Alternative Spring Break
Discover Service Learning: Make A Difference in Local and National Communities
What is service learning?
Service learning is a form of experiential education where learning occurs through a cycle of action and reflection. Service-learning places an emphasis on working closely with community partners to address community concerns. Students who engage in service learning learn about the connection between their service, their academic coursework, and their roles as citizens.
What is Alternative Break?
An alternative break is an immersion service-learning trip where small groups of college students engage in community-based service and cultural immersion for a few days to make a difference in local and/or statewide communities. At SUNY WCC we offer both weekend and 5 to 7-day-long alternative break trips. Each trip focuses on a particular social issue, such as (but not limited to) poverty, education reform, food insecurity, criminal justice reform, or the environment. The trip emphasizes other aspects of life such as community, mindfulness, and wellness.
Alternative Spring Break in Action
Sign Up for Alternative Spring Break
Learn about ASB and how to apply – click to open for details
How Our Alternative Spring Break Operates:
Our Alternative Spring Break program is divided into three major components that is required for all selected students to participate in:
- Pre-Service Workshops: Groups will learn history and facts about the chosen topic and discuss the trip logistics and service projects the group will focus on.
- During Service: Groups will perform their service-learning activities. At the end of each day, groups will reflect on their experiences while utilizing at least one of the eight learning components of alternative breaks: abstaining from alcohol and other drugs, direct service, diversity/social justice, education, orientation, reflection, and re-orientation, and training.
- Post-Service Ceremony: Groups will do an overall assessment of the experiences they had during the Alternative Spring Break.
Who Leads The Groups?
Each trip is led by one to two student leaders who are selected through an application process. The student leaders are partnered with faculty/staff mentors to facilitate the overall trip theme, logistics, and individual and group reflection process.
How To Participate:
To serve as a general group member for a weekend or 5 to 7 day trip, each student must complete an application detailing the reasons why they are interested in the selected alternative break topic and answer a series of questions centered around any previous community service experience.
How To Apply:
- Complete this application by Monday, October 28, 2024 at 12pm.
- Applicants will be notified on Friday, November 1, 2024.
- You must be in good academic standing (2.0 or above) and good judicial standing and have paid the student activity fee (at least 1 registered class on the Valhalla main campus.)Requirements, if selected:
- If selected, you will be required to attend weekly meetings in the fall semester. These are vital to the success of the ASB trip – you will meet other participants, become informed of the trip location, and you will become better educated on the trip’s social issues.
- If selected, you will be required to pay a $50.00 non-refundable deposit to secure your seat. This is to ensure that everyone is committed to the trip and the forthcoming requirements upon selection.
- Meetings will take place Wednesdays from 11am-1pm on November 6, 13, 20, December 4 and 11, 2024.
For additional information, or if you have any questions email getinvolved@sunywcc.edu or call the Department of Student Involvement at 914-606-6731.
Past Alternative Spring Break Topics:
- March 2018: Food Insecurity, New York City
- October 2018: The Environment, Wildlife, and Us, Westchester
- March 2019: Criminal Justice in America: Prison, Probation, and Parenting in lock-up, New York and Philadelphia
- March 2019: Immigration and Border Issues, San Diego, CA
- March 2020: Understanding Neighborhood Regeneration and Empowering Communities, Chicago, IL
- March 2020: The Oceans and their Eco-Systems, Newport, RI
- March 2021: Immigration in the U.S., Virtual
- March 2021: Bodies of Water and Eco-Systems, Virtual
- March 2021: Criminalization and Incarceration, Virtual
- March 2022: Community Revitalization and Immigration on the U.S./Mexico Border, San Diego, CA
- March 2024: Unsheltered People and the Impact of Community Displacement, NYC, NY
- March 2024: Hurricane Disaster Relief and Global Warming, Fort Myers, FL
Student Testimonials
View what students from the program had to say about their time – click to open for details
“The Alternative Spring Break was a truly transformative experience for me. It was from this program that I learned about how problematic our criminal justice system is, particularly for black and brown people. The value of learning about important issues through those directly affected by them is of immense value and something that I will carry with me going forward.” – John Henry, March 2019
“Being the Alternative Spring Break Leader was a very meaningful and rewarding experience for me. I was able to coordinate a trip with the intention of raising awareness about pollution and its effect on the ecosystems to a group of students within the campus community. We took a trip to Rhode Island and participated in beach and river cleanups visited a Nature Conservatory and created artwork based on the litter we found. Once strangers, in the beginning, we left as friends after bonding together with the mission of promoting a better environment.” – Pamela Morales, March 2020
