TUSCALOOSA, Ala. -- Several groups of students from The University of Alabama will participate in the upcoming Alternative Spring Break, a program sponsored by the UA Office of Community Service and Volunteerism that gives students the opportunity to perform community service.

The program (held during UA’s spring break week, March 29-April 2) helps the community with tangible work and service while giving students the life-changing experience of serving others and a broader understanding of the world around them.

One group of 10 students will serve the community of Sea Island, S.C. The students will spend the week building houses with Habitat for Humanity. They will depart on Sunday, March 28 and return on Saturday, April 3. Trip coordinator Jeremy Henderson can be reached at (office) 205/348-6866, (cell phone) 205/310-0099 to find out more about this project.

Ten students from the UA Wesley Foundation will also be working with Habitat for Humanity in Biloxi, Miss. The group has worked with Habitat for Humanity for the past several years, spending the past two in St. Petersburg, Fla. The group will depart on Sunday, March 28 and return on Friday, April 2. John Dew is the trip coordinator and he can be reached for more information at 205/348-9831.

Another group, sponsored by Baptist Campus Ministries, will be traveling to Mexico on a mission trip. They will depart on Friday, March 26 and return on Saturday, April 3. The 140 students participating in the mission will be divided into teams to perform community service. Their projects will include medical service performed by pre-medicine and nursing students, sports clinics, construction work and interaction with kids through music, food, recreation and Bible stories. Contact Matt Kerlin at 205/345-3983 or 205/345-3983 to learn more about this trip.

All of the trips should provide help to needy areas, as well as unique and memorable experiences for the students involved.