It is still the beginning of March, but I’m sure a lot of us are already looking ahead to spring break and making plans to head down to Florida or go off on cruise to the Caribbean. I definitely want a few relaxing days on a tropical beach or a nicely air-conditioned hotel room to celebrate the few months  left to my senior year. But for those of you who are looking for something more productive to do (other than catching up on much-needed sleep), I would recommend participating in an Alternative Spring Break Program (ASB).

I remember attending one during my freshman year, sponsored by the Macaulay Honors College. Along with a group of fellow CUNY students, I went down to New Orleans and worked with Habitat for Humanity to help Hurricane Katrina victims rebuild their homes. The work was strenuous, but intensely rewarding. I learned how to paint and landscape houses for displaced families while other (more physically capable) students assisted in tiling rooftops and laying foundations for new homes and buildings. Overall, it was an incredibly valuable experience that really opened my eyes to the hardships hurricane survivors faced even years after the event. I shared living facilities not only with student groups from across the nation, but also with local residents who did not have  homes to return to. Witnessing and experiencing the conditions these survivors lived in for months on end made me aware of the faith, hope and strength that exists within the New Orleans community.

While Alternative Spring Break programs are not fun-filled vacations, I believe that they allow you to learn and see things you are unexposed to in a classroom environment. You may learn about poverty and natural disasters in history or science courses, but ASBs confront you with actual people and conditions that may alter your perspective on the world. These programs are definitely not for everyone, because they do entail a lot of hard work and emotional stress, however, I think they provide a unique opportunity for students to interact with and learn from other communities and cultures.

If you are interested, there are a lot of programs you can find on the internet. Also, speaking with the study abroad office at QC may also be helpful.

The program I went on was only offered to Macaulay Honors students, but here are a few links I found just by doing a quick Google search:

Habitat for Humanity always has a number of programs, although their dates may not match up exactly with our spring break. They have a Global Village program which deals with trips abroad (http://www.habitat.org/gv/) as well as a Collegiate Challenge (http://www.habitat.org/youthprograms/ages_14_25/default_collegiate_challenge.aspx) although I am not so sure about the details for that program.
I also did a quick search for Haiti Relief efforts on Volunteerabroad.com, which generated a lot of results: http://www.volunteerabroad.com/Haiti.cfm. You can also use the site to search for volunteer opportunities throughout  the year.

If you have any more questions about my own experiences or simply need advice in finding a program feel free to comment or email me. ^^