Since 2009, University Housing has coordinated alternative spring break opportunities in a variety of locations that focus on service. As part of the experience, it is a requirement for students to volunteer service hours in the campus and local communities in addition to their service hour contribution during the spring break trip.
This year, the Provost’s Office and a student from the Illinois Business Consulting group collaborated to propose an additional trip to travel to Miami, Oklahoma to work with the Peoria Tribe.
The location options for the 2016 Alternative Spring Break trips included:
- Miami, Oklahoma to work with the Peoria Tribe with a focus on housing and community development.
- New Orleans, Louisiana with a focus on housing development.
- San Juan, Puerto Rico with a focus on education and environment.
Forty-three students and seven professional staff members participated in the 2016 alternative spring break trips. The group contributed a total of 1,680 hours of service. Before they left for the trips, students completed 389 of those service hours in the Champaign-Urbana community. The trip details are below.
- Miami, Oklahoma: 288 service hours (24 per participant)
- New Orleans, Louisiana: 805 service hours (28 per person)
- San Juan, Puerto Rico: 198 service hours (22 per person)
