ASB gives students inexpensive options

About 220 students to travel, volunteer through Community Service Learning

"Couch potato" will be the phrase to describe most college students during the second week of March, but not for students going on Alternative Spring Breaks.

About 220 students are going on ASB trips this year, according to senior Dana Seltzer, an ASB student coordinator. Community Service-Learning is sponsoring 17 trips — the University Recreation Center is sponsoring two — and several more trips are being sponsored by religious organizations.

Seltzer said the low cost generally is what makes students want to go on an ASB trip at first. The trips roughly costs around $225.

"I think initially it's appealing because it is inexpensive," she said. "But, then [students] think about working with the community, and being part of that community. They realize it's a lifelong thing, not a week-long thing."

These trips are led by two students each.

"It's a student-run thing; we're just here to guide them," Seltzer said.

The experiences junior Sara Dickinson had last year on her ASB trip to Washington, D.C., made her want to be a trip leader this year.

"I chose to be a leader because of the great experience I had last year on my trip, and I really admired how my leaders pulled a whole group of virtual strangers together and gave us a great trip," Dickinson said. "I knew it would be a great feeling to do the same for others. Leading requires a lot of time and effort and stress, but, in the end, I know it will be worth it."

Dickinson and her fellow leader, junior Maria Telegraphis, decided to go to Jacksonville, Fla., to work with Freshwater Ministries, which works with a youth.

"We chose Florida because we knew it would be warm and hopefully sunny, and we liked Freshwater Ministries because they will have us do a variety of activities — they're not focused on any one cause," Dickinson said.

Possible projects of ASB trips include working with an inner-city after-school tutoring program, construction projects with the local habitat for humanity chapter and volunteering at an AIDS/HIV clinic.

Dickinson said she takes this time to volunteer because, during the school year, it's hard to balance school, a job and other activities, as well as volunteering on her own.

"ASB provides a great opportunity to focus solely on volunteer work, as well as having a good time," Dickinson said. "I think it's great that for one week, all these students can take a break from schoolwork and bumming around and do something good for others and themselves."

Junior Lori Verma, who is going with Dickinson to Florida, said that when she found out a spot opened up in Jacksonville, she was really excited.

"I decided to take [the Jacksonville spot] because it will cover a wide range of service opportunities," Verma said. "If I didn't go on an ASB trip, I would not be taking a vacation with my family or friends — I'd be lazy, sitting on the sofa eating chips and watching [television] all week."

Senior Jennifer Switzer is leading a trip to Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge in Folkston, Ga. The group will be working in the back country for a few days to make miles of canoe trails accessible for the community for a season.

"This swamp is a popular destination for people that want to spend time in the outdoors, but overgrowth in the canoe trails over the off-season makes the backcountry inaccessible," Switzer said. "Without volunteers to clear the brush, many people will be missing out on a great opportunity to spend time in such a beautiful area."

Switzer has been doing ASB since her sophomore year, and co-led a trip to the Everglades to help out with a restoration project.

"If I didn't take the opportunity to go on a trip like this when I'm in college, I may never have the chance," Switzer said.

Junior Dana Koltenuk is going on the Okefenokee trip as well. Koltenuk said that this trip is not like one she really could ever experience at another time in her life.

"I wanted to do something different," Koltenuk said. "I'm looking forward to getting out of my comfort zone and trying something I've never done before.

"I think I'm nervous about the snakes most of all," Koltenuk said. "They said the alligators are harmless."