Our Crowdfunding Groups
The Honors Alternative Spring Break (HASB) serves to connect ambitious and dedicated students from around the country to specific locations for one week. There students get to immerse themselves into the community by learning and serving the local areas while partnering with various nonprofit organizations. Our trip will be bringing this energy and work home to Tucson for the second year in a row! According to the US Census Bureau, in 2017, about 25% of Tucsonans live in poverty, which is twice the national average. During the week, we hope to expose ourselves to the issues surrounding the issue while volunteering and serving. Tucson is a beautiful city and there is potential to make it a better home for everyone! To do this, we need your help! We greatly appreciate your help in making this service-learning opportunity possible.
Over the course of the trip we will be working with several non-profits to learn about poverty, public health, youth homelessness, malnutrition, and violence within the homeless community. Typically, we will be working with each organization for a day or two. A typical day is composed of service, breaks for lunch, information sessions with leaders in the Tucson community, and reflection to dissect everything we learned throughout the day. There will also be several breaks to bond with one another and explore the wonderful attractions of the city of Tucson. Here are a few of the organizations we will be working with during our trip:
The Z mansion is a beautiful location where weddings are held weekly. When the mansion is not uniting people in marriage, it is serving the homeless community. Three days a week the building opens to provide food, clothes, and medical treatment to any and all who walk through its doors.
Each week, Felicia’s Farm donates an average of 250 pounds of produce and 100 dozen eggs to a local soup kitchen, helping 1,000 very low income and/or homeless people have better food to eat.
Youth On Their Own (YOTO) is a dropout prevention program that supports the high school graduation and continued success of homeless, unaccompanied youth in Pima County.
Habitat for Humanity International is a nonprofit organization that brings families, volunteers and resources together to build simple, decent, and affordable housing in low-income areas. Houses are sold at no profit and owners provide hard work, a down payment, and ongoing interest-free payments.
Meet the Participants!
My name is Shruti Attreya and I am a current freshman majoring in Neuroscience and Cognitive Science with minors in Public Health and Business Entrepreneurship at the University of Arizona. In high school I developed a deep passion for serving medically under-served communities while working as an ambassador for a global non-profit, and this passion has also inspired me to study and explore other public health issues in college. This is why I am really excited for the Honors Alternative Spring Break Trip in Tucson as I can not only apply interdisciplinary thinking to understand the issues that affect the city I am living in, but I also get the chance to serve this vibrant community with people who are equally as passionate about the issues as I am.
Hi! My name is Ashley Anders and I am a junior at the University of Arizona studying Elementary Education. I am joining the HASB Tucson because as a future teacher I know that homelessness, poverty, and public health can affect some of my students and their families. I want to learn more about the issues that some of them may face and how it can impact their schooling experience. I hope to learn more about how I can help my Tucson community and how I can apply what I have learned to better the lives of my future students. I am excited for the opportunity to be a part of HASB Tucson!
Hello! My name is Cameron and I'm a first year biology major. I want to go on the HASB trip to learn more about the community around me and do my part in creating a positive change in Tucson!
Hi! My name is Anna Bauer and I am a freshman in the Honors College here at the University of Arizona. I am a business major with a double minor in Spanish and oboe performance. I'm super excited for the HASB trip because I want to get to know Tucson, especially as an out of state student. I hope to give back to the city that is giving so much to me!
Hi my name is Ramsey and I am studying Biochemistry and Neuroscience.With the goal of studying medicine after my undergraduate career, I believe the Tucson trip would offer insight on a relevant and critical issue that would apply to my career goal. This would be an interesting opportunity to investigate health professions and how public health is related to other topics such as poverty.
Hello, my name is Jeanelle and I am a Junior studying Neuroscience and Cognitive science here at U of A. I am honored to be a part of the alternative spring break trip and I look forward to exploring more of this amazing city while learning how to give back to it's communities. Too many Tucson residents struggle to find shelter each night and it is an issue that needs to be addressed. As another member of this community, I feel a strong sense of duty and urgency in helping out my local neighbors. Know that anybody who supports this trip will be incredibly appreciated and will be contributing to a great cause.
Hi, my name is Olivia and I am studying Physics and Global Studies. I am joining the Tucson trip because it struck a chord with my love for developing an inviting, mutually-supportive community. I know it sounds very idealistic; I have always wanted to make the people around me feel heard and loved, in addition to actually helping them. Idealism, however, is only a problem when it’s not physically realized. This trip is the perfect opportunity to continue to take action in light of my ideals--to develop a symbiotic community.
Hello, my name is Beryl and I want to do HASB because I've lived in Tucson my whole and Tucson is very close to my heart so I want to spend my break here learning about and going back to my community. I want to learn and grow with my peers who are interested in the same things and find ways we can make our city a little bit better for everyone.
Cover the purchase of journals for the participants! We will be doing daily reflections to document our journey.
Wee need energy to serve! Purchase 3 meals for one participant.
Covers the cost of transportation around Tucson for one student!
