Alternative Spring Break in Alabama

More than 50 University of Hartford students will forgo sand and surf during Spring Break and join a Habitat for Humanity team headed for Birmingham, Ala. Instead of partying on the beaches of Cancún or Miami, the students will be making a difference in the lives of Birmingham residents by helping them build houses for their families.

The University of Hartford contingent will depart from campus on Saturday, March 19, at 7:30 a.m., bound for Birmingham, where they will spend the next seven days.

“For students who have never attended an Alternative Spring Break trip, the personal experiences, along with the educational values they will receive, are things they have never taken part in before,” says Matthew Carlin, AmeriCorps Volunteers in Service to America (VISTA) staff member for the university’s Center for Community Service. “These experiences and values are what bring the students back for the trip year after year and what motivates them to become even more involved with community service at the university.”

University of Hartford students have done more than just build houses during their Alternative Spring Breaks. In 2001, they helped with renovations to a church in Tarboro, N.C., that had been significantly damaged by a major flood, and they also worked on establishing a 911 phone alert system for the town. In 2002, students traveled to Franklin, W.V., located in one of the poorest counties in the nation, and spent time working to repair the roof of a home building supply warehouse. In 2003, they traveled to Albany, Ga., to rebuild houses damaged by severe floods and also cleared lots filled with trees for other houses to be built. The students also chipped in with their personal money to purchase a chainsaw as a donation to the local Habitat chapter. In 2004, University of Hartford students worked in Charleston, S.C., and built houses that were on stilts due to the flooding problems in the area.