One week can change your life.
About 4,200 students can tell you how. For the past ten years every March, hundreds of college students have taken advantage of their spring break by rebuilding homes, supporting kids’ growth, improving food access, or otherwise impacting more than 11 communities around the US through Alternative Spring Break. These are their stories.
Giving Back in El Paso
Caleb Sloan didn’t know what he was getting himself into. He signed up for his first Alternative Spring Break (ASB) in Williamson County, Tennessee, hoping to do more with his spring break than just hang out. He didn’t realize the week would have such an impact on him.

"You leave a little bit different, a little bit changed."
-Caleb
Now about to embark on his third ASB, this time in El Paso, Texas, Caleb knows he’ll meet incredible volunteers from all over the country, delve into a fascinating community with unique culture and opportunities, and build his resume and leadership skills. In fact, this year the Western Kentucky University architectural science major will put his expertise to good use by building a house alongside the very family that will soon call it home.
But there’s another reason Caleb keeps going back.
“You think that you’re going to give back to the community in some way, but the people you’re around—the other volunteers and the people you’re helping—give back to you more than you could ever give back to them.”