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Alternative Winter Break

Alternative Winter Breaks is a class that focuses on a service trip that will take place January 3-10, 2010. Groups of seven KU students will travel to locations across the country for a week of service work. Each site works on a specific issue ranging from environmentalism to poverty. The overall goal is to provide KU students with a unique opportunity to volunteer and grow on a personal level. We stress the concepts of education, direct service and reflection. We hope that students participating in a break will come away with new perspectives, relationships and a lifelong commitment to service.

Alternative Winter Break is a division of Alternative Breaks. Alternative Breaks was established at KU in 1995 with a Spring Break trip to El Paso, TX. Since then, it has expanded to include winter, spring, and weekend break programs, with more sites and opportunities to volunteer being added every year. Alternative Breaks is a completely student run organization, focused on making these experiences interesting and valulable to our fellow students. For more information about Alternative Breaks or any of our programs, please see our contact information.

Cost

Participants ∙ $275
Site Leaders ∙ $225

This includes transportation, housing, meals, mini-break and t-shirt. A $50 deposit is required with all applications. The remainder of the program fee will be due on the second class meeting. Participants who are not selected will have their deposit refunded. The cost of enrolling in the class for 1 or 2 credits is not included.

Scholarships may be available in cases of financial need. If available, scholarship applications will be available during the first class period. Those people selected will be notified by the time their balance is due. For more information, please contact an AB staff member. Other sources of scholarships are available from various campus locations.

What is a Site Leader?

Each Alternative Winter Break group has two student site leaders. These participants are responsible for organizing trip details, maintaining contact with the site and leading small group meetings. Site leaders are also required to attend site leader training on Saturday, September 20th. It is not necessary to have participated in an Alternative Break to serve as a site leader, only a desire to lead and a willingness to put in some extra work. For their additional effort, site leaders receive a discounted program fee and invaluable leadership experience. Pick up a site leader application for more information.

Honors Credit

Completing an Alternative Winter Break counts as one honors unit for the KU Honors Program. Students in the Honors Program are required to complete one or two honors units outside the classroom to graduate with honors. For more information about how to qualify your trip, contact the Honors Program at 864-4225.