Spring break provides students a repose from the stress of schoolwork and exams, giving many the time to spend with family and friends — and enjoy vacation. However, several students will spend their break differently, by traveling to McKees Rocks, Pennsylvania to engage in a community service opportunity pertaining to poverty.
Those enrolled in the semester-long course, urban poverty: problems and prescriptions, will be in McKees Rocks from March 25-31 as part of the 13th annual Alternative Spring Break Program.
Although many of the students may not have heard of McKees Rocks prior to this program, the trip is especially important to the instructor of the course, Bonnie Gasior, as the destination is her hometown.
“Although I have not lived there for nearly three decades, my formative years were spent there, and they shaped who I am today,” Gasior said in an email.
For Gasior, being able to return to her hometown and give back to the community along with her students “makes the experience all the more meaningful.”
The program began spring 2006; its goal was to foster goodwill after hurricanes Katrina and Rita.
Now, the program is broadening its horizons and sending students to the Appalachian region.
To prepare for the trip, students spent the spring semester learning about how the dynamics of race, gender and sexuality, health and economics play a role in urban poverty, specifically focusing on Appalachia — a geographic region composed of 13 states ranging from southern New York to northern Mississippi, and is home to more than 250,000 people.
Because poverty is such a prominent matter in the U.S. and worldwide, this course has attracted students from a wide variety of fields, including Leann McElhaney, a sophomore studio art major.
“I’ve learned how lucky we are to have the luxuries that we have, the trip will definitely be an eye-opening experience,” McElhaney said.
Not only has the course provided students with a new perspective of observing the world, but it has also supplied many with valuable knowledge that may be used in the future.
Shai Tanner, a senior molecular cellular biology and physiology major, hopes to apply what she has learned in the course to her field of interest.
“I want to be a doctor in the future, specifically a pathologist, and I’m most interested in health disparities within underserved populations, including African American and Latino communities,” Tanner said.
During the trip, students will attend a local high school rally, acting as panelists and answer any questions students may have about college.
“The aim is to encourage higher education,” Tanner said. “Not a lot of students in that region are aware of their opportunities, and many of them don’t have role models to look up to.”
Students will also gain insight on housing needs and issues by surveying homeowners.
Sia Turay, a senior civil engineering major, is currently working on a research paper for creating affordable housing in Appalachia and making it more accessible.
“I’m working on figuring out a way for a big company to move into Appalachia and create more jobs to stimulate the economy and increase housing,” Turay said.