DeKALB | While some students will use spring break to relax, others will volunteer in service programs offered by NIU and the community.

One such program is NIU’s Alternative Spring Break, which had three destinations available to students.

Some students will help at the Safari Exotic Wildlife Sanctuary in Broken Arrow, Okla., said Becky Harlow, the assistant director of Student Involvement and Leadership Development.

Animals are sent there when there are too many at the zoo or when people turn in exotic animals, Harlow said.

The other two programs are in New Orleans. One group will be a part of Rebuilding Together New Orleans. The initial goal of the organization was neighborhood improvement, but after Hurricane Katrina, the programs seeks to help people get back into their homes, Harlow said.

The second group will help Katrina’s Kids. Organized by the America’s Promise Alliance, the program helps children who suffer from mental health issues. Some of these children’s first memories were of the disaster left by Hurricane Katrina, and the students volunteering will work with them to socialize them through games and activities, Harlow said.

Another trip NIU is offering is an outdoor excursion to Georgia.

The purpose of the trip is to improve and maintain the existing trails of the Chattahoochee National Forest in Suches, Georgia.

“We will work from Monday until Friday on anything that needs to be fixed on the trails,” said Christine Lagattolla, assistant director for outdoor adventures for the Campus Recreation Center and the leader of the trip. “We are also stopping at Mammoth Cave.” 

A group from Lutheran Campus Ministry, 401 Normal Road, will head to southern California, where they will learn more about the issues surrounding immigration and illegal entry to the U.S.

“We will visit and hang out with kids in a youth detention camp at the border, meet with the staff of Survivors of Torture, meet with people who are the experts on drug cartels south of the border and the impact of drug trafficking,” said Diane Dardon, a leader in the campus ministry group.

The group typically takes a trip to Guatemala to build a school. The students started the project four years ago and are almost finished. This year, however, the trip was rescheduled for safety reasons.

The group decided if they could not continue building on the school they’ve started, they would go learn about the issues of what was keeping them away from Guatemala, Dardon said.

Harlow said several students participate in these trips solely for the good feeling of making a difference. Others use this week as a contribution to their service hours toward their other service groups here on campus.

“Students at NIU like doing good things,” Harlow said. “Most of these students are involved throughout the semester in other organizations and it is hard to notice if they make a difference. This time off gives them time to go someplace new and see the changes they are making. This experience gives them the ability to see change is possible, and they return to NIU with a stronger attitude towards making a difference at NIU.”