YORK, Pa. — Helping other people, making a difference, the experience of meeting new people, stepping out of their comfort zone, sharing a meaningful goal, and putting spring break to good use are just some of the reasons given by Penn State York students about to travel to Texas, the Beaumont and Port Arthur areas, devastated by Hurricane Harvey. The group of 10 students and two chaperones will join students and staff from five other Penn State campuses — University Park; Penn State Erie, The Behrend College; Greater Allegheny; Harrisburg; and Worthington Scranton, for an alternative spring break, March 3-9. The Penn State group is about 100 strong.
“Penn State York decided to be a part of the Hurricane Harvey Relief Effort because it would provide students with real-world experiences and an opportunity to make a difference on their break,” said Dan Puccio, associate director of student affairs at the York campus and one of the chaperones for the trip. “This effort also tied in well with what is currently going on in the country, builds upon our campus clothing and nonperishable food drive that was done for Hurricane Harvey survivors, last fall, and since money had already been allocated to our office for an Alternative Spring Break trip through the Student Activity Fee, we jumped at the opportunity to be a part of something bigger."
Alternative spring break experiences are not new to Penn State York. Students have traveled to Louisiana to help with relief efforts following Hurricane Katrina, Washington D.C. to help with after school programs with the United Way, to the Bahamas with a focus on children’s literacy, and in 2017, a group traveled to Puerto Rico to work in a rain forest with an emphasis on ecology.
In addition to Puccio, Sheri Yoder, global education coordinator, will also be a chaperone on the trip. Last year, Yoder traveled to Puerto Rico with the York group.