses will be high and working conditions are difficult. Volunteers will be asked to do pre-trip meetings, readings (news articles, etc) and reflection as well as keeping a journal and participating in nightly reflections. We will also debrief on our return. A Readers College is also associated with this trip, with readings and meetings beforehand and a short paper afterward. The trip will leave on Friday, March 14 and return on Saturday the 22nd. Organizers are trying to keep costs low, so participants should anticipate expenses between $200 - $250.

Helping Clean America's Rivers, Louisville, Ky., organized in conjunction with Finger Lakes Institute. Students will join Chad Pregracke, who spoke on campus last fall, and Living Lands and Waters Alternative Spring Break volunteers from SUNY-Geneseo for a week cleaning the banks of the Ohio River. Students will also participate in an ecology workshop and remove exotic bush honeysuckle that is invading the river's islands. Room and board will be generously provided by The Legacy Center in Louisville. Free time will be available for visits to the Louisville Science Center and IMAX theatre, the Karma Café to salsa dance, or the Louisville Zoo. This trip leaves on Saturday, March 15 and returns on Sunday the 23rd. Any student under 18 years old must complete a participant consent form; this trip is open only to HWS students. Projected cost for each student participant is $100 plus spending money.

To apply for any trip, fill out the application and health forms or contact the Center for Community Engagement and Service-Learning for more details. Applications are available here and are due on Friday, Feb. 1; and those selected to go will be asked for a $50 non-refundable deposit by the following Friday, Feb. 8.