Alternative Week of Off-campus Learning (AWOL)
Center for Academic Engagement Alternative Break Program
What is an alternative break?
It is an opportunity for university students to engage in community service projects and academic service-learning during an academic break instead of going on vacation or staying at home.
The AWOL Program includes 6 weeks of training about trip issues prior to departure, education and reflection sessions while on site and post-break education and service projects.
Travel with a group of USD students and staff to work with a cluster of community agencies on any number of issues, such as hunger, poverty, environmental protection, homelessness.
Four AWOL trips will be taken during 2009 - one in the winter and one in the spring!
AWOL Winter 2009
The 2009 AWOL Winter trip will bring a team of USD students to Agua Prieta, Mexico, a US/Mexico border community, to work with Rancho Feliz. This will be the first international trip sponsored by the Center for Academic Engagement. Trip participants will be involved in a variety of projects from building and renovating houses to working with children in the orphanages and in the barrios. The trip educational issues will revolve around poverty along the border and immigration issues specific to Hispanic/Mexican immigrants.
Trip participants will be stopping in the Denver/Colorado Springs area, with communities, which have seen a heavy increase in Hispanic/Mexican immigrant populations in the last few years. Potential projects are yet to be determined, but participants will get a chance to speak with people in these communities as well.
Current plans are to drive to Mexico, given the cost of transportation through other mechanisms. Trip dates may fluctuate slightly depending on weather issues.
Trip cost per student: $550/person (includes travel, housing, & three meals/day)
AWOL Spring 2009
“Great Faces, Great Places: Great Needs in South Dakota”
Issues: Rural poverty, at-risk youth, low-income housing
Location: Eagle Butte, South Dakota
Cost: $275/person before fundraising
Participants on this alternative spring break trip will be traveling to the Cheyenne River Reservation in Eagle Butte, South Dakota. The group will be coordinating activities through the Cheyenne River Youth Project, and the participants will work one-on-one with children ages 4-18. In addition to working with the youth, they will be completing large-scale projects, including organizing a warehouse, and repairing homes. The Cheyenne River Reservation is located in one of the nation’s five poorest counties (Ziebach), and the Cheyenne River Youth Project works toward evaluating and responding to the community’s needs. Stay in South Dakota and learn about another culture within your own state!
Student Trip Coordinator: Allison Struck
USD Staff Partner: Jacquie Lonning, Coordinator of Academic Engagement, Center for Academic Engagement
“The Pursuit of Happyness”
Issues: Urban poverty, homelessness, at-risk youth
Location: San Francisco Bay Area
Cost: $550/person before fundraising
Participants on this trip will be working with urban issues in the San Francisco Bay Area which was featured in the movie starring Will Smith, “The Pursuit of Happyness”. We will be working with several different organizations, primarily the St. Anthony Foundation which focuses on homeless outreach. There will be additional experiences related to the area's youth through working with organizations such as Stand Up for Kids. Participants will have the opportunity to work closely with individuals affected by poverty through various means of service. Spend a meaningful spring break helping others pursue their own happiness!
Student Trip Coordinator: Corrie Hendricks
USD Staff Partner: Roger Schieferecke, Graduate Assistant, Center for Academic Engagement
“A New York State of Mind”
Issues: Urban poverty and homelessness, substance abuse
Location: Staten Island, New York
Cost: $550/person before fundraising
The participants on this trip will be engaged in a variety of projects focusing on homelessness, substance abuse, and working with HIV/AIDS issues. The group will be working primarily with Project Hospitality, an organization that works extensively with the hungry and the homeless in Staten Island and has active and effective programs to educate and transform people's lives. Participants will be working in the organization’s soup kitchen, with a food pantry and will engage in other community outreach activities. We will also get the opportunity to hear first-hand accounts of homelessness and substance abuse and have personal interaction with the people affected by these issues. Gaining a deeper understanding of these issues, talking with the real people affected by them and learning how our efforts can help change their lives; what an exciting way to spend spring break!
Student Trip Coordinator: Angela Helseth
USD Staff Partner: Tina Shantz, AmeriCorps VISTA Member, Center for Academic Engagement
Trip participants are currently being selected.
Check out the AWOL Alumni
