ANN ARBOR—Many students at the University of Michigan will forego relaxing at beaches or home during spring break in order to perform community service or to apply what they learned in the classroom.

U-M’s spring vacation is from noon Feb. 25 to March 6. Many students will use the time away from school to help others worldwide, mainly in the United States, in alternative spring break opportunities. Some efforts include:

The Ecumenical Center and International Residence (ECIR), along with the Wesley Foundation, is sending groups of students on two ventures.

• Eleven U-M students and one non-student adult will visit Honduras on Feb. 25 to work in a mountain community. They will help construct a church building that will be used for many community activities. Contacts are Greg Martin, gregumwf@umich.edu, (734) 846-9062 and Megan Johnson, mjjo@umich.edu, (734) 662-5529.
• About 25 people, including 20 U-M students, will travel to Mississippi to help rebuilding efforts after Hurricane Katrina. Esperanza Barcelona, an ECIR staff member, is the contact at (734) 662-5529 or ecir@provide.net.

The Public Health Action Support Team will go to the Gulf Coast from Feb. 26 to March 4 for a variety of projects, including many related to health issues in the wake of hurricane Katrina. The group consists of 40 students—representing four of the five departments from the School of Public Health—and four advisers from the Office of Public Health Practice. The trip leader will be JoLynn Montgomery, and the efforts are funded by a Center for Public Health Preparedness grant.

Projects include:

• Assist the Salvation Army in Bogalusa, La. with sorting items for the thrift store and disaster relief casework.
•  Find Family National Call Center in Baton Rouge, La. needs students to help dental staff obtain dental records for identification of deceased and assist with computer-based searches of families and individuals.
• Hands On Network, Biloxi, Miss. This is a combination of relief/clean-up and outreach. These students will update their blog during their travels; it already includes information about the various projects they have planned: http://phastbreak.blogspot.com/ For additional information, contact Colleen Newvine at (734) 647-4411.

The Edward Ginsberg Center for Community Service and Learning coordinates the University’s Alternative Spring Break program. At least 420 U-M students will spend their time at one of more than 30 participant sites in the United States, Mexico and Canada.

Efforts include:

• Ten students will go to Como Elementary School in St. Paul, Minn. Within the past year, a great number of Hmong refugees have immigrated to Minnesota from Thailand after their refugee camp was closed. As families settle in the U.S., children must learn English and adjust to schools. U-M volunteers will engage in after-school and in-school activities, including group work and academic tutoring to help students.
• The Philadelphia Wooden Boat Factory is a non-profit maritime education organization that enriches peoples’ lives through relevant, interactive educational programming based on the sea’s heritage. Ten U-M students will work with Philadelphia teenagers on projects involving the design and construction of boats, while learning about math, geography and history.

For additional information about ASB, visit http://www.umich.edu/~mserve/serve/asb/sites.html Student interviews can be arranged by Tracy Welch, (734) 936-2437, Galina Radunsky (585) 503-8820 or Lauren Kelbel (574) 298-8769 or Joanne Nesbit, (734) 647-4418.

Some students will also apply what they learned in a classroom in the real world.

• The International Policy Center at the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy, along with other university units, will sponsor 25 graduate students and two U-M professors for their trip to China from Feb. 27 to March 3. They will attend meetings in Beijing and Xian with scholars, business leaders and government officials to learn more about China’s growing economy and pressing policy issues.

Ann Lin, an associate professor of public policy and political science, has led the class in examining China’s foreign policy, political structure and current policy challenges. After the trip, students will write reports analyzing Chinese policy issues. For additional information, contact Lin at (734) 764-7507 or annlin@umich.edu.