Ginsberg Center: Michigan Active Citizens Alternative Spring Break (MAC-ASB) Program in the U.S.
Overview
ASB Participants
Since 1990, the University of Michigan Active Citizens: Alternative Spring Break (MAC-ASB) program has helped thousands of students experience week-long service learning trips all around the country, through a year-long program where they learn about social justice issues, engage with new communities, and form lifelong friendships. We are now one of the largest programs in the country, engaging over 350 students each year. Our mission is to to foster active citizenship by engaging with community partners to cultivate an understanding of social justice issues. For information about our program’s mission, description and how you can make a difference, visit our official website, "like" us on Facebook, and follow us on Twitter.
University of Michigan Active Citizens: Alternative Spring Break is a Ginsberg Center-sponsored student organization that offers a community service learning experience during the traditional Spring Break of the academic calendar. Students spend the year learning about the culture and history of a particular area, community, or issue. During Spring Break, groups travel by road to a selected site to engage in meaningful action towards a greater understanding of root causes of relevant issues. Students participate in critical reflection and analysis of social justice issues they experience first-hand. The program is dedicated to providing break opportunities to as many students as possible, while striving to increase community impact and student learning and aiming to help address societal problems with understanding and compassion. Critical elements of this process are recognizing community needs and assets while working in partnership with community members. Equally important is translating the experience into an understanding of the complexity and interconnectedness of social problems and making a commitment to being part of the long-term solution.
Past and present ASB sites have included delivering meals to patients who are immunocompromised in New York City, repairing homes damaged in natural disasters, engaging with urban youth in Chicago, working with undocumented LGBTQ youth in North Carolina, learning about sustainable agriculture in Texas, and helping with mathematics and English classes for refugees in Atlanta. A full list of this year’s site topics and descriptions can be found here.
Eligibility
All enrolled University of Michigan students are welcome and encouraged to apply for University of Michigan Active Citizens: Alternative Spring Break. No minimum GPA, class standing, etc. is required for participation.
Application Procedures
In the Fall semester of the academic year, students are required to apply for participation through the M-Compass participant application. In the application, students will be asked to rank their preferred topic groups (e.g., HIV/AIDS, Youth & Education, Domestic Violence). Upon completing the application, students will be contacted by site leaders of one of their preferred topic groups to schedule participant group interviews. Site leaders will then officially accept 10-12 students from their pool of interviewed applicants, to be notified within the following week. Participants not selected to go on a trip will be added to the waitlist and alerted of any openings throughout the semester.
Program Requirements
Upon acceptance, participants are required to:
Adhere to the MAC- Alternative Spring Break no-tolerance drug/alcohol policy during the trip and in any pre-break group activities
Pay a one-time, non-refundable participant fee of $150 by the fee due date. Need-based scholarships of varying amounts (quarter, half, and full scholarships) are available through a separate application to be completed after acceptance to the program.
Attend bi-weekly group meetings as scheduled throughout the Fall semester and attend weekly group meeting Winter semester
Attend multisite kick-off event before trip (February) and multisite reflection upon returning from trip (March)
Participate in group fundraising efforts -- including bucketing, distributing donation letters, and attending and advertising incentivized fundraisers -- to meet minimum group fundraising goal of $1,000
Engage in daily reflection with group for the duration of the trip
Work with your alternative spring break group to actively engage in service-learning and social justice, and work to gain a better understanding of different issues, and their interconnectedness with other social justice topics as a whole
Use your MAC-ASB to develop into active citizens and engage in your own communities after your return
Educate others about your experiences during your alternative spring break trip to help foster awareness and understanding of various social justice issues
Costs
Participant fees* are $150.00 for the entire week, and need-based scholarships are available. Each group is required to fundraise a minimum of $1,000 by the fundraising deadline (TBD) to go on a trip.
*Note: Participant fees are non-refundable.
Dates & Deadlines
Alternative Spring Break takes place from Saturday, February 24, 2024 through Sunday, March 3th.However, all participants are expected to attend team meetings and program-wide trainings between October and March.
To be added to the e-mail list, please contact the ASB Lead Team at mac-leadteam@umich.edu or Alternative Breaks Coordinator, Riley Wilson at rwils@umich.edu
Edward Ginsberg Center
University of Michigan
1024 Hill Street
Ann Arbor, MI 48104
(734) 763-3548 ginsberginfo@umich.edu
