Competing with religious holidays and students’ desires to take a relaxing, tropical week off, Alternative Spring Break sent students to a murder trial, a circus elephant sanctuary and HIV/AIDS clinics among 15 community service trips around the United States.

“Each trip involves a component of service learning and hearing first-hand why these issues are important,” said Kimberly Austin, co-program director for ASB and a Medill senior.

Despite a van of students crashing on their way to Chinle, Ariz., Austin said all of the trips went beyond her and the site leaders’ expectations.

“When you go to new cities you find new obstacles,” Austin said regarding the van accident. “That’s part of the fun of it: Finding out what the new cities are about.”

The accident occurred on March 25, the second day of the trip, leaving the group without one of its two vans.

“It was a difficult situation for Motor Pool to handle,” said Tony Cho, one of the site’s leaders, referring to the department responsible for finding the group another van. “I guess they weren’t anticipating a situation in which we’d get one of our vehicles towed. It seemed impossible for them to get us a van during the week.”

With the help of AmeriCorps workers from the site, the group had transportation available to accomplish all of its service goals, said Cho, a Weinberg senior.

“The trip was an amazing experience,” he said. “I don’t think the accident affected our learning or serving in any way.”

Other groups said their trips rolled smoothly.

One highlight of the Spring Break came from Detroit, Austin said, when a group working with Save our Sons and Daughters, an organization to prevent youth violence, sat in on a murder trial.

Also, a new trip sent students to an animal rights site, a sanctuary for adopted circus elephants in Hohenwald, Tenn. Students also went to traditional ASB sites such as child development centers and environmental clean-up areas.

ASB feared a drop in applications because Spring Break coincided with Passover and Easter, and as a result of Sept. 11, Austin said. The board dropped the number of trips to 15 from last year’s 18. However, they were pleasantly surprised by the large number of applicants, Austin said. In the end, they probably could have filled all 18 trips, she said.

“I think the consistent enthusiasm for ASB says a lot about the students of our campus,” Austin said. “I am really pleased to know that this desire to volunteer and learn is still strong at time when it’s so easy to be self-oriented.”