While many Mississippi State University students will spend their spring break relaxing, a small group of students will participate in different community service projects.
Thirty students and faculty will divide into three service teams to work with organizations such as Habitat for Humanity, Head Start, the Boys and Girls Club and a local food bank as an alternative to a spring break trip.
Rochelle Smith, graduate assistant for the Montgomery Leadership program and co-coordinator for the Alternative Spring Break Trip, said the Montgomery Leadership program previously organized a service retreat for two or three days for its own members.  The new program has been extended to five days, and any student can participate.
“Because we are doing several different projects, it makes the trip attractive to a broad spectrum of students to come together to engage in community service,” Smith said.
Some students on the trip will have the opportunity to be site leaders, which means they will facilitate group discussions and will be general leaders for the activities during the day, she said.
MSU has partnered with Breakaway, a company which links universities and community organizations in need.  It has paired MSU with Community Collaborations, which is focused on ecosystem restoration, she said.  Therefore, one day of spring break will be dedicated entirely to an environmental relief project.  
The group will stay on the shore of the Choctawhatchee Bay at Camp Timpoochee and will work from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. each day of the trip. The students are doing these projects to benefit the Muscogee Native American Community.
“We will have group reflections of the day’s activities to determine what went well, what didn’t go as well and what things we can do to contribute to group cohesiveness.  This ensures that all of our students get the most out of the experience,” Smith said.
After working each day, the students will have time to engage in different activities such as basketball, volleyball and bonfires.  The students will also listen to a guest speaker  on one of the nights.
Joy Kimble, junior communication major and trip attendee, said she is excited to have a chance to serve the community without outside distractions, like class and homework.
“I expect to have a humbling experience because we get so caught up in doing things our own way,” Kimble said. “This [program] will help me refocus on the things that I’m passionate about in a community that really needs the help.”
Matt Sherman, sophomore business information systems major, said he is excited to go down to Florida to help the community.
“I used to live in Florida, so going down there and doing community service will be a great experience,” Sherman said.
He also said he will consider going on the trip again if everything goes well.
Jeremy Hall, graduate assistant for the Maroon Volunteer Center and co-coordinator for the trip, said the most difficult part of the organization process was selecting which students would attend the trip. Fifty students applied for the trip but only half of the students could be picked because of the limited number of spots, he said.
In the future, Hall said he  hopes participants will use the program to reach out to other social organizations on campus to help them set up their own alternative spring break trips.
“I think it’s a great opportunity for students to go down there and represent the campus outside of the local community.  They get to enjoy spring break in a non-typical way that most students do not get to experience,” Hall said.
Kimble said she does not feel like she is giving up her spring break because this five-day trip could impact the community for years to come.
“It’s not a sacrifice,” she said. “It’s an investment that I’m very excited about being able to participate in.”