With plans ranging from visiting friends at other colleges to traveling somewhere warm and exotic, many students are looking forward to traditional spring break activities.
Yet over 100 students are getting ready for a less-common experience on their week off, arranging to participate in the Alternate Spring Break program.
Alternate Spring Break began in 1990 when it was founded by a group of eager Penn students who wanted to give others a chance to spend their spring breaks performing community service activities.
Since its founding, ASB has attracted thousands of students, who have then volunteered with the philanthropic organizations Habitat for Humanity and Break Away. Students have traveled all over the country to locations such as New Mexico, Georgia, Oklahoma and Miami.
This year, the program will include 112 students traveling to eight different sites, ASB Communication Director and College senior Maahir Haque said.
Haque noted that this is the first year that a total of eight sites will be offered because of the growing number of students interested in the program.
This year's sites include four Habitat For Humanity locations, including Mt. Vernon, Wash.; Taos, N.M.; Lancaster, Pa. and Marion, S.C.
There are also four Break Away sites, including Olive Hill, Ky.; Franklin Hill, N.C.; Denver and Providence, R.I.
Engineering freshman Clarinda Lim will be traveling to South Carolina to volunteer at the Marion site.
"I wanted to do something different during spring break," Lim said. "I feel this is a fun, meaningful and challenging way to spend my spring break."
She added that this "is a great opportunity to get to know more students in Penn [and] make new friends."
Haque agreed with Lim. He said that going on ASB is "by no means saying [that] I'm giving up on my spring break. [Rather,] you're enriching your spring break."
Students, according to Haque, volunteer 40 to 50 hours throughout the week that they are away.
Haque explained that students typically work from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday. Extra time allows students to explore the surrounding areas.
He added that "the appeal of ASB is that you enjoy yourself very much but also see other parts of the United States."
Engineering freshman Beth Gingold is looking forward to her trip to the Lancaster, Pa., site.
"I expect to learn something," Gingold said. She wants to learn "what it's like to spend a week with about 13 people I don't know ... and [see] what's in Lancaster."
Each of the eight sites Penn students will be traveling to will also be occupied by students from one to three other colleges and universities.
While at these sites, students will be assigned several tasks. "It could be painting the walls, roofing [or doing] renovation work" of houses, Lim said.
Volunteer programs similar to ASB also sponsor trips overseas.
College senior Andrew Joseph came up with the idea to start an alternate spring break for Jewish students who want to travel to Israel and potentially work or live there in the future.
There will be 11 students traveling to Israel next week to both volunteer and have fun.
"We will be packaging Purim baskets from scratch and then traveling to an Air Force base to hand-deliver the baskets," Joseph said.
The 11 students will also be spending time at an Israeli center for Ethiopian children who have recently come to the country.
"The Ethiopians are a community in Israel in great distress," Joseph explained, adding that by volunteering at this center and helping children adjust to their new surroundings, students will truly have a fulfilling experience.
Regardless of their destination, ASB participants are gearing up for what Lim describes as an "eye-opening experience."
