By Nicole Findlay
While her peers head south for a week of sea and sun, and others cross their fingers for powder on the slopes, Meghan Moore, a first-year ArtsOne student will spend her reading week on the streets of Vancouver’s downtown east side.
Moore is one of 15 Carleton students who are participating in Alternative Spring Break. From February 17 to the 22, the student volunteers will partner with counterparts from UBC to learn first-hand how people live in one of Canada’s poorest urban communities.
“I am participating in the Alternative Spring Break program out of pure interest, hope and inspiration,” said Moore. “Living in such a small town where everyone literally knows your name, we are not faced with such challenges as the ones that downtown eastside Vancouver faces everyday.”
A native of Clinton, Ontario, Moore volunteered for the program to broaden her perspective while fully engaging in her first year at university.
In addition to volunteering a week where most would savour a respite from work, the students foot the bill for travel and accommodations. Through fundraising activities – matched by Carleton, Moore and her peers have been working to offset the cost.
The students will be challenged to make connections between the service they provide to the community and the knowledge and skills they acquire in the classroom. The participants will be expected to connect in-class learning with their experiences on the street. Accompanying faculty members will guide them through the process.
The new initiative is part of the recently launched Community Service Learning (CSL) program. Developed by the First Year Experience Office (FYEO), the program includes a number of activities that focus on poverty and student volunteerism.
“This kind of hands-on community experience combined with educational workshops gives our students a deeper understanding of social and urban issues such as poverty and homelessness,” said Erin Kaipainen, FYEO’s Leadership Development and Experiential Education coordinator.